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Alamat ng NiyogDecolonial Minimalism Founding Work - Filipino LegendsSize: 1400 x 1400 pixelsMedium: Digital ArtArtist: IJWBAAYear: 2025
“Niyog” artwork reimagines the mythic origins of the coconut tree through a layered abstraction of form and memory. Concentric green circles ripple outward like echoes of ancestral stories, evoking the tree’s enduring presence across generations. The overlapping shapes suggest both the fruit’s iconic husk and the cyclical nature of life, death, and rebirth. In the quiet geometry of the piece, the coconut becomes more than a fruit—it becomes a vessel of transformation.
Rooted in pre-colonial lore, the Alamat ng Niyog tells of divine friendship, sacrifice, and the birth of a tree that would nourish the first humans. Whether emerging from the ashes of a serpent god or the grave of a beloved mother, the coconut tree symbolizes continuity between the spiritual and earthly realms. Its trunk, fruit, and fronds mirror the forms of gods and ancestors, offering sustenance and shelter as a sacred inheritance. These myths, once passed through oral tradition, carried the cosmological weight of creation and kinship.
By embracing minimalist abstraction, the artwork resists literal retellings and instead channels the essence of the legend. It invites viewers to contemplate the unseen roots of culture—how stories shape landscapes, and how trees can hold memory. In doing so, it reclaims indigenous narratives from colonial erasure, asserting that Filipino identity is not only remembered but actively reimagined.
Rooted in pre-colonial lore, the Alamat ng Niyog tells of divine friendship, sacrifice, and the birth of a tree that would nourish the first humans. Whether emerging from the ashes of a serpent god or the grave of a beloved mother, the coconut tree symbolizes continuity between the spiritual and earthly realms. Its trunk, fruit, and fronds mirror the forms of gods and ancestors, offering sustenance and shelter as a sacred inheritance. These myths, once passed through oral tradition, carried the cosmological weight of creation and kinship.
By embracing minimalist abstraction, the artwork resists literal retellings and instead channels the essence of the legend. It invites viewers to contemplate the unseen roots of culture—how stories shape landscapes, and how trees can hold memory. In doing so, it reclaims indigenous narratives from colonial erasure, asserting that Filipino identity is not only remembered but actively reimagined.
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Publication:IJWBAA. Decolonial Minimalism. Photobook, mm/dd/yyyy, p. #. - coming soon
Exhibitions:IJWBAA. Filipino Folklore and Identity: What Makes a Filipino? The Wrong Biennale – 7th Edition, Open Pavilion, 1 Nov. 2025 – 31 Mar. 2026, LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/ijwbaa-eej-wah.
Social Media:coming soon
Media:coming soon
Publication:IJWBAA. Decolonial Minimalism. Photobook, mm/dd/yyyy, p. #. - coming soon
Exhibitions:IJWBAA. Filipino Folklore and Identity: What Makes a Filipino? The Wrong Biennale – 7th Edition, Open Pavilion, 1 Nov. 2025 – 31 Mar. 2026, LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/ijwbaa-eej-wah.
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