Artist? Sociologist? Political commentator?
Those who view his work can best decide which of these definition is most fitting for young Filipino sculptor Eduardo Castrillo. Castrillo himself would certainly plump for all three. He uses his sculptures to comment on social problems. A bronze and stainless steel called Clash for instance, dramatizes the two opposing forces of tradition and change. Hammered out of copper, The Oppressed suggests that, to those who bear a large share of life's burdens, only a few will eventually find relief.

"As a social creature", says Castrillo, " I must respond to the problems facing us. The artist must participate in the solution of problems, in filling the gap between rich and poor, in changing traditions that hamper the growth of society." Art, he says, is the tool that he uses to forge an expression of his ideas, his hopes and the world around him.

Five years ago, he announced his entry into the art world with a one-man show "dedicated to the race I represent, the country where I belong, and to the world in which I exist." Although he is representing his country at the 1971 Paris Biennale exhibition of art, he is one of the few gifted Filipino artists who has refused to be lured by scholarships to the West. He will only go when he feels he can expose himself to Western culture without compromising his own.

"Right now", he says, "I want to grow up in my own back yard and try to cultivate myself. I want to dig more into oriental culture because this is the only way in which I will produce Filipino art."

Meanwhile, he confesses dissatisfaction with the work he has already completed. "I want", he says," to do something that is beyond my capabilities. This is the only way I can test myself. Life itself is nothing. Only be striving for something better can we make it worth living."

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