“When starting on these paintings, a black butterfly landed on my window sill. In the Philippines, they’re thought of as the spirits of the dearly departed. Right there and then, I knew what I had to do.”Louie Bretaña’s new body of work is an act of remembrance, an homage to those who have gone ahead. They remind us of the values they represent that define us as individuals and as a people. They are a presence that watch over us. Adorned with eyes on their wings inspired by mystical patterns from precolonial Philippines, these representations of the spirits sparkle with glitter and crystals that lend a magical quality deserving of their elevation as our guardians. Through my work, I hope to reconnect us to the people from our past and remind us of the part of them that continues to live in all of us.