Art and Society: Jobeth Jerao’s Engaging Photographs

By Kurit-Lagting Art Collective

An upcoming online art exhibit titled Pagbutwa II is being organized by a group of artists, filmmakers, and writers, which will feature homegrown talents in the province of Sorsogon and the rest of the Bicol region.

Pagbutwa is the Bikolano word for the resurfacing of something long concealed.

The online exhibit is part of the three phases lined up for Pagbutwa as a community art project to be curated by artist-curator Geri Matthew Carretero. It hopes to capture the emergence of the artistic product from the pandemic-induced disruption in the artistic process by bringing together works that have rarely been exhibited in one space.

Local lensman, Jobeth Jerao, whose works were chosen last year during the group’s first online exhibit will be featured along with other local artists in the region in the upcoming art show. As a photographer, he is fully engaged in documentary practice and collaborative artmaking.

“In contemplating social realities, we must concern ourselves with the urgent, immediate issues that communities face. Not only are you showing delicate truths and concerns of others through photography but you are also challenging the viewers with images where they can see moments of connection forging a way for them to navigate their own experiences,” he said.

One of the photographs of Bicolano photographer Jobeth Jerao that will be featured in the upcoming online exhibit entitled Pagbutwa.