THE EVOLUTION of Seb Chua as an artist may be described as extraordinary. Against the backdrop of art history, however, his passionate pursuit of the fine arts finds parallelism with one of the greatest artists that ever lived. But only to a certain point.
Indeed, Seb, whose obligation to tradition transcends the corporate environment from which he fulfilled the so-called obedient-son responsibility, is not the regular late-bloomer, when it comes to his passion - the fine arts. He started young, but kept this close to his heart and pursued it in the quiet of his own world - doing sketches in elementary and high school and finding expression in caricatures and cartoons.
The artist may still exhibit the corporeal guilt, but his works do not. In a recent interview, Seb was quoted as saying: "… my current occupation as an artist happened by chance; but when it did present itself, it was my own personal choice, balancing both business and art."
Hardly, however, does any of his works - in canvas or in form - exhibit a trace of chance or that of reluctance. Truthfully, his every work shows that one who creates never hesitates. Thus, in only four years, he has achieved what many artists fail to achieve in a lifetime.
Embarking full circle into the art world in 2007, with his first solo exhibition titled "Fractal Visions," Seb served notice of how serious his passion for his art is. And noted art critic Cid Reyes saw this.
Reyes said: "('Fractal Visions' is) an abstract and sensuous unfolding of (the) organic form in Seb's cubistic sculptures, resulting in a discrete elegance."
More than the distinction Seb imparted in his works, on that first exhibit, is the probity of his creations. It is both a release and a celebration, imbedded with truth and goodness - the message his works convey and hopes to impart.
Seb affirms the integrity of form and the message it carries, when he said: "Art as something you do, not out of blandness. In the emotions that accompany art, advocacies and stands take root in an artist and shape how he creates not only his art, but everything he can touch and see."
Years after his first solo exhibition, Seb says: "I presented a medley of views on the human being as an abstract journey. Using the representational figures, I was able to convey that life is a series of stages, in that we live and breathe change, even at a moment's glance… When I work on my craft, I leave it to become something more than just material. I form it, but that and only that is my task. The audience is what gives it a story, one that can be as boundless as one person's difference with another."
Today, his artistic views remain and his works have taken more than change to express the message that he wants to impart. And it runs parallel to the advocacies he passionately support.
In creation, as in art, a message is an inspiration and advocacy is the source of passion. The artist in Seb definitely knows this and took this, seriously, to heart.
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