“Ang Tao” (Human) is part of Edgar Talusan Fernandez’s “Kinupot” series. “Kinupot,” a combination of the Filipino words of “kinuha” (got) and “sinupot” (bagged), are Fernandez’s artworks from 1977 to the present which refers to the act of being wrapped or smothered. In “Ang Tao,” the artist uses plain canvas to suggest struggle and oppression during martial law under then Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. With no head or face, the work’s human being reaches out, ostensibly trying to escape the cloth which symbolically grounds him or her. During its exhibition in 1978, the canvas of the work was unintentionally stepped on and marred with footprints. The artist believes this adds meaning to and is part of the work. It is an early example of installation art among the social realist group of Philippine artists.
