First in the Philippines, Cebu Art Book Fair 2022 celebrates stories in print from Cebu to the world

 

Cebu City, a UNESCO Creative City of Design, is hosting the first Art Book Fair in the country on July 2-3, 2022 at From Here Content & Events Space in Crossroads Cebu. The event features the work of various local and national artists, with exclusive creative sessions from award-winning artists like Larry Ypil, Clara Cayosa, and Happy Garaje. 

Art Book Fairs from all over the world are intended to celebrate art in printed form, including self-published art books, zines, posters, and postcards. In Southeast Asia alone, cities like Singapore and Bangkok have done successful exhibitions over the past few years. 

The Cebu Art Book Fair (CABF), organized by graphic designer Marc Abuan, art and design studio Happy Garaje, PRWorks, and Crossroads, aims to create a space for sharing stories, highlighting many local artists, illustrators, designers, writers, poets, and storytellers. 

“It’s a community event ,and we hope that CABF inspires our local artists, the new and the ones who took a break from the pandemic, to get back out there. It’s time to share their work once again,” said Mark Deutsch of Happy Garaje, one of the event organizers. The two-day event headlines a poster show entitled “Estoryang Binotbot”, a theme interpreted by local creatives using illustration, collage, photography, and even poetry. It also opens an exhibition area where various artists from Cebu, Manila, and cities from other countries like Amsterdam, Bangkok, Tokyo, and New York will showcase and sell printed versions of their work. 

Apart from exhibitions, CABF also has exclusive Artist Sessions. During these creative workshops, participants learn and share insights with artists up-close. Sessions include “Writing Images: for writers who love to look, and artists who love to read” run jointly by Palanca award-winning poet Larry Ypil and the Society of Illustrators Gold Award winning illustrators from Happy Garaje. There is also a “Make-A-Zine” workshop to be led by Cebuano artist Andre Chan. 

Adding to the festivities, Designer Clara Cayosa is doing a talk on creativity, local podcast group RetasoCast is broadcasting live from the venue, and pop bands Mandaue Nights, Sepia Times, and CDO-based KRNA are set to serenade event goers. 

CABF 2020 promises an impressive and creative gathering of people who love to tell and share their stories, empowering the local art scene in the process. Visit www.cebuartbookfair.com to sign up for the artist sessions and to learn more about the event activities.

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