History in RGB

History in RGB is an exploration of individual and collective history as viewed through multiple lenses. Representing images of history, popular culture, mythic folklore, landscapes, and creatures, History in RGB proposes alternatives to the systemic representations ordered by colonial narratives.

The installation consists of a series of wall-hung prints installed amid an installation of large tropical plants such as banana trees and snake plants, and ephemera of Filipino history – books, fabrics, fruit, etc. Upon entering the gallery, the viewer enters an environment of dense vegetation that is partially obstructing the prints hung on the perimeter walls. A stack of tinted color filters (red, green, and blue) akin to lighting gels are available, through which gallery visitors can view the surrounding prints.

Each print is a juxtaposition of images that have been stripped of color, then re-assigned with the value of a specific color based on a “tropical” Pantone palette. The re-assignment of color is based on the value system set by red, green or blue.  Viewing the print through one of the three filters, selected images become visible while simultaneously obscuring other elements. While the filters become tools for revelation and clarity for a monochromatic narrative, they also produce a mottled background by obfuscating the other narratives that exist on the same surface.