Filipino kinetic art pioneer David Medalla dies in Manila at 78

David Medalla, the Filipino artist renowned for kinetic sculptures like 'Cloud Canyons', passed away in Manila this past Monday. Born in Manila in 1942, he began his artistic journey early, studying at Columbia University at age fourteen on poet Mark Van Doren's recommendation. During the 1960s, after a brief return to the Philippines, he moved to Europe, first to Paris where figures like Marcel Duchamp, Louis Aragon, and Gaston Bachelard encountered his work, then to London. In London, he co-founded the influential Signals gallery from 1964 to 1967 and later initiated the open-submission London Biennale in 1998. From 1974 to 1977, he chaired Artists for Democracy, an organization supporting global liberation movements. His 'Cloud Canyons'—plastic tubes emitting soap bubble columns—exemplified his 'auto-creative art', a term he coined in contrast to Gustav Metzger's 'auto-destructive art'. These works, which drew inspiration from playgrounds, nightclubs, air travel, and a traumatic childhood memory of a Japanese soldier killing a guerrilla fighter, blended lightness with seriousness. This unique approach led to his inclusion in numerous biennials and international exhibitions from the 1970s onward. Medalla's career spanned kinetic art, gallery founding, and biennial creation, marking him as a pioneering figure in contemporary art.