Cover Filipina watercolour artist Micat Po (Photo: Hans Fausto)
Filipina watercolour artist Micat Po (Photo: Hans Fausto)
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How do we converse without words? Micat Po’s watercolour art encourages a wordless dialogue with our own subconscious, nature, and one another
Through her abstractionism, Micat Po channels the energy of a world often overlooked—the rhythms of nature, the wounds of history and the spiritual connections that run beneath the surface of daily life. A painter whose art has become a window into the subconscious, she quietly transforms the way we see the world around us, and perhaps, ourselves.
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Her path to art wasn’t a straight line. Born and raised in the Philippines, Micat spent years as a marine ecologist before art came calling again—this time with an urgency that couldn’t be ignored. “I was in Hawaii, feeling lost,” she says, “and the first thing I painted after a seven-year hiatus was water.” The ocean, it seemed, was coaxing her back to the canvas, and from that moment, Micat’s relationship with art became less about observation and more about emotion, spirit and energy.
Above Micat Po invites everyone to visit her exhibit, ‘Seeing Beyond: Images from the Subconscious’, at Archivo 1984, Karrivin Plaza (Photo: Hans Fausto)
Micat Po invites everyone to visit her exhibit, ‘Seeing Beyond: Images from the Subconscious’, at Archivo 1984, Karrivin Plaza (Photo: Hans Fausto)
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Today, Micat’s work is deeply personal, but it also speaks to universal themes—nature, the feminine experience and the human capacity to heal and transform. Her process begins with a spark of intuition: whether a fleeting thought, a song lyric or a dream. “I’m a channel,” she says. “The energy comes from other realms, through my body and onto the paper.” Each piece she creates reflects that flow, an alchemy of feeling transformed into colour and form.
Above ‘Untitled’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
‘Untitled’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
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The fluidity of watercolour fits her ethos perfectly. “I never know what a piece will look like until it’s done,” she says. It’s this unpredictability that makes her art so arresting—colours bleed into each other, and shapes emerge and dissolve, leaving space for the viewer to find their own meaning. Her piece Infinite Sun, for instance, was inspired by a song of the same name by Kula Shaker. In it, abstract forms stretch toward an unseen horizon, suggesting both the rising sun and an eternal, cosmic dance.
Above ‘Infinite Sun’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
‘Infinite Sun’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
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Micat doesn’t shy away from drawing connections between her art and the broader world, particularly when it comes to the environment. “I believe that nature holds the key to a balanced world,” she shares. “We are suffering because we’re disconnected from nature. We’re neurotic and obsessed with control. We desecrate our natural world and exploit our resources, and yet people are still hungry. The way our world is set up has never made any sense to me.”
Furthermore, she thinks we still live under an oppressive system that rewards greed and power. Women are still disadvantaged, which has trickled down from generations of patriarchy. “My work is a desire to transform and transcend our current reality.”
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Yet despite the weight of her themes, there’s a lightness to her art. The shapes and colours may hint at heavy concepts, but they invite you in rather than confront you. This accessibility is intentional. “Abstract forms are intriguing because they’re not concrete,” she says. “They evoke feelings and memories without telling you what to think.” Micat’s art encourages a conversation—a gentle, meditative one—with our subconscious, with nature and with each other.
Above ‘The Ballroom’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
‘The Ballroom’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
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That conversation is also deeply informed by her lineage. Micat is a descendant of José Abad Santos, a national hero of the Philippines, executed during World War II for resisting the Japanese occupation. “This is not just a story,” she asserts. “It’s my bloodline.” For Micat, the pain of history is something passed down through generations, and her art is a way of reckoning with that legacy. “I consider myself a keeper of familial stories,” she reflects. “It’s about healing those wounds.”
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One of her most cherished works is a painting she made for her grandmother, which now rests on her grandmother’s altar. The piece was inspired by a story she once told her about exploring the riverbed in rural Marikina and encountering the buhay na bato—boulders so large they were said to grow bigger at night. That memory, passed down through generations, found its way into Micat’s art.
Above ‘Untitled’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper. One of her most cherished works, she made this for her grandmother
‘Untitled’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper. One of her most cherished works, she made this for her grandmother
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But despite her grounding in the past, Micat’s gaze is firmly set on the future. She hopes her art can contribute to raising collective consciousness, particularly around our relationship with the Earth. She’s realistic about the challenges, though. “It’s difficult to tell someone what to do,” she explains. “But if you show someone an image and they resonate with it, that has the power to shift perspectives.”
When asked about the lasting impact of her work, her answer is characteristically humble: “I don’t think any material objects are built to last, nor are they meant to.” For Micat, it’s the act of creation itself that holds the true value. “The painting is a release, a discovery, a lesson. It’s my offering to a world that’s hurting.”
Above ‘Yellow Transmission’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
‘Yellow Transmission’ by Micat Po, watercolour on paper
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Micat Po’s watercolours may not be built to last in the material sense, but the spirit behind them—the quiet, unyielding drive to heal, to reconnect with nature, to dream of a better world—will linger far beyond the paper.
Visit Micat Po’s exhibition ‘Seeing Beyond: Images from the Subconscious’ at Archivo 1984, Karrivin Plaza—on public view until November 6.
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Credits
Artwork: Micat Po
Photography: Hans Fausto
Angela Nicole Regis Guiral is a digital editor at Tatler Philippines. She studied journalism and has since written features that look closely at how culture, lifestyle and social impact converge, while occasionally wandering into the worlds of style and travel.
