As technology and societies develop, cultures expand and change. One remarkable change happening right now is how technology has altered the concept of meeting people. Our world has gotten smaller from when we sent letters via the post office , and the future took another leap when the telephone was invented. Now we have the cellphone, computers, and the Internet.

Traditionally, people met face-to-face to transact business, talk and fix alliances, and woo and fall in love , but as our options broaden by means of communication, how can we say that we’ve really met someone?

Artist Marga Rodriguez’s solo exhibit “Have We Met?” examines the nuances of the two schools of thought of meeting people: Meeting people face-to-face and exploring the interaction between individuals using tools, such as the Internet.

An avid user of the Internet, Rodriguez delves into the medium of cyberspace to find what draws people together and what keeps them apart. She finds that the Internet has redefined communication and values, and people are now moving toward the abstract than the material. Another discovery is how computers can sometimes make a person more subtle, intuitive, expressive, or creative–these would have been harder to reveal in a face-to-face contact.

Rodriguez reveals her ideas through collage portraits of people she has known and interacted with online. Her masterpieces, conveyed through textiles and handmade items, show a sense of attachment to materials and techniques employed.

“Have We Met?”
July 3, 2008
Art Informal
277 Connecticut Street
Greenhills East, Mandaluyong City