Art reminds us of the essence of our world that we tend to forget while hustling in our daily lives. Nature’s gifts are often buried away and go unnoticed by us. Artists bring out the colorful hue and appreciation of our surroundings to our notice, reminding us of our mortality and yet the beauty of our creation. They breathe life onto a canvas and always enchant us with their unique perception of the world.
Thea Ong Po is one such artist hailing from the Philippines; her works know no bounds to the limits of artistry. She specializes in floral paintings, landscapes and botanical paintings. Currently she is into exploring skyscapes and urban scapes paintings. She is always humbled and constantly learning through her experiences.
Apart from exploring and creating her own art, she conducts art workshops to spread her knowledge and skills of art. She believes the dexterity of art can be possessed by anybody and so her students range from kids to adults. She aims at sharing her passion of artwork and watercolor painting through these teaching lessons.
Her father and brother have had an enormous and special impact on her passion. They were the steppingstones for her who persistently gave their inputs for her to improve and discover her talents. Any artist would love to see the kind of impact they can have on another person's life and art. Likewise for Thea, seeing her students come up with something that incorporates her teachings gives her immense pride.
During these severe times of a pandemic, frontline healthcare workers face many adversities and are fighting for people's lives every day. Leaving behind and risking their own and family's lives can be very strenuous on their physical and mental state as well. Thea along with her artistic community has sent out her artworks and art messages to the front liners and Covid patients as well using the hashtag #touchlivesthroughart. This sent across a ripple of positivity and motivation among doctors, nurses and patients.
Her main message to other artists out there is to keep on painting. Even if they face obstacles and feel the need to stop, they can take rest but must keep going on after that. The renowned artist, Henri Matisse’s quote beautifully integrated her message, “Creativity takes courage”.
For her it is very important for students to express their feelings and emotions through art. Art gives people a chance to share their imagination and ideas. As long as an individual is content and responsible with their artwork, she encourages them to continue drawing, painting and creating what their soul and mind chases.
The greatest inspiration behind her work is her father, Jose Ong. He is an artist specializing in sculpture. She takes great pride and honor in being his daughter and he has always been a source of inspiration to her. Few of the great artists she idolizes are Jenna Rainey, the late Qing Han (qinniart), Louise De Masi, JC Vargas and Stan Miller.
Her artwork and the ambiance of it is a reminder to all of us to take a break from the superficial aspects of our lives and truly enjoy nature’s bounties. We at ARTOZE encourage and highly appreciate such actions where artists come forward to stand along with the other fellow community members to share their experiences, views and knowledge through "Inspire and Empower", a series By the Artists, For the Artists in association with ARTOZE Gallery and Exhibitions.
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