• CHRYSEE G. SAMILLANO
Celebrated Visayan artist Rustom Cleofe “Ombok” Villamor is holding an ongoing solo exhibition at Italia Restaurant, Paseo Verde, Brgy. Mandalagan, Bacolod City, which will run until May 9.
Titled “Joyous Drift”, the exhibition features Villamor’s works in acrylic on canvas, which he says were inspired by the corals in the ocean, being a free diver during his younger days. He was born in Masbate and raised along the shores of Samar.
The show is his 23rd solo exhibition, which includes those held in Dubai, Japan, and Jakarta.
Eleazar Abraham “Abe” Orobia said Villamor’s artistic identity is deeply rooted in what critics often called “archipelagic art.” Trained as an architect at North West Samar State University, and mentored by the modernist master Raul Isidro, he has developed a signature style of organic abstraction that transforms canvases into “life-nurturing galaxies.”
His current body of work, spanning 2024 to 2026, marks a breathtaking evolution from his earlier focus on marine biology toward a broader, more ethereal “bloomscape,” he said.
“To stand before one of his canvases is to feel the pulse of a Radiant Bloom and to be reminded that growth is an odyssey, not a destination. His work invites you to breathe, to hope, and to find your own gentle soul reflected in the vibrant, enduring colors of his vision,” Orobia, added.*
