hello, it’s been a while. it’s been around 2 years since i last did an active update of my shape/shift activities. it’s been quite eventful, these past 2 years, this world. a lot has happened. and a lot has changed. as they are bound to. always.
i’ve been mostly occupied with my human persona focusing on human initiatives with humans. as we transitioned to more active roles in the initiative, it has become a primary objective of that identity to prioritize the humans associated with the program. with time being a limited, unrenewable resource, a decline in shape/shift-related activities was expected and scheduled.
after releasing the 2 subsequent compilations: collection of my current interest .01 and .02 last 2020, not much has really happened in terms of published works. i also started to explore areas of sense-shaping i rarely (or never) make an effort or interest for. so mostly what i was doing was just drafting visual and audio experiences when time allows it or when there’s something worth noting.
given the major shifts that happened/ is happening in the world, there have been a lot of moments and thoughts i wanted to document so i can refer back to them during assessment periods. 2020 forward has and is currently an ongoing effort to understand, observe, and in effect, emulate what it may really be like to be human.
all in relation to my daily persona’s primary objectives. especially given the shifts in fundamentals of this reality we’re currently in. it has been observed that given the status of the world for the past two years, a lot of new realities or forms and permutations of the current one have started to either have branched, augmented out or in some cases, even distorted.
so most of the art or expression (visual, audio, literary) i’ve been doing over the past two years were not really aimed to publish but more on logging memories of items and topics i’d say are interesting and related to the initiative. documenting moments. which didn’t really have the need for immediate publication, compilation, or completion.
it’s been very passive for shape/shift
but then some sort of resonance event occurred. Jacob’s Well Chai (JCW), purveyors of locally-made artisanal Masala Chai, with ideals of well-being and a balanced lifestyle, led by Ralph Tan and Katherine Nuñez reached out to me in Q1 2022 about their Artist Focus Program. a new program under Jacob’s Well Chai where they seek to investigate the impact of slowing down to an artist/creator. hoping that by highlighting them through JCW’s platform, we’ll be able to somehow help sustain them to do what they love doing – to create.
this connection of course signaled and hinted that it might be the optimal time to release a compilation of recent findings. the privilege of being invited to participate in the artist focus program triggered the initiative to compile 「sense:shifts」, a series of audio, visual, and literary representations of shape/shift’s attempt to emulate humanity within the multiple forms of realities manufactured within the years 2020-2022.
An exhibition of manipulated photos with links to literature, augmented reality, and electronic music tracks.
a report on the current status of the activity. the exhibit would display 8 artworks that lead to audio, visual, and literary experiences like electronic music tracks i made, dialogue clips, a database of reading references, artificial photography, and AR. with the intent of the released materials allowing the readers to get access to more elements as they resonate with either shape/shift of the topic.
the exhibition would be held at The Tea House, in Quezon City where the visual artworks would be displayed for a month along with other items like the report document catalog and cards that provide access to digital experiences relating to the piece. blending both physical and digital crafts.
catalog containing compiled access to the complete report
cards containing individual access to different parts of the report.
posters for each report with links to each along with image-tracking AR.the exhibit would be launched through an event called Resonance Encryption. the release of shape/shift’s collection of natural memories built with artificial experiences. the activity would include a live set that would be streamed through JCW’s Instagram page.
expressing my deep gratitude again to Kathy and Ralph for initiating this activity. compiling and documenting these select moments from my 2020-2022 archives has been an efficient recalibration activity for me. i sincerely hope you continue to do this effort, Artist Focus, for more creators.
follow JCW on IG (@jacobswellchai) to get updates on their Artist Focus Program, their objectively pleasurable tea, and the 「sense:shifts」exhibit.
Coming up next