Urao,

A Brush with Boldness

Bold, spontaneous, graceful: Tam Urao’s paintings can be all that, because that’s exactly how he paints. For this artist, the process is no process. He dives right in with gusto, letting his hands, moods, and imagination take over.

Acrylics are his jam—the quick-setting, versatile medium perfect for his “I do what I want when I want” mindset. His favorite subjects are women in all their permutations. His works capture impressions instead of stark realism, his images expressive instead of true-to-life. The women on his canvases may be missing an eye, a nose, lips… because reality is boring! Art, on the other hand, should attract and distract.

His canvases catch the eye with ochres, vermilions, and other earth colors—a shoutout to his Tausug roots and heritage. Art is in his DNA. His father was a visual chronicler of Tausug culture and traditions, instilling in him an appreciation for artistic expression from an early age.

Fine arts and architecture student, comics illustrator, textile designer, art and design director, magazine publisher, and graphic studio owner—Tam has gone the whole nine yards. When he’s not painting, he’s building stuff—at home or in business as a contractor.

Tam's works capture impressions instead of stark realism, because "art should attract and distract.”

Tamerlane