Though I wouldn’t say that the holiday season directly influences my work, I would say that it makes me think about family, which is very important in my work and seems to be a detail involved in any type of work that I do.
My family is originally from the Philippines! Both of my parents were born and raised in the Philippines. I was born in the Philippines but was immediately brought here to the States before I turned 1.
I didn’t grow up there like my parents did, so I’ve always been curious about what life was like for them growing up. I always ask my parents about their lives, what it looked like, and what it felt like. What they wore growing up, what music they were listening to, and what they would do for fun as teenagers/young adults - these are things that shape all the work that I do.
I was able to visit the Philippines back in 2010 and from just being there for that time, I learned so much about my family and their roots, but even that wasn’t enough. Though I feel like I don’t have a full grasp of the Filipino culture, I try to respectfully display this culture in all my works, through my own lens and personal perspective. Phoenix doesn’t have much representation when it comes to the Philippines’ culture, so I try my best to display that as much as I can with any work that I do and the people that I work with.
As of late, I feel like I approach creating my work personally and emotionally. Approaching my work from a personal level gives my work intention, with the sole purpose of sharing my family’s story. Approaching my work from an emotional level helps my mental health and spirituality A LOT.
I seem to gravitate towards projects that make me feel strong emotions and feelings. It’s not always positive emotions either. The more a project makes me FEEL, whether that’s a good feeling or bad feeling, the more I seem to want to do it. I think approaching my work in that way is important, especially being a male in today’s society. It’s okay to be emotional! Some of my best work has come from being the most emotional. I always strive to create works that evoke emotion and make the viewer think.
“The more I loved myself, the more SELPH and I grew.”
Just recently I did an event titled, “KENNI” which was an art installation/market/parking lot function, that told the story of my family’s journey from the Philippines to the U.S. The name “KENNI” comes from the name of the street my grandparent’s house was on in Vallejo, California, which was Kennison CT. Being that my childhood was a big inspiration for this project, I shortened the name of Kennison to KENNI, to give the name more of a playful, youthful ring to it. On display were 4 nostalgic art pieces: a pair of Air Max 95s, a scooter, a bike, and a basketball hoop, which were customized with stainless-steel chains and connectors used in the accessories that I make through SELPH Works. Being that family was/is an extremely important part of my life, I wanted to include my closest friends and display their talents and works.
In wanting to do that, I was able to include works from photographers Brandon Lopez (BarterForChange), Eli Cook, and Elden Andrews in my personal installations. Along with those three, I was able to have more of my closest friends create installations/experiences and sell their products that same night. KENNI Parking Lot Function included: Krèto, NeverGoodEnough, Dübys, Aquino’s Kitchen, and Mama Selph & Mama Krèto.
KENNI was my first real collaboration experience, and I will never forget something like that. Every single person that was involved in KENNI from start to finish was someone that I consider family. These people have helped me get to where I am today with SELPH and as a person.
I hope to lead by example in my profession and I hope that my work resonates with people in ways that make them want to be their own authentic selves.
As creatives, we’re constantly asked, “So what’s next?” or “When’s the next event?”. To me, that means that they loved my current project and just wanted to see and experience more. I try to remain as present as possible with everything that I do. The reality is, I’m one human and I need to recognize that! Consistency, high-quality projects/product, and intention is what helps me keep this balance.
One of my goals though for each upcoming project is for it to be better than the last, regardless of the size of the improvement. My goal for 2024 is to have at least 2 interactive community events where we do things such as community painting, group sports, fitness classes, and collage making. I’ve been focusing a lot on my mental health and overall spirituality this last year and a half. It was activities like these that helped me heal and I want to be able to provide such activities in an attempt to help others heal as well.
For followers/supporters of SELPH, expect a lot of really cool things in 2024! I plan to dive into 3D Modeling/Printing, videography and focus on community-focused events. Expect more interaction, more products, and more growth!
