SONGS E N Z O
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R A Z O N
S O L O
E X H I B I T I O N
EXHIBITION DATE DECEMBER 14, 2021 - JANUARY 4, 2022
VENUE G/F CORINTHIAN PLAZA, 121 PASEO DE ROXAS, LEGAZPI VILLAGE, MAKATI, METRO MANILA, PHILIPPINES
SONGS E N Z O
2 n d
S O L O
R A Z O N
E X H I B I T I O N
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"SONGS" - ENZO RAZON | 2nd SOLO EXHIBITION With SONGS, Enzo concludes a sequence of photography motivated by the visual cues, practices and bodily sensations of singing Karaoke. The series originated in questions of escapism, performative projections and cultural confluence. SONGS culminates these descriptive works with a montage of superimposed lyrics, landscapes and macro shots of vocal cords, throats and tongues. Karaoke or KTV was invented in Japan. The word itself is a portmanteau translating to Empty Orchestra. Most of the machines we use here are now imported f rom China. Filipinos also have a soft spot for singing Western Songs in English and more recently in South Korean. Karaoke is a machine made crucible for our collective identity. One that needs our bodies to complete it. Representative of our appetite for facsimile and the consumption/emulation of foreign influence. According to Enzo, “Whenever we sing Karaoke, we transform and project almost immediately onto this larger mental plane. There is an exchange of proportions and an extension of scale and feeling totally disproportionate to where our body is situated and regardless of who is around us.” In SONGS, Enzo wanted to play with the idea of "proportion" hence, the non-inclusion of the horizon in most landscapes. The subject matter of each image is anchored against the size in which they are printed. Interfacing with the machine are our own fleshy mechanisms, so vocal cords were shot with special probe lenses to accentuate detail and scale. The lyrics used here are gleaned f rom some of Enzo’s personal favorites as well as f rom anthemic KTV classics. So ubiquitous in our cultural permeation, so sacred in the collective memory that their inclusions were near inevitable. With these lyrics, Enzo wanted to reflect the “declarative bigness” of singing passionately. Unapologetically emotive, f ree of self caution and self-consciousness. Listening to music evokes images. In SONGS, this process is reversed as still photographs create and recall sound. A sense rendered by another not present.
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TABLE OF
CONTENTS EXHIBITION NOTES
03
TABLE OF CONTENTS
05
ARTIST PROFILE
06 - 07
‘Bridge’
08 - 09
‘Cliff ’
10 - 11
‘Tree Throat’
12 - 13
‘88 It Is Okay’
14 - 15
‘Laaa’
16 - 17
‘Aah’
18 - 19
‘Ooh’
20 - 21
‘Interlude’
22 - 23
‘Video 1’
24 - 25
‘Video 2’
26 - 27
‘Video 3’
28 - 29
‘Somebody To Tell Me’
30 - 31
‘Take Me Home’
32 - 33
‘Romeo and Juliet’
34 - 35
‘Start Of Something New’
36 - 37
‘Atmosphere’
38 - 39
‘Unchained Melody’
40 - 41
‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us’
42 - 43
‘We Didn’t Start The Fire’
44 - 45
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
48 - 49
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Enzo Razon (b.1993)
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ENZO RAZON Enzo Razon (b.1993) is a Filipino artist working in video, drawing and photography. He studied Film and Visual Media at the prestigious Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. Enzo’s unique style garnered him critical praise for his inventive works. He mounted his f irst solo show titled Fur on Fire and The Children of the Corn in 2017. He has also taken part in a number of group shows, namely In The Near Distance in 2019 and A New Theory in 2021, both of which were mounted at León Gallery International. He is currently working on the continuation of long term series in various mediums, including an expansion of ink and watercolor drawings. This body of work on paper currently involves the use of pigments suspended in alcohol and experiments with shaped f rames. Enzo is also the creative director of Tarzeer Pictures, a photography website and creative production group where he heads the execution of video projects.
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Enzo Razon
‘Bridge’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 15" x 10"
P 30,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Cliff ’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 15" x 10"
P 30,000
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12
Enzo Razon
‘Tree Throat’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 15" x 10"
P 30,000
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14
Enzo Razon
‘88 It Is Okay’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
15
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Enzo Razon
‘Laaa’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
17
18
Enzo Razon
‘Aah’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Ooh’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
21
22
Enzo Razon
‘Interlude’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Video 1’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Video 2’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Video 3’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Somebody To Tell Me’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
31
32
Enzo Razon
‘Take Me Home’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Romeo and Juliet’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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36
Enzo Razon
‘Start Of Something New’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Atmosphere’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘Unchained Melody’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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42
Enzo Razon
‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Enzo Razon
‘We Didn’t Start The Fire’ Archival Print On Teco Baryta Fibre Silk 38" x 25"
P 130,000
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Acknowledgment Joint Project of León Gallery International and DF Art Agency
León Gallery International Address G/F Corinthian Plaza, 121 Paseo de Roxas, Legazpi Village, Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines Contact info@leon-gallery.com (02) 846 7416 (02) 856 2781
Website www.leongalleryinternational.com www.leon-gallery.com @leongallerymakati @leongallerymakati
DF Art Agency Address UG 24 Star Centrum 317 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave. Cor. Malugay St. Bel-Air, Makati City, 1209 Contact artagencydf@gmail.com (+63) 915 216 3684
Website www.df-artagency.com @df_artagency @df_artagency
G/F CORINTHIAN PLAZA, 121 PASEO DE ROXAS, LEGAZPI VILLAGE, MAKATI, METRO MANILA, PHILIPPINES