The Birds Still Sing
GROUP EXHIBITION
BY CANDACE REYES, YVETTE HERBOSA, KATHRYN SERRANO
NEIGHBOR’S STUDIO JERSEY CITY, NJ 2024
The Birds Still Sing celebrates the story of Suellen Escribano– a rebel, artist and member of the New People’s Army, through the lens of daughter Yvette and granddaughters Candace and Sabrina. Suellen, a freedom fighter who, in standing for the liberation and economic stability for her people, relentlessly fought the Marcos regime in the Philippines during the 1980s. She spent her early adulthood organizing rallies with laborers and farmers in both the jungles of the north and mountainous terrains of Tacurong, Mindanao in the south. Although her life was tumultuous at times due to living in hiding from fear of being executed by the government, which left her no choice but to sacrifice being a present mother, Suellen continued to live a life filled with imagination and vibrancy that she inevitably passed to her kin.
This body of work, including a film by the trio and Kathryn Serrano, delves into the duality of heroism and martyrdom, exploring how such themes have reverberated through generations, shaping collective memory and personal identity. Through storytelling, interweaving elements of magic, temporality, and fantasy, The Birds Still Sing creates dialogue across time, engaging with the emotional landscapes forged by Suellen’s legacy of rebellion and creative expression as a way to bridge and heal generational divides.
The Birds Still Sing
by Kathryn Serrano x Herbosa Trio
This Must Be Heaven
acrylic, natural dyes
4’-0” x 3’-0”
Listen to Me Closely
fabric, cement, resin, metal
3’-0” dia. x 3’-6”
Untitled (Saints)
piña textile, resin
10” dia. x 2’-0”
