Visual artist Don Salubayba passes away

Internationally renowned visual artist Don Maralit Salubayba passed away from a burst aneurysm that led to a stroke and coma in the wee hours of Wednesday, March 12.

A graduate of batch Avellana-Brocka from the Philippine High School for the Arts and a Fine Arts graduate of the University of the Philippines Diliman, Salubayba was the recipient of the 2009 Thirteen Artists Award from the Cultural Center of the Philippines, among many otherrecognitions.

Prolific as he was multi-awarded, the PHSA teacher was engaged in shadowplay theater, painting, and installation art. His work paved the way for exhibitions and residencies in Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and the US. He won the Special Jury Prize Award and Voice Award at the Singapore Short Film Festival held at the Substation Art Center in Singapore for his animation piece, “A Not So Giant Story” in 2006.

He was also a member of Anino Shadowplay Collective and TuTok artists collective; and an employee in Laguna's independent secondary school Beacon Academy and the Center for Art, New Ventures and Sustainable Development (CANVAS), an organization dedicated to promoting Philippine art and culture through exhibitions and publications of books and merchandise.

Below, Salubayba gives a TEDx Talk in UP Diliman called "Shadows Matter," on how shadows trigger the imagination.



Salubayba's work was characterized by "sweeping lines and diluted colors" as well as an extraordinary attention to detail, a chaotic dreaminess, and a tendency to sprawl over the surface utilized.

Salubayba is survived by wife OJ and children Amaya and Elias. His remains will lie in the Acts Room of St. Peter's Chapel in Quezon Ave. beginning 9 p.m. Wednesday night.  — Vida Cruz/BM, GMA News