Sayote Queen's Realm of Downtempo Cool

MADS BAJARIAS | Photographer Sayote Queen's "At The Beach" feels like one of those fuzzy, enigmatic dreams you sometimes get on hot, humid nights after listening to a lot of downbeat jazz blues. It's unglamorous yet cool. Restrained but not dull. It appears flat but there's a deep vibe going on.

The standard beach-related imagery that we see in pop culture with their focus on upbeat youthfulness or idyllic charm can get a bit tiring: buff bodies vying for attention with sunsets, bikinis, fire dancers, tattoos, hammocks, fishing boats, interesting bits of driftwood, sideways-leaning coconut trees, leather-skinned fishermen, loud watersports, airfare discounts, shiny happy people showing off their toys and other artifacts of so-called "beach culture" and "eco-tourism." Sometimes, one can't help feeling that beaches have become just a glammed-up venue to buy and sell merchandise, show off one's sexual desirability and "chill out."

Such is not the case in Sayote Queen's "At The Beach." In this piece, she blows away the beach cliches while exploring notions of timelessness and nostalgia.

For once we get a beach photo without the kind of "cool" peddled by Lonely Planet and other purveyors of eco-tourism. Stripped of any adornment, spartan-like in simplicity, "At The Beach" is so uncool that it's actually cool.

Sayote Queen answers a few questions about herself and "At The Beach."

What concepts and feelings were you trying to evoke with "At The Beach"?

SQ: Before I start processing a photo, I think of how I want the final picture to look like. Here I wanted to come up with something timeless and vintage. I also wanted the viewer to focus on the person on the bottom left of the photo. I wanted the viewer to feel that everything in this world is of great importance. The world may be vast but one thing or one person can make a difference. That's why I chose the quote by Blaise Pascal.

How long have you been taking pictures?

SQ: I have been taking pictures since my father bought his film SLR camera when I was still in high school. Back then, DSLRs were too expensive and film developing was too expensive for a student. My interest waned and I focused more on poems and illustrations. I wasn't very good at them though (Laughs).

In college, I was a member of a photo club but I wasn't active back then because of my studies. In my last year in college (2006), during my nursing review, I didn't have any nursing books with me. Instead, I had with me a photography book which I read over and over again to learn the basics. That's when I started taking photography as a serious hobby.

Tell us about yourself.

SQ: I'm 27 years old and a registered nurse. But if anyone would ask me, I've always wanted to be an aeronautics engineer or pilot. I live with my daughter and husband in Baguio City. I am into macro, black and white, and nature photography. I admire the works of Noli Gabilo, Gordon Wiltsie and Yousef Khanfar. I also want to try infrared photography. I love reading National Geographic and I've always dreamed of being able to go to places... to immerse myself in the culture of people and tell their stories through pictures.

Through my pictures, I want to show how rich Philippine culture really is.

Where can people go to see your work?

SQ: Many of my photos can be seen through my Flickr.

Thank you very much!

The Intrinsic Coolness of Infra Red Sunlight

BY MADS BAJARIAS | Sometime in the 1990s I started seeing graffiti in the public areas of Manila signed "Salen-Ga." On the Megamall pedestrian overpass, for instance, was this message written by hand with black permanent marker:

Salen-Ga, A Filipino, discovered that the Electron is actually Positive

This was flanked by drawings of the atom and it always made me feel better (someone's crazier than me!). As graffiti, Salen-ga's work was never threatening or posturing. They were just weird and fun with a (well-meaning but misplaced) nationalist bent. His graffiti was, um, positive.

What's remarkable is that I've since forgotten the stuff written in the many huge splashy billboards costing thousands of pesos to create and displayed outside Megamall, yet this hand-written assertion by Salen-ga will forever be etched in my brain.

In keeping with his "positive" vibe, a series of "win" writings that appeared one election period was attributed to him. The graffiti all had the word "win" in them.

I was told that his handiwork appeared more frequently near U-Belt. In another one I saw, someone had added "GO" after "Salen-Ga" to make "Salen-GaGO." Ack, a critic!

Because of Salen-ga I began paying closer attention to hand-written messages on walls everywhere. Once, in Quezon City I saw what looked like the signature of the Zodiac killer and immediately wondered if Salen-ga had done it.

Years passed and I forgot about Salen-ga as I stopped walking the Megamall overpass (the Q-Mart overpass near where I live has disappointingly uninspiring graffiti and is Salen-ga free, so far).

Then recently, I came across a blog by Seoph Martinez called "Pinoy Isulong."

Martinez wrote about his student days in Manila and how he used to see the Salen-ga street jottings on his way to school. Quite a few left comments on the site and one reported seeing (comment was left in 2006) the following in Quiapo:

The world is actually flat Salen-Ga

What's astounding is that Salen-ga posted comments in the blog. I don't know if it was the man himself but it sure sounds like him (a guy who's given outer space a lot of thought). Below is a message purportedly from Salen-ga and which was posted in Seoph Martinez's blog.

Salen-ga himself says:
the intrinsic coolness of infra red sunlight- i have discovered that
SUNLIGHT BECOMES HEAT ONLY UPON CONTACT WITH MATTER BASED ON TWO OBSERVATIONS WHICH I SUBMITTED TO D U.S. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

1.OUTER SPACE IS A VACUUM WHICH DOES NOT ALLOW HEAT TO PASS THROUGH. IF IT DOES,THROW AWAY ALL YOUR THERMOS BOTTLES.

2.THE TEMPERATURE OF OUTER SPACE IS SO COLD IT CREATES SNOW,MOUNTAIN ICE CAPS AND ICEBERGS IN THE NORTH POLE; SO STEEL HARD, IT SUNK THE TITANIC! INFRA RED OR HEAT RAYS AS SCIENTIST CALL IT IS INTRINSICALLY COOL (WITHOUT TEMPERATURE). GLOBAL WARMING ON EARTH IS LOCALLY MADE BY COOL SUNLIGHT! MALAMIG ANG SINAG NG ARAW.

Since I know absolutely nothing about physics (except that the electron's negative charge was proven in the early parts of the 20th century by non-Pinoys), I don't know what to think about his eccentric interpretations on the nature of light.

But as street art, his work has a cult following and is, so far, memorable.

In the "Pinoy Isulong" blog, veteran street photographer JM Chua posted a link to his photo "Salen-ga." For me, this was akin to seeing a photo of Bigfoot. For a long time, Salen-ga to me was this semi-mythical madman who scribbled cryptic things on walls around Manila but no one ever caught him doing it. Yes, I've heard stories about how people have seen him ramble on about electrons on board buses and jeepneys but no one had ever taken a photo and posted them for the public to see.

In Chua's photo, taken during a huge anti-Arroyo rally, we see Salen-ga holding his hand-made placards and the seriousness of his expression is a measure of his self-belief. It tells us how resolute he must be in defense of his own wacky theories. There's something quixotic about such confidence in one's certainty. Such persistence in the face of ridicule.

JM Chua sheds some light about "Salen-ga."

Congratulations on the photo of the mysterious Salen-ga. Do you know of any other photographer who've taken his picture?

JC: I took his photo during a demonstration in Mendiola. There were a lot of photographers in the area during that time. I'm sure at least one other person could have taken his photo.

What kit did you use for this?

JC: It was a digital camera, a Fuji S6000fd.

How long have you been taking photos?

JC: I became interested when digital photography started gaining popularity some 5-6 years ago.

Is photography a professional thing with you, or a hobby?

JC: It's a hobby, although I do wish it can pay the bills.

Where can people go to see your work?

JC: Most of my photos are in Flickr. Sometimes, I also upload photos (usually events) in my Multiply page.

What photo clubs do you belong to?

JC: I'm a member of flickristasindios. This group is composed of people from all walks of life whose common denominator is the love of photography. There's really no structure and people are very open and tolerant when it comes to expressing ideas, and this lends dynamisn to the group.

I'm also an administrator for Street Pilipinas. This group is still in its infancy, but the goal is to have a place for Filipino street photographers to display their work.

What did you know about Salen-ga prior to taking his photo?

JC: I didn't really know much about him. To be honest, I thought "Salen-Ga" was a group of radical Filipino scientists.

What do you think of Salen-ga after meeting him in the flesh?

JC: I went "s'ya na ba 'yun?" I guess I was expecting the stereotype mad-scientist image of an old man with frizzy white hair wearing a dirty lab coat.

When I was taking his photo, he asked me if I was working for a group or an organization. I told him that I was just an enthusiast, and this prompted him to tell me that the local media wouldn't show the world his works, that everyone is conspiring to silence him, and that the North Pole is gay. In the short time that we talked I found him to be interesting, to say the least.

Thanks JM!