UPCOMING AND RISING HOTSHOT XYZA CRUZ BACANI is the atypical, not-your-stereotype Filipino domestic worker who -- after a hard day's work taking care of babies or cleaning windows and floors and washing dishes -- would go malling and share gossip and sob stories with fellow OFWs in Hong Kong.
Bacani chooses to always go through the untrodden paths, the maverick's route.
Bacani chooses to always go through the untrodden paths, the maverick's route.
Armed with her unusual weapon -- not the floor mop nor the broom, but her zoom lens and camera -- she would click away in successive ticks just like holding an armalite, winging it like a pro, doing what looks to art critics like a Vivian Maieresque take on urban street photography. She clicks away in true-blue ferocious abandon, invading privacies, her voyeuristic artisty unleashed in maverick fashion.
She tells it like it is, just like her photography. "I have the attention span of a kindergarten kid, I don't want to be stagnant. I hate boredom, and I am easily bored," Bacani says, explaining herself, but no apologies there. It's like this woman, who comes across strong as a woman with a lot of guts and chutzpah, has nothing to apologize for. Either take it or leave it, she says.
Through her blogsite http://xyzabacaniphotography.com/ she writes away , as if speaking to you and me up close, knowingly conscious of more than a thousand growing number of followers dodging her thoughts , feelings, and perspectives on living and loving life.
Bacani writes: " I woke up this morning light headed and excited. I haven’t been like this for weeks now. The stupid emo shit is over , I guess. I just need to focus on things that (make) me happy. And what else can make me happy but photography? I shoot and shoot until my fingers are sore. I checked my photos awhile ago and I can say I shoot my feelings away. One interviewer asked me what differentiates me from other photographers, I laughed (at this), because, is there such a thing? Aren’t we all different? All I know is I shoot with my feelings. I will explain that soon. So yeah, Happy Sunday everyone. Keep spreading the love. Apir! ( "Up here" "High Five")
"Being accepted is huge happiness for me," she says, grateful for all the global attention . "So guys, just stay happy, keep on spreading the love," she writes to her growing audience through her blog site.
Clearly, this woman of the world has brains, and no-nonsense flair for courageously showing the world what she is made of, and who she is. Her art photography has indeed caught the attention of worldwide media and art critics alike: from The New York Times, to Vogue Magazine Italy Edition, to photography awards given by CameraPixo Photography Magazine last January (hailed as "Most Inspiring Photography", Urban Photo Magazine, and also featured by Hong Kong-based Localiz Magazine.
With worldwide media catching up with Xyza, Philippine media also had her doing the TV interview rounds via Skype: GMA 7 Network, ABC 5 and its online site Interaksyon.com, and also featured in Philippine Daily Inquirer. On a recent TV interview by ABC5's "Good Morning Club", she smiles but complains that the interview was "too early" for her, displaying much childlike candor and candidness, chuckling in between answers and questions.
This early, art critics are comparing her to American street photographer Vivian Maier, who spent most of her childhood in France, but went back to Chicago working as a nanny for forty years -- living her passion and dream scouring the streets of Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles during the 50's and 60's , and coming up with more than 150,000 photos of people and human-interest snapshots.
Maier received critical acclaim only years after her death, when Chicago historian John Maloof exposed her art, with her posthumous art exhibits shown worldwide in Europe, North America and Asia, and became subject of documentary films, and several books.
Bacani shrugs the idea of the comparison with Maier, saying she wants to be known for who she is. Without any argument, she has the advantage against the former : with all the instant publishing of her works in social media networking sites, no need to wrestle with lost negatives, developing photos in dark rooms, and all the hustle-and-bustle of 20th century photography that Maier had to wrestle with.
Black and white photography, meantime, remains Bacani's favorite theme: she says that with its variety of moods -- curiousity, melancholy mien, quirky flippant moods , or her traversing the humdrum mediocrity of life and juxtaposing it with her innate artistic humour, she gives color to the cliches, and the daily boredom of routine.
"I like the moods and the drama behind black and white photography," Bacani says. "I shoot the ho-hum, the mediocrity, the cliche,"
She talks about her so-called urban exploration, wherein she invades each urban scene with much artistic gusto and aplomb, capturing the reality of poverty, the no-mincing-of-words truth and in-your-face brutality of austerity, of innocence, of sadness, and the rarity of little details in each daily routine of everyday living in Asia, in Hong Kong, in the Philippines, in Singapore , and in every nook and corner where she unleashes her Xaxa artistry.
She talks about her so-called urban exploration, wherein she invades each urban scene with much artistic gusto and aplomb, capturing the reality of poverty, the no-mincing-of-words truth and in-your-face brutality of austerity, of innocence, of sadness, and the rarity of little details in each daily routine of everyday living in Asia, in Hong Kong, in the Philippines, in Singapore , and in every nook and corner where she unleashes her Xaxa artistry.
Bacani reveals that she has discovered a variety of lessons in her experience and foray in street photography: that there is a need for her to read , since "an empty brain means a blind eye" ; and that she should also keep an open mind to maintain the artistry in photography. "Adapt or die, " she says.
"Photography is a medium that keeps on evolving. The dinosaurs died during the Jurassic (Age), so don't be a dinosaur," she says, "Even though you are not in the mood to shoot pictures, just keep on shooting, and find out what makes you click, then shoot. Nothing beats experience, " the rising photographer says.
She further notes: "Also, one should shoot more than one frame , since "two is one, one is none". And lastly, "don't be an asshole, since nobody likes assholes for a long time... And don't take yourself so seriously. You might be a good photographer, but there will always be someone out there better than you. Keep that in mind."
She may be fully aware that as a young photography artist at age 27, she has a lot going for her , also a lot of self-improvements for her craft. Bacani narrates she is banking on her own self-analyses, self-criticisms, and self-improvements for her artistry to just keep on getting better.
"I have read an article about defining your style in photography, and I agree with it. As for my style, (thinking about it now), I'm not even sure if I have one. I just love to shoot anything that pleases my eyes."
"My photographs are visually pleasing, and I'm talking about colors here. Most the street (photographers) I know post in black-and-white, but some colors are just too attractive to convert in black-and-white."
"I also go for minimalism in photography. Minimalist, that's me! That's my personality," Bacani says. "Every photo I take with minimalist (characteristic) is actually (showing) myself, that's my own signature, my very own way of introducing myself to people.. Also, I make sure that people can relate to my works. I'm not a fan of too complicated photos that need a PhD Degree to be understood. I just want my photos to be able to be related to by people. I want my photos to trigger something in them."
Bacani further writes: " My photos are very interesting, using lights,
using people, using motion from the subjects. I don't want my photography to be "cute", because only dogs and cats are cute. I'm not even cute so why should my photography be cute? CHuckles. And I never want my photography to be just "nice", because "nice" is boring! Enough said."
On one of her blog posts, she lets her heart on her sleeve. Meet Bacani up close and personal and getting comfy with sharing her heart to the world.
"I've got a confession to make. Ive been rejected gazillions of times, but I never give up. Not me,but my photos (were rejected). Yet it felt so personal at first, and it hurt. It pained my humongous ego. Being human, (we cannot help it) when we feel like we did our best and it should be enough. When it comes to taste and preference, (it's supposed to be ) "to each his own."
"The rejections taught me a lesson though, that not everyone will love the photos we (think are best). What might be the best work for us, (could be perceived) as ordinary by others. I have been submitting two photos daily for one magazine, and within the same year, only two photos were accepted."
" But part of my personality is that I never quit. I learned it from CAT in high school and ROTC in college. Quitters never win they say,and it's true! I took it as a challenge. There was a time when I did not stop submitting even though all of (my entries) got rejected. I did not listen to the annoying voice inside me,telling me to stop and look for another pool that will appreciate my images. That time, I just kept on submitting my works."
"It may be shallow to some but it feels like victory to me. Here is the link.
"What im trying to say is,never quit! Never lose hope! Tomorrow is another day and hard work always pays off. Happy shooting and keep spreading the love."
Bacani further reveals herself:
"Sometimes I'm quite attached to some things I own, like my old Chuck Taylor (which) has been with me for more than ten years. I can not wear it anymore but I still keep it. Well, just because (they) were my first Chucks! I always keep the “firsts” in my life except my first boyfriend whom I can not even remember his last name now. Lol"
"And then there's my first Red Pocket (lucky money) , my first T-shirt which I bought with my own money. This past few days,i dug my closet and i discovered my 18-105 nikor lens. I was like my first baby, but then I was horrified when I saw the dust and mould eating it away. I wanted to save it but the guy at the Central Station said it would cost $HK1,200 for cleaning, but that cannot work for me. I'm sorry, but I'm broke. It reminded me to let go of things which I don’t use, or which I don't need in my life anymore. "
" Just like my Fuji camera which i just dumped away and forgot about it," she further writes. She writes about her past cameras like they were her ex-boyfriends, which she says, get "dumped away" by her.
"I walked with him (Fuji) yesterday, i even attached my good old 20mm nikor lens just to excite myself. I was really planning to sell it but the value of Fuji cameras go down easily. Maybe because they release new cameras every week or every month, so i don't have a choice but to use it. It was a good walk, and I got some "ok photos" (with the old Fuji camera) , and it still works good with its own "Ninja moves".
Later, she decides to call her old Fuji camera as "Ninja".
"Oh yes, I'm gonna keep him. Except for its bulky 18-55 lens that costs $HK 5000 , which, when I try to sell it on second hand thrift shops, the shop owners would price it for only $HK 1,500 -- even with the warranty and all. I almost cried, but a little bit of money is better than another moulding lens on my cabinet. I will never buy another gear again that i don’t really like 100 percent next time. Stay happy and awesome everyone. Much love."
One thing which I found as surprisingly pleasant and striking was her good sense of humour and light-hearted wit, more of an eternally youthful take on life: cheeky, even bordering on the irreverent, the detached, the tongue-in-cheek perspective of a young woman who got not so good cards but is playing her cards well. She can even be flippantly funny and goofy , as she writes on one of her blog posts last Father's Day.
"My father never imposed on us -- his children -- that it is our responsibility to take care of them when they are old. All he wanted is for us to be in a good place, happy and healthy with our own family someday. I promised myself that I will give him all the good things in life which he never experienced when he was young due to poverty."
" My father is the eldest in the family and being the eldest, when his father died, he took over the responsibility of taking care of his siblings. As a father,he taught us the meaning of family: that we should always have each other's back , that we must support each other as brothers and sisters , and to always help the one who would be struggling in life."
"My father has a big heart that even idiots tend to abuse sometimes. He loves his wine, yes, but that's the only thing he likes. He never smoked, and he never womanized. He loved my mother for 26 years faithfully. He also loves his only grandchild and would be spoiling her sometimes. We call him Papa, Pops and Papitoh. He is a funny guy although he looks so serious , and he may not be perfect for others but for me he is perfect: the only guy i know who will love me until the day I die."
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