By Maridol Ranoa-Bismark
Like his dad architecture graduate and visual artist Martin Nieto, Manila Vice Mayor Yul Servo has always been drawn to creative things. He loved to draw. Every art work he copied turned into an abstract drawing with a language of its own.
Growing up, he turned found items like pieces of scrap lying around the house into metal art. His dad’s love for horses inspired Servo so much, he created a replica mage of the four-legged animal from scrap. It was the then amateur sculpture artist’s first attempt at what turned out to be a full-blown hobby.
Since then, he has created chess tables and chess pieces, benches, chairs, a replica of Manila’s famous clock tower and life-size maps of Manila, Quezon City and other places by flattening pieces of galvanized steel, grinding them into his desired shape, and welding them together.
Because he’s a full-time public servant, it takes Yul years to create his metal art. The horse sculpture, for instance, took several months to complete.
Yul’s gigantic maps is an offshoot of his love for these guides to the many streets he goes to as a public servant and as an actor with a call slip.
“I always check out maps before going to a taping so I can reach the address faster,” he told members of TEAM (The Entertainment Arts and Media) who went to his recent exhibit at an art gallery in historic Calvo Building in Escolta.
When he was still a councilor, Yul always consulted a map before starting any trip. This way, he explains, he won’t be jumping from Point A to Point B to reach out to his constituents. He can show his driver the fastest, most convenient route to get there.
Yul has since translated these instructions to his driver into a huge map made from metal which stands proudly at the Manila City Hall.
“It’s like pieces of a puzzle,” he said. I cut then put the pieces in place. One time, I mistook the back of the map for the front part. The back looked better than the front. I didn’t throw it away. I used it somewhere else (like the legs of a metal chess table.”
As an artist, Yul loves looking at pieces of rusty metal. He thinks they look like something one unearthed from the earth itself – classic and beautiful. So he soaks the metal in water and exposes it to air so it turns reddish brown or becomes rust faster.
Yul makes rivers, like the Pasig stand out on the map by painting them a different color, like deep red. The various colors have a checkered effect that is unique and attractive. But the map itself is not just decorative. It’s as detailed as can be. Yul can pinpoint his family’s first home, Quezon City Circle, Manila City Hall, Sta. Cruz, Manila and other areas on his metal maps.
Combining metal art and public service feeds Yul’s soul. It keeps the blues away on stressful days. It’s a saving grace like no other.
