"Resplendor: The Blinding Light" | Exhibit Reception | Meet the Artist

Resplendor: The Blinding Light

Conceptual photographs by Niccolo Cosme

Filipino Mundo-NYC Meet the Artist

Exhibit reception 6PM Friday August 31, Philippine Center in NYC

Blending images from Christian iconography with messages on HIV and AIDS, the conceptual photographs of Niccolo Cosme delve deep into the realities of HIV and migration, particularly for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). Entitled Resplendor: The Blinding Light, the 20 conceptual photographs in this collection provoke and inspire, and share Niccolo’s thoughts and perspectives as an artist and advocate.

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A number of the Resplendor photos have been included in the Art for AIDS collection of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and have been exhibited in the Philippines, Bangkok, and will soon be installed at the UNAIDS headquarters in Geneva. A noted fashion and conceptual photographer, Niccolo successfully combines photography with his advocacy on HIV and AIDS and human rights, and presents his distinctive photographs to a wider audience through social networking.

The Resplendor comes to New York City after being exhibited in August in San Francisco (under auspices) of the API Wellness Center. The exhibit will be on view at the Philippine Center in New York from August 27 to September 7, 2012, co-sponsored by APICHA Community Health Center.

Resplendor: The Blinding Light is also made possible by 2GO Travel and 2GO Express in cooperation with Kalusugan Coalition.

The Resplendor photographs have been exhibited in the Philippines at the House of Representatives, the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Asian Institute of Management, and at various events supported by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Three photographs from the Resplendor collection have been exhibited at the UN regional center in Bangkok, Thailand.

One of Niccolo’s most significant works, “Pagsubok” (“The Trials”) will soon be installed at the UNAIDS headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The conceptual photo was inspired by St. Camillus de Lelis, the patron saint of the sick, as well as of people who provide health care.

“I have dedicated it to the brothers and priests of St. Camillus, my beloved friends who have devoted their lives to people living with HIV and AIDS in the Philippines and around the world,” Niccolo shares. “As a child, I had been fascinated by images from Christian iconography, which I have infused with the pain and sorrow that come with experience and maturity. I use these images to convey meanings and evoke responses in support of my advocacies,” says Niccolo of his work.

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Niccolo Cosme

Conceptual Photographer, Visual Artist, Activist

More than a visual artist, Niccolo Cosme is a visionary who wields his art and craft to intensify and broaden his advocacy on HIV and AIDS. Realizing that “it’s closer than you think” when a friend was diagnosed with HIV, Niccolo conceptualized his first photo exhibit on HIV in 2008 (Headshot Clinic – AWARE). Since then, he has worked in partnership with UNAIDS Philippines for the past three years, and his exhibits on HIV and AIDS have been supported as well by the country offices of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

At the age of 32, Niccolo has garnered awards and accolades both in his home country (Philippines) and overseas. In 2011, Niccolo topped the 7th annual PPA (Professional Photographers of America) Affiliate Asian-Pacific Image Competition in Seoul, Korea with his artwork "The Brotherhood of Men". The photograph ranked first among more than 400 entries from different countries that included Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan and Korea. In February 2012, he was one of the recipients of the “Ani ng Dangal” (Harvest of Honors) awards of the National Commission on Culture and the Arts of the Philippines.

Niccolo is the founder and Creative Director of Headshot Clinic, an electronic platform which blends photography and social networking for advocacy as well as commercial purposes. Appointed as a goodwill ambassador for Levi’s (Philippines) in 2011, he had maximized the opportunity to reach a wider audience with messages on HIV prevention and non-discrimination.

In July 2012, Niccolo became a goodwill ambassador for the Philippine youth movement “Project Pagsulong,” which again gives him the opportunity to encourage and inspire young people to become involved in HIV prevention. Together with other fellow HIV advocates, he founded The Red Whistle, a cutting edge HIV prevention campaign.

“As an artist, I have understood that we need to create something that can make people feel the urgency to move and to respond, using visual and auditory symbols as a call to action for intensified advocacy on HIV and AIDS,” Niccolo affirms.

For more details, check out www.niccolo-cosme.com.

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