March is Women’s Month! Therefore, we’re putting the spotlight on women who confidently stand side-by-side with men in another field that has been dominated by the male perspective – photography. As part of their Women’s Month celebration, Shangri-La Plaza officially opened an exhibition called From the Lens of Eve, which highlights the power of women’s vision in photography. We attended the opening last Thursday (March 14, 2019) at the East Atrium and everything just looks so magical!
Every shot on the wall shows so much emotion – something you won’t typically see in photographs these days. From the Lens of Eve showcases the spectrum of five women’s works. Here’s a short background about each of them, which can make you say, “YOU GO, GIRL!”.
1.Annabelle Chavez
Annabelle is a member of the Camera Club of the Philippines and Pipho Org Club. Her portraiture and landscape works have been featured in several exhibitions, such as the 100th Nikkon Anniversary and Manila Bulletin exhibition in 2018. You may remember her work which was part of the commemorative stamps collection of PhilPost during the Heritage Month of 2018. She equates her images to the progression of the seasons, adding layers to each frame to elucidate the scene.
“I hope that other women artists who will see our exhibit get encouraged in pursuing their own passions,” says Annabelle about the opportunity to showcase their work.
2. Lauren Malcampo
Lauren is a photographer and an artist. Her landscape work was chosen for an exhibit back in 2014, organized by Chasing Light – the biggest community of landscape photographers in the Philippines. Some of her travel photos were also included in a coffee table book published by the photography site 1x.com. Her images capture sweeping vistas in rich and vibrant colors.
On the significance of having an all women landscape photography exhibition, Lauren describes the realities of the genre. “In photography, women have always been a minority,” she said.
3. Mrae Orden
Mrae started her photographic journey by capturing grand landscapes. Throughout her years of learning the craft, she has experimented in street photography and went on to later explore the imaginarium of conceptual portrait photography. Her recent works delve deeper into minimalist black and white photography inspired by the vision of fine art photographer Red Ognita. She’s part of a permanent exhibit, installed in 2018, which gives homage to the rich history of the Taal Basilica.
“Women bring a different perspective to photography. Women see and feel differently, and the images they create altogether enrich the entire field,” Mrae Orden explains.
4. Jen Perez
Jen is a consummate landscape photographer and a member of Zone V Camera Club. She started taking interest in landscape photography in 2019, having been inspired by the photos of majestic landscapes in magazines. Her work focuses on panoramic landscape and astrophotography. She has been a constantly featured photographer in the exhibit series entitled, Lightscapes from 2013 to 2016 in the Philippine Graphic Expo in SMX.
“While women have slowly made remarkable inroads in photography, it is still a male-dominated industry, particularly in the genre of landscape photography. Not because few are good, but because women are less visible,” shares Jen regarding the importance of such exhibits.
5. Maryanne Mendoza
Maryanne is a landscape and travel photographer whose travels to over 30 countries are documented in a series called Postcard Travel Series. She believes that traveling is a transformative experience and applies the same philosophy in her photography. Her pictures are candid and explosive in color, and she tries to capture the locale in its natural state. Her landscape works were featured in Galerie Stephanie’s Inherited Landscapes in 2015.
“We want to laud Shangri-La Plaza for being a platform in bringing together female talent in photography,” says Maryanne. Shangri-La Plaza also hopes to change that by providing a platform to highlight the talent of women photographers and help cultivate a wider appreciation of their work
Take a peek From the Lens of Eve from March 14-19 at the East Atrium, and March 20-31 at the Level 1, Main Wing of Shangri-La Plaza in Ortigas.
We hope this can empower you, too! Happy Women’s Month, ladies! Tag Manila Millennial via Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram if you know an empowered woman who deserves to be featured. For more updates about the latest activities at the Shang:
Call: (02) 370-2597/ 98
Facebook: Shangri-La Plaza
Instagram: @shangrilaplazaofficial