SINK

Critical Study

The medium of this artwork is digital using only

a mobile phone to create the piece. He used the
method of layering to guide the new layers as well as
each stroke of the paintbrush through the initial layers.
The artwork represents the routine life of a
person. It is presented from an angle where the
audience has the first-person view of the person in the
artwork. In this way, we can relate more to the
emotions of the person as we put ourselves in his
position. The use of dull colors gray and low tone
colors shows the empty feeling in his day-to-day life.
The person displayed no face nor identity to the
audience thus the person’s attitude to the situation
remains ambiguous. All that can be seen is their arm
clasped in the sink while holding a cigarette in the
other. We don’t get the full story of what the person is
thinking or what their problems are all about.
The main subject is the sink as it is the thing
that a person sees every day. The hands are attached
to the sink thinking that the person may have control over their routine. The element of
perspective is used where the one-point perspective has the ground as its vanishing point. The
setting of the artwork is a bathroom wherein square tiles are arranged geometrically in perfect
and imperfect alignment. In the reflection, the square tiles are more geometrically aligned
compared to the tiles, in reality, thus stating that perfection is just a concept within the
imaginations of man. This is why the person has no reflection as well. The person also wears a
watch with no hands signifying that they are lost in time and unaware of time.
About the Artist

The artist, Juan “Yuan” Rafael Cabrera Rosel, wants to represent the struggles of man
on a day-to-day basis through different mediums. From an existentialist standpoint, he often
asks what is the purpose of his existence. He sees that mankind is burdened with these
questions and sometimes it becomes too overwhelming especially when life doesn’t seem worth
living. He observed that one way to overcome this burden of existential crisis is through
distractions. These distractions can be benign or detrimental to one’s welfare.
Juan Rosel is a current 1st-year student at the University of the Philippines Diliman, he
started digital art during the start of the 2020 pandemic as a new hobby in the new normal.
Learning digital art has been difficult for Rosel since he lacks the necessary tools such as a
drawing pad and pen. He made use of his phone and managed to develop new skills of art just
by gliding with his pointer finger. Most of his earlier digital artworks were fan art of his favorite
superheroes.
Rosel was fond of arts since he was a young boy. He was an editorial cartoonist in high
school competing in region-level competitions. His passion for art grew more when he became
an architecture student. He also learned surface-level techniques in photoshop during high
school. He learned the basics of sketching and architectural manual visual techniques at the
University of Santo Tomas. In his work ‘sink’ 2022, we can see his use of perspective and
proper application of architectural drawings in the scale and proportion of the bathroom fixtures.
Rosel has a lot to learn in art, especially in digital art. As an architecture student, art is
used to translate and communicate design ideas easier to non-architect clients. In the age of
digitization, this new skill of digital art can aid him in his career.

Artist’s Statements

Art is the embodiment of the phrase “each to their own.” It is freedom within your medium so you
can go against the world.