Press Release
Exhibit Opening Reception Photos
Meeting Rosie
Philippine Center Gallery
September 2-13, 2019
9am – 5pm
Reception: September 5th, 2019
7pm – 8:30pm
A Young Global Artist’s Exhibit at the Philippine Center
Ysabel Simon will have her first solo art exhibit entitled ‘Meeting Rosie’, in the Philippine Center in Manhattan (5th Avenue and 45 St.) from September 2 to 20, 2019. This exhibition will feature some of her works, including a new series of oil painting portraits and lithographs. The new series was done under the guidance of two prominent American artists: Bruce Lieberman and Howardena Pindell. The exhibit is open to the public Monday to Friday, 9AM-5PM.
About the Artist
Ysabel is a young global artist based in New York City. Artistic blood runs in Ysabel’s family, as she is the daughter of songwriter Dodjie Simon, writer of OPM hits including “Ikaw Lamang” originally interpreted by Zsa Zsa Padilla and revived by Janno and Jaya, and “Isang Dugo, Isang Lahi, Isang Musika” originally interpreted by Richard Reynoso, among many others. She is also the niece of Philippine National Artist for Visual Arts, Benedicto Cabrera (aka BenCab).
At the age of 21 years old, Ysabel has experienced a colorful life. She lived and studied in the Philippines, Australia (Sydney), and the Northeast of US (New Jersey and New York). Ysabel also studied in France, Spain, and Italy. This has fostered her interests in languages, history, culture, and art.
Art being constituted in her life, Ysabel demonstrated a love for the fine arts at a young age. When Ysabel graduated from Chatham Middle School in New Jersey, she was awarded with an Outstanding Achievement in Fine Arts. That summer of 2012, she enrolled at the Art Students League of New York in Manhattan and the Bridgeview School of Fine Arts in Queens. She then auditioned in August 2012 at the world famous Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art, and Performing Arts (The Fame school) in New York City.
During her senior year at LaGuardia, Ysabel’s oil painting entitled “Tinik” (fishbone in Tagalog) won a New York City wide art competition. As a result, her oil painting was exhibited in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) from June to October 2016. The image of her oil painting was shown on giant electronic screens in Times Square every top of the hour for one whole week. Since then, she has taken part in exhibitions in the Philippines and Long Island, New York, and also worked on illustrations for a book and album. She is now currently finishing her college degree with triple concentration on fine arts, business, and Asian and Asian-American studies at Stony Brook University in Long Island, New York.