Pangilinan started off in 2011 creating only black & white art, with pen & ink as her medium of choice and this black & white is in no way diminished the strength of her enormous expressive power. „This is the style that got me started and until today, I believe that there’s a whole section in my mind filled with black and white lines, shapes and patterns. I go back and forth between figurative and abstract expressionism, but whether it’s elements of nature, women or total abstraction, they are all mere symbols of universal emotions and experiences“, Pangilinan says.
She therefore refers to the works in black and white as her “Signature Series” because they represent the starting point of her oeuvre and also show the entire range of her skills as well as the enormous strength, fascinating precision and emotional depth of which she is capable, regardless of whether abstraction or figuration. She describes her style as “elaborate expressionism”, as she adds excessive detail on all sorts of scenes and subjects, mostly rotating between linescapes, leaves, lace and ladies. But no matter the subject or scene, it’s the details that distinguish her work.
Over time, she has developed what she calls the “Color Series”, which Pangilinan describes as follows: „For almost ten years, black and white was all I did and all I knew. Then one day, I recognized a lightness and a calm in my mind that wasn’t there before. I couldn’t make art for a long time, but when I did again, there was a lot less darkness and a lot more light. And there was color! There’s a new section in my mind filled with color and calm. And just like before, whether I’m painting elements of nature, women or total abstraction, they are all mere symbols of universal emotions and experiences. Hopefully, these artworks remind me and others of beautiful moments in life where I felt true peace.“
Pangilinan made a name for herself in particular with her solo show “Lost girls” in 2023, which delves into the emotional complexities of adulthood. Her new series of works show a sensitive examination of the topic of being a woman. This deals with growing up and taking responsibility for oneself. The fragility on the threshold from teenager to woman and the role of self-discovery as a woman in society. She stimulates an intensive dialog for the viewer into being a woman and also describes various emotional states that accompany a woman on her journey through life, both in joy and in crises or suffering. She captures female – and pure human – emotions through the intricate lines and patterns of her work in a not only brilliantly way, but also with a thoroughly positive life spirit.
Current exhibition
March 12 – May 10, 2015
CONRAD Manila
Woman in Progress
Manila, Philippines