Gilbert Angeles
As the chief artist of the environmental movement, Green Artz, he pioneers sustainable art by the idea of transforming single-use plastics and laminated sachets into vibrant, textured paint mediums. He and his team collect these very specific wastes as they shred and pulverize them, partnering with corporations for resources and facilities, as he believes that caring for the environment is collaborative.
Angeles wants to challenge the misconceptions about the lack of sanitation in sustainable art and traditional art, advocating for sustainable works to be more valuable than the common art materials due to their complex but organic creation process. His technique is very distinctive as he blends pop, modern, and traditional styles that are inspired by a mix of Amorsolo and Banksy. By incorporating waste into art, he aims to normalize reusing resources, spark environmental conversations, and encourage collaboration between artists, NGOs, and marginalized communities.
For him, sustainable art isn’t just a creative shift; it’s a revolutionary movement toward collective responsibility and environmental pride, not just as human beings but as Filipinos.
Celvic Villacorta
Celvic Villacorta, 36, is an accomplished exhibiting and freelance artist, a brand ambassador for major art suppliers like National Bookstore and SM Stationery, and a committed advocate for community art. He is also a Fine Arts undergraduate from UP Baguio. He also co-founded Paint It Forward with his wife in 2017, conducting charity workshops in schools, provinces, and even city jails. While Villacorta is new to eco-friendly art, he has embraced soil-painting, collecting pigments from different Benguet areas and turning them into watercolor.
According to him, the challenge lies in adapting his realistic portrait style to a limited palette, which pushes his creativity and adds unique texture to his works. He emphasizes teaching students that creativity doesn’t require expensive materials and warns against the exploitation of natural resources if soil pigments ever become a trend. Villacorta believes that Filipino art should reflect its cultural identity rather than chase whatever is popular around the world.
Ryuji Buenaventura
Ryuji Buenaventura, 32, is currently working as a cabin crew in Philippine Airlines and also showcases his artworks in different galleries with his speciality, dry leaf art. He began pressing leaves in 2009 as a hobby, until it evolved into a sustainable practice in 2020 during the pandemic, when his peers pushed him to sell his art without spending too much. He preserves leaves very carefully and has different ways of preservation depending on the results he wants when dried. Sometimes, preserving these leaves takes over a decade. He experiments with colors, textures, and also collects leaves from flowers and vegetables.
He personally loves doing dry leaf art as he feels at ease and some traces of nostalgia here and there. He uses precise cutting tools that he was once compared to a surgeon. He would like to encourage artists to feel free to explore around sustainable materials as a way to unlock creativity without financial constraints, as he believes that art rooted in natural elements is what strengthens cultural and ecological awareness.
Joey "Yoj" Blanco
Joey Blanco or commonly known as Yoj, 49, is a freelance artist known for his styrofoam and eggshell art all over the world. He sometimes helps create backdrops for school events. He also works as a musician outside his artistic life. He shifted to sustainability during the pandemic in 2021 as he saw light in discarded materials. He thought they were very valuable for making art.
By then, he started to find his own identity and strived to be different from what every artist would do. He shifted away from what was common and tried to be original, so that he could be more out there. So he founded his own concept called “MoSculP” (mosaic, sculpture, painting), and he became known for it not only in the Philippines but also internationally. He believes that collecting sustainable materials are never challenging as he finds them from daily life and discarded packaging. As he works with what is considered as “trash”, Yoj Blanco did not just find a unique niche in the art community but also proved that sustainability and creativity can coexist. Until today, Blanco’s mission is to stand out while wanting to show the world that one can be as creative as they can be while also being environmentally responsible.