Filipino-Canadian Artist in Mad Pride: Mad City Group Exhibit

(Clockwise) Mad Pride: Mad City poster; Mildred German with her sister; the artist with Migrante BC Coordinator Jane Ordinario; and with friend Priscilla.

‘Mad Pride: Mad City’ opened with a reception at the Gallery Gachet in Gastown, Vancouver.

More than a dozen artists joined the exhibit to show that “art is a means of survival.”  In the exhibit statement, they declare that it is “the union of art, politics and community to make change.”

Filipino-Canadian Mildred Grace German is featured in the group exhibit with her artwork entitled, “Para|digma.” According to German, this is a play on the English word “Paradigm” and she has uses this word to express what in Tagalog, her first language, means:  para meaning to “stop” and digma meaning “war”.

German says her artwork ”aims to raise awareness on the ongoing mad cause-and-effects of forced migration, oppression, and the systemic global human rights violations.”

She added that she paints to communicate the complexity of transnational trauma, and to address the issues affecting migrant workers, their families and communities.

“Paradigmas are not easily forgotten, not easily hidden, not easily forgiven. As human rights violations occur, the trauma too occurs, as such as a cause-effect pattern. The longing for justice and “for what can be done” becomes the discourse. Therefore, to struggle for human rights, the right to life and safety is justified. In society, to include, not exclude the traumatized, and to believe the trauma will be healed are brave acts of immeasurable love,” she said.

German was born and raised in the Philippines and came to Vancouver, Canada as a migrant youth in the late 90s on the sponsorship of her mother.  German’s exposure to transnational issues and her experience as a Filipino-Canadian migrant inspired her latest artwork “Para|digma”.