One dot at a time, Cuyonon artist Shinkin Paduga Beguina painted his way through a period when he was trying to move on, regain his strength, and rediscover himself again.
Using a stick or the reversed end of a paintbrush, Beguina dips into acrylic paint and places each dot individually on canvas. Some paintings take five to seven days to complete; some take months.
The slow process requires patience, but it has also become a source of healing for him.
“Meron siyang therapeutic effect sa akin. Nakaka-heal siya,” Beguina said.
“Isa siya sa mga bagay na nakatulong sa akin nang malaki noong nagmo-move on ako o hinahanap ko talaga ang sarili ko,” he described.
Twenty-eight of his paintings now form “Ariparek: Rise from the Ashes,” his first solo exhibit at the popular KaLui Restaurant in Puerto Princesa City.
“Ariparek” is a Cuyonon word for “alipato,” the embers that rise from burning wood. For Beguina, they symbolize people who have fallen, lost hope, and eventually found the strength to stand again.
“This exhibit is a tribute sa lahat ng nadapa at muling bumangon,” he said.
Beguina said there were several moments in his life when he felt close to giving up. During those times, he drew strength from his Christian faith.
His life verse is Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.”
“Sa lahat ng mga nawawalan ng pag-asa, nandiyan si Lord na nagbibigay ng lakas,” he said.
“It’s never too late. We always have the strength to stand up again and run the race of life,” the Cuyonon artist said.
A year’s work kept together
Beguina spent almost a year completing the collection. Instead of selling the paintings as he finished them, he set them aside until he had enough works for his first solo exhibit.
“Talagang pinag-ipunan ko. Tinitiis ko na huwag muna silang ibenta para lamang maisagawa itong first solo exhibit ko,” he said.
He thanked KaLui owner Lui Oliva for accepting his proposal to hold his first solo exhibit at the restaurant.
He described the opportunity as an answered prayer and another reason to thank God.
“Natutuwa talaga ako na si sir Lui tinanggap niya itong proposal ko na dito mag-hold ng exhibit. I praise God sa opportunity na ibinigay sa akin,” Beguina said.
The collection consists mainly of acrylic paintings on canvas, along with several mixed-media works. Many employ a technique commonly known as pointillism, in which images are created through individual dots of color.
Beguina experiments with other media, but he plans to continue developing and mastering the dotted style that has become both his artistic method and personal therapy.
His paintings are priced from below ₱10,000 to nearly ₱50,000.
Memories of Cuyo
Marine animals, insects, plants, and other elements of Palawan dominate the collection. These subjects come from Beguina’s childhood in Cuyo, a municipality regarded as one of Palawan’s cultural centers, where he grew up swimming and spending time near the sea.
“Karamihan sa pini-feature ko ay iyong mga nakikita ko habang lumalaki ako,” he said.
“More on Palawan themes, flora and fauna, saka iyong culture and tradition ng aming kultura bilang Cuyonon,” he stated.
The exhibit also celebrates his Cuyonon identity and coincides with the Cuyonon Festival observed every August 1.
“Proud to be Cuyonon,” he said.
Although Beguina has worked as a professional artist for almost seven years, his relationship with art began before he entered school. He started with coloring and drawing as a child, making art what he describes as a lifetime practice.
It took years, however, before he gained the confidence to show his work publicly.
Now based in Barangay San Pedro, Beguina sees his first solo exhibit as more than a professional milestone. The collection carries the places and creatures he remembers from Cuyo, as well as the faith and patient work that helped him find his footing again.
Like the ariparek rising from a fire, each painted dot tells part of that return.
“Ariparek: Rise from the Ashes” runs from August 3 to 30, 2026, at KaLui Restaurant in Puerto Princesa City.
The exhibit opened with a ribbon-cutting led by Oliva, Palawan provincial administrator Jefrey Sahagun, and Puerto Princesa City information officer Atty. Glaiza Vicente-Moncatar; Cuyonon heritage advocate Rosanna Pediapco-Trampe, and TESDA Palawan provincial director John Simborios.
Palaweño artist Jonathan Benitez and former Puerto Princesa vice mayor and Philippine Red Cross-Palawan Chapter chair Nancy Socrates were also among those who attended the opening.
