Clockwise from top: Featured Artists Maria Citadel Muñoz Cruz (leftmost) and Anita Nowack (rightmost) are joined by Ambassador Melita S. Sta. Maria-Thomeczek (second from left) and guest of honor Tarlac Governor Susan Yap at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. The two artists delivering their remarks. An international crowd of seventy attended the vernissage.
The Philippine Embassy in Berlin hosted the vernissage of “Moments in Nature” featuring the works of women photographers Maria Citadel Muñoz Cruz and Anita Nowack (nee San Pedro) on 13 September 2016. Cutting the ribbon with featured artists and Ambassador Melita S. Sta. Maria-Thomeczek was Tarlac Governor Susan Yap. An intimate crowd of about 70 people were treated to a feast of the senses – an exhibition of beautiful photos, serene music and Filipino cocktails.
Maria Citadel Muñoz Cruz has been a photographer for many years. She is also a Reiki healing practitioner. Married to Minister and Consul Adrian Elmer Cruz with three children, Citadel´s photography inspirations have been from her family´s experiences and travels abroad. For this year´s exhibit, she showcased her collection of water-themed photography. When asked about her love for photography, Citadel quipped, “It makes me turn off my mental chatter and truly be present in the moment. It allows me to pause, observe, and listen. It makes me realise that the present moment is doing its very best to show me something. Oftentimes, it´s something that I might overlook, or ignore, or would consider mundane. Photography enables me to appreciate that beauty surrounds me”.
Anita Nowack has been a self-taught artist. Her photographs in the exhibition mirrored encounters during what she calls her “breathing spaces.” Some of the photographs exhibited were from her “A Blossom Fell” series which pays homage to women victims of violence. On her genesis as a photographer, Anita said, “Several factors led me to photography: my family, travels, broadcast years and up to my present humanitarian work. This art has been my liberation, emancipation, feng shui, my balance, my wellness, my thousand eyes.”
(L) Bianca Cruz, daughter of Minister and Consul Adrian Elmer Cruz and featured artist Maria Citadel Muñoz Cruz, serenaded guests with a harp rendition of Ludovico Einaudi’s Nuvole Bianche. Bianca won at the 2013 Jugend Musiziert der Berliner Landeswettbewerb, a music competition in Berlin. Bottom photos: Some of the featured photographs in the exhibit included (R) “Green World”, Nowack, 2015 and (L) “Parenthesis”, Cruz, Schlachtensee, Berlin, 2015.
Anita hails from Davao City and currently lives in Saarbrücken with her husband Olaf. She is also the President of Kinderhilfe Philippinen e.V., an organization that raises funds for the benefit of the Educational Research and Development Foundation (ERDA), an NGO based in the Philippines.
“Moments in Nature” was open to the public from 14 to 27 September 2016, Mondays to Fridays, 0900h-1600h. END
