Collection: Rinaldi De Guzman

As a young boy, Dr. Rinaldi De Guzman has always shown an avid interest in the arts. But in college, he pursued a path toward the medical field. But he could not forget his passion for the arts and took AB Humanities as his pre-med course. After finishing his medical studies at the University of the East graduating in 1989, he eventually migrated to the US, took residency in Internal Medicine followed by Fellowship in Geriatrics. He subsequently became the Chief of Geriatrics, and Medical Director of Extended Care at the Veterans Administration (VA) Medical Center in the Bronx, NY. But because of his busy schedule, the visual arts became only a respite. He found fulfillment in his career as a physician. But living in New York, he was surrounded by art and the museums beckoned a visit when time permitted. And after choosing to retire from the medical field, he now chooses to pursue his dream of being an artist as his next profession.

He decided to take up the challenge and paint again when the pandemic struck, practicing and honing his skills in the visual arts. Brimming with ideas, he cannot wait to get started on each piece. Still in search of his style, a signature, if you will, from the figurative to non-figurative, impressionistic to expressionistic to abstract, he considers each work at the moment as experimental. At present he prefers watercolors because of its immediacy and the various techniques that can be applied in its application. Dr. De Guzman finds its unpredictability a challenge providing a satisfaction when the outcome is a beautiful work of art. He has used oils and acrylics in the past and shifts mediums every now and then as his mood dictates. He finds inspiration in his surroundings, from experiences, both past and present, from nature to everyday objects to memories in the remote past. He also is drawn to Filipiniana themes with its multiple facets of interpretation.

He wants every art piece he creates to evoke an emotion, whether it be happiness, melancholy, indifference, solitude or just “how did he do that”? Each piece has to be relatable to the viewer, drawing you in to want to know him better as the person behind the art and to initiate conversations.