On August 19, the Ateneo Art Gallery announced the 12 shortlisted artists and 10 shortlisted writers for the prestigious Ateneo Art Awards 2025 (AAA) at the Grand Atrium, Shangri-La Plaza.
The Purita Kalaw-Ledesma Prize in Art Criticism honors scholarly research and in-depth writing in the field of the visual arts. Co-presented by the Kalaw-Ledesma Foundation, Inc. and The Philippine Star, the prize accepted entries, written either in English or Filipino, on the theme “Flight.”
From the 10 shortlisted writers, two winners will be selected for the English category by The Philippine Star and ArtAsiaPacific, and one winner from the Filipino category by Katipunan Journal. Winners will be chosen to contribute to different publication platforms and will be eligible for month-long residencies with Orange Project Naranja Residency in Bacolod, Negros Occidental, The White House in San Antonio, Zambales, and new residency partner Indeks in Bandung, Indonesia.
Pura Kalaw-Ledesma Prizes in Art Criticism
This year’s shortlist in the prize’s English category are Bea Belen-Ferrer’s “In Between Flight and Fallout: What Would Postwar Modernists Do?,” Abigail Buendia’s “When the City Catches Fire: In Defense of Carla Gamalinda’s Open City,” Pie Tiausas’ “The internet is a space for the lonely,” Tyra Maria Trono’s “Wings for 99 Pesos: On the Sentimental Weight of Dollar-Store Objects and the Imagination of Flight,” and Denzel Yorong’s “Martino Abellana and the myth of legacy.”
In the prize’s Filipino category, the shortlisted written pieces are Mavs Alviar’s “Through the Fire: Kung masasaksihan mo lang ang mundo at ang ningning ng mga alipato mula sa ilalim ng mga basket at banig” Emersan Baldemor’s “Hindi Lahat ng Umaangat ay Naaalala: Si Tandang Ano at ang Politikang Estetiko ng Paglimot,” Eric John Bituin’s “Mga Paang Namumugto: Sining, Pandemya, at ang Lumalakad sa Gilid ng Daan,” Josh Paradeza’s “Ang Tuloy-tuloy na Pagpapalagay sa Winala, Nawawala, Nawalan ni Ides Macapanpan” and MJ Rafal’s “Ang Lipad at Liyab sa A Sea on Fire II ni Joar Songcuya.”
Fernando Zóbel Prizes for Visual Art
The AAA also announced the Fernando Zóbel Prizes for Visual Art, which aim to spotlight Filipino contemporary artists under the age of 36. From the 12 shortlisted artists, four winners will be selected to be eligible for local and international residency grants funded by the Ateneo Art Gallery. One shortlisted artist will also be selected as recipient of the Embassy of Italy Purchase Prize.
The 12 shortlisted art exhibits are Lesley Anne-Cao’s If time is an arrow, what is its target, Uri de Ger’s Beauty is in the Eye of the Colonizer, Lui Gonzales’ A Tree Is A Seed As It Falls, Silke Lapina’s Bakit Pa, Celline Marge Mercado’s Between the Lines, Hannah Reyes Morales’ Home Holds Still, Veronica Peralejo’s A Tiny Ball of Mud, Issay Rodriguez’s gathering, collecting, ongoingness, Eunice Sanchez’s Sa Ilog Nagtatagpo, Jel Suarez’s As I Lift One Stone, Vien Valencia’s Totems, and Jezzel Wee’s to weigh seeds, pulling through.
Winning artists and writers will be announced on October 5. A preview of the exhibition is currently running until August 25 at Shangri-La Plaza, where guests can view selections from the shortlisted exhibits and essays.
The full exhibition will be open to the public at the Ateneo Art Gallery from September 5 to December 7.
