Foreigner I

In Foreigner I, (2023), Alfredo and Isabel Aquilizan create a portrait from strips of cardboard, a material that symbolises the Filipino diasporic experience, as well as the ephemeral nature of human existence. Taken from Balikbayan boxes and grocery cartons, most of which were recycled from previous art projects, each piece of used cardboard holds within itself the story of a journey, the promise of transformation, and an awareness of impermanence. The work’s title references the artists’ own experience of migrating from the Philippines to Australia and the many challenges of integrating into a different culture and society. As Isabel’s carboard visage stares out calmly at us with wisdom and dignity, we understand that the formation of an authentic sense of self is a layered process forged by time and the many journeys we choose to take.