A selection of exhibition posters collected by art patron, writer and cultural worker Purita Kalaw-Ledesma is the focus of “Collecting the Moment: Art Exhibitions in Print,” an exhibition that traces the development of modern and contemporary art in the Philippines.The display features 130 printed materials drawn from Kalaw-Ledesma’s personal collection, presenting a range of typography, imagery and graphic design associated with gallery exhibitions.According to curatorial consultant Anna Rosete, the posters reflect changing aesthetics, curatorial approaches and cultural conversations across different periods.“Exhibition posters are designed for immediacy. They announce, invite and communicate a show through the interplay of graphic design, text and image,” Rosete said.“While they help shape an artist’s identity and situate a body of work within its historical moment, they are also ephemeral — often disappearing once the exhibition ends, surviving only in memory,” she added.The posters are displayed on tables designed by curator and creative director Gabriel Lichauco, referencing a library setting. Rosete described the arrangement as an “open archive” that allows viewers to examine how exhibitions and artistic activity were once documented and circulated in print.“Displayed on tables designed by curator and creative director Gabriel Lichauco as a nod to the library, the posters form an open archive — one that reveals how moments of artistic production, debate and community were once shared in print,” Rosete said.Many of the materials, which span the 1970s and 1980s, were donated to the Kalaw-Ledesma Foundation Inc. Rosete noted that the two decades marked important shifts in Philippine cultural history.“During the 1970s, visual culture often conveyed ideals of discipline, order and refinement under Martial Law,” she said. “In the 1980s, as the country moved toward democracy following Edsa, these visual languages became more varied and open, expressing a broader and more democratic cultural identity.”Rosete added that the posters also document key moments in the local art scene.“They document first solo shows, group exhibitions and landmark retrospectives—moments when artists claimed space, audiences gathered and art history quietly took shape,” she said.“While the exhibitions were temporary, this collection preserves what once passed, inviting new readings of how art is introduced, remembered and sustained.”The exhibition is co-presented by the Kalaw-Ledesma Foundation Inc. and the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde Center for Campus Exhibitions. It is part of the Art Fair Philippines 2026 Collectors Circle Program and “10 Days of Art,” with support from Art Caravan PH.“Collecting the Moment: Art Exhibitions in Print” runs until March 31, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at A1201 Benilde Design + Arts Campus, 950 Pablo Ocampo Street, Malate, Manila.
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