About

 

I am Marika, a visual artist based in Manila, Philippines. Woman, Create serves as both my artist alias and my art studio. My deepest intention is to resonate femininity and feminist ideals through collage. My works are mainly collages that focus on themes such as transformation, identity, and reclamation as part  of my feminist practice.

 

I am inspired by color and texture, material exploration, women and femininity. I want to tell visual stories on revival, beauty, and empowerment through the medium of collage. I have been developing my practice since 2016. My clients have ranged from international and local brands, non-profit organizations, event companies, and individuals who have found resonance in my works. 

Some Notable Works I've Done:

"Nurturing Ubuntu" (2021)

A Woman Create mural seen at The Flats BGC (in collaboration with Bonifacio Arts Foundation, Inc and Bonifacio Global City)

"Coming Again: Returning to Creativity, Steps to Courage" (2021)

A narrative series about revival and returning home, in collaboration with Artdrop.

 

365 Wonders Creative Planner (2015 - )

A self-published annually released creative planner that features works of artists and writers across the Philippines. 

Dear Kara PH (2020)

A local handmade earrings brand.

"Filipinas," a Monki Philippines x Woman Create collaboration (2021)

An illustration representing Filipina identities.

#ArtforMedPH Campaign for Frontliners (2020)

A series of commissioned works with profits sent to frontliners in target hospitals. 

 

 VIEW MY WORKS HERE >


The Story

Woman, Create is an art studio that focuses in art-making, design, independent publication, events, and advocacy for intersectional feminism (or 'everyday' feminism) for the Filipina. 

This tale in Art begins in darkness. 

In 2015, I grappled with being diagnosed of Endometriosis, a chronic disease in the reproductive system, which made me question my very value as a Woman. As life happened, my identity fell into an abyssal vortex, which somehow led me  to Art. This was how Woman, Create was birthed. 

Woman, Create began with an intention to meet a need - specifically the need for women to express, to create, but ultimately, to take the next step into courage. In the process of making Art, a discovery was kindled: that art could be a beacon of hope, a means to connect and an invitation to story. Our selfish act of creating becomes communal, shared to the point that the making and giving of art is, at its core, a selfless act.

Woman, Create aspires to tell and reclaim the stories of women through collages and illustrations. Intrinsic in each work are deeply rooted feminist values and ideals, hinged on the divine. 

Today, Woman, Create aims to create empowering feminist works made for Filipinas while advocating for a feminism that can be relevant and transformative to our people. Through the lessons we discover in the process of art-making, we are transformed. And this transformation we experience can become the pivotal point in transforming the cultures around us. 

The world may insist that our brokenness defines who we are, but the truth is, it makes only a portion of who we are and what we could be. The journey propels us to move towards transformation and progression. This is how movements ignite. 

 

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Some Art Events, Art Exhibitions, and Community Building done by Woman, Create:

  • 'EDITION:FEMINISM', a contemporary exhibit (Dec 2018), A SPACE GALLERY_
  • The Feminist Book Club (2017 - 2019)
  • HeforShe: Stand Together initiative by Woman, Create (July 2017)
  • HERE I AM, an open mic community gathering by Woman, Create (2016)
  • RISE by Woman, Create, an art gathering raising awareness on Rape and Domestic Violence (2016)
  • Woman, Create, a Wonder Woman Art Fair in FullyBooked BGC (April 2015)
  • Woman, Create Empowerment Launch (March 2015)

 

Notable Speaking Placements:

  • LeadersUnitePH: Luzon representing Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: Gender Equality
  • Feminism for AEuSS Kapihan, Ateneo de Manila University
  • Pinay & Proud (guest speaker), MINT College
  • Blooming Women of IT for Animagraphika, St. Scholastica’s College
  • Art Activist for a Day, Assumption College
  • HerStory 2: Glass Ceiling (guest speaker)
  • TEDxiACADEMY, Discovering Courage and Empowerment through Art, Official TEDx speaker 
  • ACLE for UP Lingua Franca, University of the Philippine