Press Coverage

Perceptive portraits Friday, February 01, 2008 Hong Kong-based artist Janet Pancho Gupta knew she had a gift when teachers at her primary school began paying attention  for her sketches she drew. With the encouragement of her artistic family, she honed her natural talent and, growing up surrounded by poverty and hardship in her Philippine hometown of Mabinay, the young artist developed another edge to her work - an appreciation for nature's beauty and an intense perception in her portraits. She became politically active after moving to Hong Kong in 2000 and groups such as the Mission for Filipino Migrant Workers began using her artwork as visual fuel in their activities. She presented one of her works to Hong Kong's first chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, as a "Christmas present" in 2002 to remind him of the hardship the government inflicted on foreign domestic helpers by introducing a levy. The 32 year old is now married, a mother, but still devotes her precious time to further develop her work for her maiden art exhibition, entitled Faces and Colours of Life, at the Culture Club Gallery between Tuesday and March 1. The exhibition showcases her versatility, taking art lovers through portraits, landscapes and florals that reveal a mastery of mediums, from graphites to watercolors, oils and pastels. "I don't boast that I'm good or talented," she says. "When people compliment me it's not something I listen to, I suppose, because its something that has come so naturally it's just a part of me." Her website www.artpancho. com displays some of her favorite works, and feedback from wetcanvas.com, one of the biggest association of artists internationally of which she is a member, is constant. Her graphite portraits have drawn the most attention. "The graphites are the most expressive, I think, because you're not distracted by colors, - you're drawn straight to the focus of the work," she says. "And they do take a lot of time, too, normally 50 hours or more for a single piece. When I draw people, I wonder about what's behind that person's eyes, and this gives me insights into their personality and helps me to interpret them for the painting." It is that perception that elevates her art. She hopes others will be inspired by her work.

II.  The South China Morning Post

 III.  HK Magazine

FACES AND COLOURS OF LIFE Janet Pancho Gupta's graphite, pencil, pastel and watercolor paintings of both stills and wildlife. Feb 5-Mar 1. Culture Club Gallery, 15 Elgin St., Central, 2127-7936.    IV.  RTHK Interview, in Radio 3 Morning Brew     V.  The Sun Hong Kong   October 2008 Artist's homecoming By Smiley D. Julve Notable among the featured art works at the first charity auction to raise funds for Bethune House Migrant Women's Refuge on Sept. 20 were those of residents at the shelter--drawn with as much empathy as one could expect from someone who used to be in the same situation. The artist behind the paintings is Janet Pancho-Gupta, a former distressed domestic helper who also took shelter at Bethune in 2000 and stayed there for almost three years. Her case dragged on for too long because she couldn't testify in court when she was diagnosed with brain abscess and had to stay in a hospital for 3 1/2 months, losing consciousness on some days. She never fully recovered from that, and had to take pain relievers on bad days. Her three paintings of BH residents were done with watercolor, admittedly the most challenging medium in paintings among artists. Janet never went to any professional training but her talent runs in the blood, she said. Almost everyone in her family draws, but did not take art seriously as it was not well appreciated in their poor town in Dumaguete. Janet began drawing as early as five years old and was even named artist of the year while still in kindergarten. In Hong Kong, she initially found it hard to tap into her talent because of discrimination, not only because she's a Filipina but also because she is a self-taught artist. "I didn't have professional training... I didn't learn the language of art," she said. But her first successful exhibition last February at Culture Club Gallery on Elgin Street changed all that. "It stopped affecting me (discrimination) after the exhibition," she said. She realized that to be an artist, one only needs to be open-minded, and never boastful. "The real artist is open-minded. She can see things... smell things which other people can't," she said. "That's how you can paint... and express things around you." Janet's favorite subject are people. She tries to capture on paper what makes them different, and in the process think of what is going on in their minds. Apart from the watercolor paintings of the BH residents, Janet also donated a landscape, and a couple of animal paintings. She only paints living things, she said. She hopes her paintings would not only help BH at this most crucial time, but also serve as an inspiration to her fellow Filipinas who are mostly domestic helpers. "So many domestic helpers here are talented. I want to encourage them to do something, or be their inspiration."