The Fall of Anarchy in Western Philosophy

In the iconic style of Filipino painter Jigger Cruz, The Fall of Anarchy in Western Philosophy is an audacious exploration of opposites that resist categorization. In the artist's study of the binaries of classical technique and abstract impressionism, the latter reigns supreme. In the present lot, the dominance of chaos is first depicted in Jigger Cruz's iconoclastic disregard for the traditional constraints of the frame. Echoing the radical, gestural style of William de Kooning and Bram Boggart, using oil paints and spray paint, the artist superimposes an impasto explosion of vivid colour upon a somber remake of a classical 17th Century Flemish painting. Rendered in wild strokes, squiggles and smears, the eruption of colour relegates the classical painting to the background. From beyond the whorls of vivid greens, reds, and yellow the eyes of the figures are left visible and both gaze upon the viewer. Cruz negates the figures role as subjects and, in doing so challenges the audiences learned engagement with art. Jigger Cruz admits to the redemptive power of such deliberate vandalism: "I attempt to make things more simplified and more defined in a natural way specifically when dealing with negative spaces – the most frightening state of my practice." As he bends and folds the timeline of art history, the modern luminary elevates a classic picture to a sublime, sensory experience anew.