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Justine Velasquez
39 Artworks
Biography
Justine Salta Velasquez was born in Angeles City, Pampanga, Philippines, in 1981. He studied at the Angeles City National Trade School for his Drafting Technology Vocational Diploma. He received his degree in architecture from Don Honorio Ventura Technological State University in 2007. Married to a nurse and blessed with a son, Justine now lives and works in Hong Kong. He is a senior landscape designer for an international landscape and urban planning company and a part-time artist.
He has created art since childhood. He improved his talents at a young age by selling personalized bookmarks, rendering school art projects, and making posters in exchange for his school allowance during his primary school years. As he stepped into his secondary years, he participated in many school poster-making and editorial cartooning competitions, from school to inter-school competitions and to the divisional level. In these creative years, he starts commissioning some school murals during the weekends. He wants to pursue his passion by taking up architecture in college, but due to a lack of financial support to study architecture, he took a 2-year vocational course instead. After getting his diploma and being awarded various awards, he immediately works as a draftsman for an engineering firm, accepting advertising art and sign projects. He also worked for an export company as a production painter and designer, where he learned various painting techniques owned by one of the National Artists of the Philippines. After two years of work, he decided to pursue architecture. These were the years when his creative passion bloomed from just art to fully functional art as he learned to design buildings, spaces, etc. He even accepted some weekend jobs to help his family support his financial school expenses. Justine became known in his college years, especially in the architecture department, as he offered students a cheaper version of the ink that he formulated for architectural rendering presentations he used to sell. The school also commissioned him on some stage back draft designs, school ID designs, department’s shirts, and advertising works. He also worked for his instructors as an apprentice for architectural drafting works and as a regular draftsman for a landscape specialist company. Even though he is too busy with his studies and part-time work, he graduated with the Best in Thesis and 3rd Best in Design awards.
His passion for painting stopped when he entered the corporate world. Searching to relieve his stress from work, he began to revive his passion for art and creative outlets, which quickly evolved into a pure obsession. His passion deepened after he discovered fluid art and progressed into resin painting. Now that he's working predominately with epoxy resin, his fearless approach is unorthodox, rarely using an easel or a brush. Most of his works involved flow art techniques that were both natural and controlled. For him, painting is a therapeutic activity. Amado Hidalgo, a local Filipino artist, and Greg Benz, a Canadian artist, both had an influence on him.
His background in landscape architecture is reflected in his works, including landscapes, seascape scenes, abstract figurative forms, topography, and the audacious use of colors. Most of his works are done on wood boards, round boards, wood slabs, clocks, canvas, mirrors, trays, and the like. He has participated in many exhibitions and art fairs, both local and international.