Doktor Karayom: The rise of an artist in ‘hiding’

FILE: ISLA INIP. ‘Doktor Karayom’, one of the recipients of the 2018 Thirteen Artists Awards from the Cultural Center of the Philippines, poses with his trophy and his pieces of art collectively titled “Isla Inip”. All the works of the 13 awardees are on display at CCP until Dec. 23, 2018. (Photo by Nicolette A. Paje)

MANILA — It was rush hour one recent Thursday night and for that time on a weekday, traffic was unbelievably light. I was on my way to the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), anticipating the excitement of rubbing elbows with some of the finest young artists in the country today and seeing their works.

On the road, it was Manila pulsating with life, as usual, for people from all walks of life. After a few more minutes, I was inside the iconic theater, a witness to how life was now somehow changed, maybe for a long time, maybe for the rest of their days, for a handful of artists chosen as the CCP’s Thirteen Artists for this year.

The Thirteen Artists Award (TAA) is a prestigious recognition given to contemporary artists based on their body of work for the last three years, ability to respond to present-day realities and continuous pursuits in their respective fields. It is conferred every three years to those who are handpicked among visual artists in such disciplines as dance, photography, fashion, sculpture, painting, digital art and printmaking.

The 2018 winners were chosen from a total of 59 nominees by a panel of jurors comprised mostly of past winners: Ofelia Gelvezon-Tequi (1972), Leonilo Doloricon (1990), Noel Cuizon (1994), Yasmin Sison-Ching (2006), and Rica Estrada, officer-in-charge of the Visual Arts and Museum Division representing the CCP.

As all of this year’s awardees were photographed together on stage, I was beyond myself curious about their works. So, after the ceremony, I set off at once to the exhibit area and eagerly navigated through the booths. After going through some of them, I felt particularly drawn to one. And it wasn’t just the artworks, which I observed, drew the biggest crowd. The name of the artist was peculiar — Doktor Karayom. Of all the 13 awardees, he was the only one whose real name was not on the roster. At 27, he was also the youngest among them, I learned from the event flier.
Even his appearance was somewhat unorthodox — he had a boxy built, long, curly hair gathered in a man bun, and he wore a fuchsia shirt matched with high-cut rubber shoes of the same bright color. He also wore a disarming, bedimpled smile and easily warmed up to anyone who approached him or his booth.

I asked him: Why choose to “hide” behind a name? He explained that “Doktor Karayom” was a “street name” which he started using as a Fine Arts student at the Technological University of the Philippines. He got very much interested — and involved — in street art, doing murals on the outside walls of abandoned buildings. He admitted it was somewhat a crime, being a form of vandalism, never mind that he was trying to render beauty to an otherwise eyesore of a space. Anyway, it was the reason he started to identify himself only as Doktor Karayom, to protect himself and avoid being accosted.

And what’s behind the moniker? He recalled that as a hard up student back in college, he was filled with determination and tenacity to succeed in his field and said to himself: “Kahit butas ng karayom, papasukin ko, matupad lang and pangarap ko. (I would go through the eye of a needle to achieve my dreams)”.

The “Doktor”, he added, was simply a reference to his fascination with human anatomy, which is frequently seen in his works, he said.

Thankfully, even if he was reluctant about sharing his real identity, Doktor Karayom was generous with stories about his artistic journey. Fresh from graduation, he said he got employed as a company artist but was doing a lot of other things outside. He was painting and making sculptures, joining exhibits and competitions and even accepting custom-made artworks. He also joined competitions and won first place in the Artworks (a fashion store found in most malls) t-shirt design contest, winning his first ever laptop.

Eventually, he decided to quit his office job to devote his time to “real”, personal art and started holding one-man exhibits. At one point, he became particularly interested and devoted to sculpture and would make hundreds of tiny human figures out of fiber glass and resin, which sold like hotcakes. Last year, he held a one-man sculpture exhibit at CCP entitled “Linya”, where 300 of such little “toys” were displayed, forming a straight line. He also earned a new feather to his cap: an Ateneo Art Award, which, too, is a prestigious recognition dreamed about by any visual artist.

Street art still wasn’t out of the picture, though, and he even brought his mural-painting talent and capability to other places in the country, as well as abroad. He had started to get noticed, too, and written about in mainstream media. Still, he preferred to be known only as Doktor Karayom.

And then came the Thirteen Artists Award. After this, what’s next? He said he would continue learning and honing his sculpting and painting skills as well as holding exhibits. On a personal level, marriage is in the offing, although not in the near future yet. He said his immediate personal plans are mostly centered on his family.

He shared, sheepishly, that he has been paying for the piece of lot in Laguna on which his father had just built their home. When he finishes this obligation by next year, he added, then it would be time to start working on building a home for his own future family.

He also relayed, with a bashful smile, how his lady love of 10 years now helped him finish the art pieces consisting of a 13-foot human figure and a thousand miniatures – for his TAA exhibit, which he gave the title “Isla Inip”. It is an interactive installation that allows viewers to play with the tiny figurines much like in a board game, and promises to ease a state of “inip” or boredom.

Doktor Karayom admitted feeling exhausted after several weeks of toil and little sleep prior to the ingress at CCP three days earlier. Nevertheless, he said he felt very honored and humbled at the same time, to receive such an esteemed recognition as the Thirteen Artists Award quite early in his career.

He gave a word of advice to the younger artists starting out in their field: Be determined and persevering, and take inspiration from everyday life, as real experiences are those that give substance and depth to any work of art.

As we wrapped up our short but interesting conversation, Doktor Karayom was approached by some of his peers. I then decided to go on my way and appreciate the works of the other winners.

The 2018 Thirteen Artists awardees are: dancer Eisa Jocson, performance artist Bea Camacho, filmmaker Shireen Seno, photographer Carlo Gabuco, and intermedia artists Zeus Bascon, Cian Dayrit, Janos dela Cruz, Dina Gadia, Guerrero Habulan, Doktor Karayom, Raffy Napay, Archie Oclos, and Lynyrd Paras.

Their works are on exhibit at the CCP from Oct. 18-Dec. 23, 2018.