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Over a course of a weekend in April, a number of stenciled images of a girl with the words “Rescue Us” appeared on the walls of Pasong Tamo. It was signed “Kampo LSD,” and immediately, we knew had to keep watch on this street artist.
Unlike the more popular colorful tags, or the cryptic rhetorical question mushrooming in Metro Manila, Kampo’s street art is teeming with meaning. It’s hard not to put a socio-political reading on his image of the girl, looking vulnerable with those doe eyes, accompanied with a plea for help.
We set our eyes on his movement, tracking him down on the streets — there’s a lot of his work in Marikina, EDSA Guadalupe, JP Rizal, and Taft Avenue — as well as on social media, where finally we connected with him.
We were surprised to learn Kampo is only all of 19 years old, and this whole street art shebang is a product of…a school homework. Currently, Kampo is enrolled as a Multi Media Arts junior in one of the colleges in Metro Manila. We speak to the artist.
How did this come about?
I started in Dec 2014. For our finals project in one of our subjects, we were required to make ambient advertising, something that your audience can interact with. Something like — alam mo yung benches ng Kit-Kat? Parang ganun, something that the audience can interact with.
Was Banksy an influence?
Oo. Matagal na akong fan ni Banksy.
Can you tell us about your “Rescue Us” series?
For the school project, I wanted to do something about kids and poverty. Actually, gusto ko mapansin yung mga batang kalye. Parang Bantay Bata lang. At first, I thought I’d do it on canvas but I realized if I did it on the street, kung sa kalye mismo, mas maraming makakakita ng art ko. Mas may effect.
So who’s the girl?
Kapatid ko yung ginawa kong model. Tapos I use office folders, yung mga PHP6-folders na nabibili sa book stores, yung mga gawa sa karton, as my stencil. Para foldable din siya. Gumagamit din ako ng tape. Naghahanap nga ako ng iba pang material na pwede. Sumubok ako ng cartolina dati pero one-time use lang siya.
So what grade did you get for your project?
Naka-kwatro kami, yung highest.
Does your professor know you’re still at it?
Oo. Sabi niya, nakakita daw siya ng mga gawa ko sa kalye.
How about the “Foreign Invasion” series?
Ginawa ko siya kasi masyado na tayong na-iimpluwensyahan ng mga ibang bansa. I used the Alaska logo para makita ng mga tao na nabuhay tayong gumagamit ng produkto ng iba.
Do you work alone or do you have friends with you?
The very, very first time in Marikina, I was alone. Matagal ko na rin talaga gusto maging street artist, even before the school project. But when the project happened, tatlo kami sa grupo. Nag-enjoy talaga ako, tinuloy-tuloy ko na. By then, hindi na lang mukha ng kapatid ko yung ginagawa ko, buong katawan na, tapos [dinagdagan ko na rin ng] mga salita na “Rescue Us.” I’m a member of the LSD crew, seven kami right now.
Do your parents know you’re doing this?
Yes, nakikita nila akong gumagawa ng stencil sa bahay, but they don’t know it’s illegal.
How often do you bomb?
Pag may time lang. And usually sa gabi, syempre. But gusto ko talaga palawakin itong ‘Rescue Us’ series. Gusto ko lang gumawa nang gumawa muna.
Have you ever been caught?
Yes! Nung nag-bo-bomb kami for the school project, in Makati. They brought us to the precint, sabi nila kakasuhan daw kami. But we were really doing the project. Matagal din kaming na-hold duon. We were caught 1:30am and they only released us around 5am.
And despite that, you still continued.
Oo, it’s so addicting. Every time I go to a new place, sa pader ako unang tumitingin. I look for a spot where I can leave my mark. Para ka kasing nagmumura. Parang sinisigawan mo yung pader. Nakaka-addict.
Did you ever think you’d get into street art?
Hindi, actually inis na inis ako nun dati sa mga vandals — ang linis ng pader, tapos guguluhin nila. Masyado ako mabait nung bata ako. Sobra kong KJ sa kalokohan. Nitong college lang ako medyo nagkaruon ng lakas ng luob. I didn’t expect to be doing street art now.
Why is that?
Nung first year college, we were taught traditional art — painting and drawing. I wasn’t very good at it. So I told myself, what I lacked in skills, I’ll make up for in meaning. I want my art to mean something. In second year, I discovered Banksy. Nandun yung meaning sa art niya. That changed everything for me. Simula nun, I tried it, yun nga sa Marikina muna. And then the school project happened and tuloy-tuloy na. I’m now an incoming junior multi-media arts student, and I still intend to continue with street art.
Will you continue school?
Yes, I want to be a filmmaker someday.
Last: Where’d you get your alias? What does it mean?
Ah, galing siya sa last name ko.
Foreign Invasion photo: courtesy of Kampo
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