Richard de la Cruz is capable of sorting chaos artistically. Equipped with a magic brush, he paints a crowd that epically organizes itself. Going against the odds, we find order and unity to be so well collected that any change represents nothing short of an impossible task. Everything seems to be in its precise position, situated in the only possible place. Everything appears to make sense. Nothing here is forced, and everything is ordered under a geometric logic.

The abolition of color awakens the values allowing them to build shapes in which the volumes stand out like sculptures. Its trait is seductive, endowed with fierce voluptuousness, and rounded with an effect reminiscent of the engraved carvings and Rococo style. By relying on the principles of design, and exhibiting a skillful knowledge of the classical rules of composition, he can do two things at once: on the one hand, the gently conducted gaze makes the composition unfold itself in different acts and, on the other, he narratively tells a story during the whole process.

An in-depth story clearly emphasized in the three-dimensionality of its characters. They are pure human frames that carve a society in which all parts constitute a whole, relating harmoniously and contributing to the full picture. Waves of movement that orbit around the characters and their actions radiate the perfect composition where we can see the tree and the forest. It is the individual and society; the belief and worship; the big and little; and, the manual craft that supports the weight of an existence constituted by committed and placid movements. Proletarians that integrate machines; the elements of the mechanism accountable for their perpetual functioning. Cruz can whimsically address serious issues, hence describing major contractions or even congenital injustices in perfect harmony. Just like a melancholic piece of a reconciled mechanism that, serenely, appears to function in tune.

By Pedro Boaventura • Excerpt from Masters of Contemporary Fine Art - Volume 3

Born in 1981, son of a farmer and simple housewife, the artist has roots from Oton, Iloilo, Philippines. He is a neophyte family man, whose art is the sole fender for his youngster. He portrays intricate and often elaborated laborious scenarios as inspired by the diligence of surrounding folks in his vicinity like field and construction workers to name a few. Richard De la Cruz is an epitome of an isolated yet passionate self-taught artist who focuses on the fruits of every labor and the lesson in every adversity; Resembled by carabao, beast skulls and massive assemblage of hectic workers, he often reflects his personal narratives to his every masterpiece.