Careful What You Pray For
Careful What You Pray For is an ongoing series of intricate, site-responsive constructions bridging the metaphysical and material, where the organic and the elemental converge in a dialogue of symbolic resonance. Loosely contained in glass enclosures, a diverse array of materials—rose, chrysanthemum, lotus seed hearts, driftwood, cowry shells, and volcanic rock, among others—come together as a luminous testament to the complex layers of Anitismo, the traditional Indigenous belief system of the precolonial Filipinos, centered around the veneration of spirits, deities, and ancestors.
Although Anitismo was largely overshadowed by Catholicism after Spanish colonization, many aspects of the belief system persist in Filipino culture today, often blending with Christian practices and forming a syncretic spiritual worldview. The enclosures simultaneously protect and isolate, maintaining a delicate balance between reverence and distance, an acknowledgement of the sacred that is both intimate and unattainable.
The title Careful What You Pray For prompts a reflection on the potency of ritual and intention. Prayers and offerings are not mere acts of supplication but requests that may be answered in ways both expected and unforeseen. Thus, Careful What You Pray For is a meditation on the fragile yet powerful nature of human desire, reminding us that the very things we seek often come with their own complexities and consequences.