In May 2023, we welcomed our third Fulbright Artist-in-Residence– a program initiated and funded by artist and philanthropist Janet Dilenschneider and Robert Dilenschneider in 2019 and administered by the International Institute of Education (IIE).
Razel Mari, from the Philippines, joined us directly from the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon where he is currently working on his Master of Fine Arts degree in Applied Craft + Design. Prior to coming to the United States, Raz was a product designer for Community Crafts Association of the Philippines, a fair-trade organization championing Filipino handicrafts. He also earned his BS in Industrial Design from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde in Manila, Philippines.
During his residency here, Raz had an itinerary that included a wide range of invaluable experiences, while also allowing him to deeply engage and explore his artistic practice, process and future aspirations. He worked with Silvermine Instructors to explore stone carving, ikebana and ceramics and worked independently in his studio sketching wildlife he observed on our campus, culminating into a large sculpture from gathered sticks, twine and coconut fibers. This creature named Sita, means visitor in Tagalog.
In his final week of residency, Raz conducted an artist talk and visual presentation in which he shared his experiences, processes and had a hands on project using wool roving to create a small bird sculpture. Through his art, he aims to open conversations on our realities by using fantasy and humor.
It was a formative experience, allowing him to reconnect with the natural world and materials found around him. He was able to embrace the impermanence of things through his creation of Sita. Raz has left his creation at Silvemine and overtime it will disintegrated to integrate itself back to nature.
