Pio Abad discusses Marcos dictatorship, colonial collections, and Turner Prize in podcast

In a podcast interview, artist Pio Abad discusses his practice, which examines objects with personal and political resonance through installations combining drawing, textiles, photography, and text. Born in the Philippines in 1983, his work engages with the history of the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship, its propaganda, and its legacies. Recent projects explore violence and theft underpinning art collections. He discusses his large-scale forensic drawings as a means of 'excessively remembering' forgotten histories and honoring unnamed non-Western artists. Abad recalls his aunt, artist Pacita Abad, and her influence, as well as his role as curator of her estate. He cites influences including Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Henri Michaux, Egon Schiele, Jorge Luis Borges, Hisham Matar, and Teju Cole. The podcast is sponsored by Bloomberg Connects. Abad features in the 61st Venice Biennale, 'In Minor Keys' curated by Koyo Kouoh, running until 22 November. His recent solo exhibition 'To Those Sitting in Darkness' was at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (10 February–8 September 2024), and he was included in the Turner Prize 2024 exhibition at Tate Britain (25 September 2024 – 16 February 2025).