Pacita Abad

Pacita Abad (1946–2004, Batanes, Philippines, based in Batanes, Philippines and New York, United States) was an artist whose prolific painting practice was characterised by exuberant colours, unconventional materials and a strong spirit of experimentation. Deeply influenced by her extensive travels and interactions with diverse cultures, her work spanned numerous subjects including social justice, migration, cultural traditions and environmental concerns.

Abad relocated to San Francisco in 1970, following increasing hostility towards her politically dissident family due to her activism against the authoritarian Fernando Marcos regime. There, she was greatly inspired by its social movements and immigrant population, sparking her year-long journey from Turkey to the Philippines, where she had advocated for marginalised communities through art. Drawing from the indigenous styles and techniques encountered through her travels, her highly tactile trapunto works combine acrylic painting with stuffed quilting, and incorporate materials including ceramic, glass, shells, buttons and circuit boards. One of her largest trapunto paintings, Marcos and His Cronies (1985–1995), references masks used in a Sinhalese exorcism ritual and depicts the dictator and his associates as demonic figures that devour humans.

Abad completed her art training at the Corcoran School of Art, Washington, D.C. in 1975 and the Art Students League of New York in 1977. Her works are held in major collections including Tate, London; M+, Hong Kong; National Gallery Singapore; Ayala Museum, Manila; Fukuoka Art Museum; Museo de Arte Moderno, Santo Domingo; Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Havana; National Gallery of Indonesia, Jakarta; National Museum of American Art, Washington, D.C.; National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul; National Museum, Colombo; National Museum, Dhaka; National Museum, Jakarta; Singapore Art Museum; Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.; and Taipei Fine Arts Museum.

Notable solo exhibitions include Philippine Painter (2024), Metropolitan Museum of Manila; Pacita Abad (2024), Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; Pacita Abad (2024), MoMA PS1, New York; Pacita Abad (2023), San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; Pacita Abad (2023), Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; I Thought The Streets Were Paved WIth Gold (2021), Jameel Art Center, Dubai; A Million Things to Say (2018), Museum of Contemporary Art and Design, Manila; Through the Looking Glass (2006), Esplanade, Singapore; Exploring the Spirit (1996), National Gallery of Indonesia, Jakarta; Artists + Community (1994), National Museum of Women in Arts, Washington, D.C.; Assaulting the Deep Sea (1994), Art Museum of Western Virginia, Roanoke; and Wild at Art (1991), Ayala Museum, Makati. The artist has also participated in major international festivals including Stranieri Ovunque - Foreigners Everywhere (2024), 60th Venice Biennale; Minds Rising, Spirits Turning (2021), 13th Gwangju Biennale; 11th Berlin Biennale (2020); 8th International Biennial of Print and Drawing (1997), Taipei; and 7th International Biennial Print and Drawing (1995), Taipei.

Abad had her residency at the STPI Workshop in 2003, resulting in the exhibition Circles in My Mind (2003) and the painting of Singapore’s Alkaff Bridge using thousands of multicoloured circles.