An exercise in Art Photography
March 9, '08

"The Filipino Youth of Today" in: Conceptual

Actually it was my entry for the Kabataang Pinoy photo contest (something like that, forgot the actual name of the contest) for the Buwan ng Wika, which was also a requirement for Photography class. I don't know what happened to our entries. Anyway, though I was on a rush in doing this entry, I still managed to think deeply and carefully how to make it. It turned out well, with the help of some of my blockmates. Thanks again to them!

Karla - the rebel
Joy - the kikay
Marielle - the religious
Yvette - the rich
Paolo - the poor
Matthew - the blood-covered
Benchie - Philippines hoping for peace.

Explanation: The different hands in various appearances represents the diversity of the Filipino youth today. The hand at the center represents our country which main goal is to attain economic progress and most of all, peace. It relates to Dr. Jose Rizal's saying that the youth is the hope of our country.
Then it is surrounded by the hands/arms that represents the diversity of the Filipino Youth - the rebel (who hopes for a big change by celebrating the freedom of expression), the kikay (whose happiness lies in sometimes shallow joys and simple dreams), the religious (who holds on to their faith through the thick and thin of life), the rich (represents the 2 kinds: materialistic and superficial and wealth-hungry, and on the contrary, the persevering and humble who succeed in life in terms of career), the poor (the needy, the underprivileged, the uneducated, the outcasts of society and the ignored), and the blood-covered (the youth who have lost their way, the criminals, drug addicts, and victims of ignorance and poverty).
The good ones and the screwed-up ones - these are the Filipino youth today.

Unedited photo taken Aug 30, '2007.