Cosmetic brand Shu Uemura and Ayala Foundation Project CENTEX celebrate the birth of a lasting partnership promoting beauty, art and humanity by holding a gala event on Oct. 6, at the newly-renovated Ayala Museum.
A Japanese cosmetic brand that originated in 1960, Shu Uemura has since become internationally renowned both as a professional and artistic brand.
In order to bring more meaning to the efforts of sharing the “joy of beauty” to the world, and because they believe that “creativity has no boundaries,” Shu Uemura has tied up with Japanese artist Ai Yamaguchi to produce limited edition artwork on bottles of the brand’s most emblematic star product: It’s cleansing oil.
In 2003, Mr. Shu Uemura met artist Ayi Yamaguchi. Born in 1977 in Tokyo, Japan, Yamaguchi started in the fashion industry as the protege of Takashi Murakami (of Louis Vuitton fame) before going on her own as an artist and having her works displayed in prestigious art galleries in Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles.
Yamaguchi’s work combines the refined aesthetics inherent in classical Japanese culture from the Edo period with the pop-culture sensibilities of contemporary Japanese animation.
In 2003, Shu Uemura supported a solo exhibit of the artist. Inspired by this encounter, Shu Uemura and Yamaguchi then decided to collaborate to produce the Limited Edition Cleansing Oils which will be unveiled at the Ayala Museum event.
The collaboration of these two Japanese artists marks a new era in beauty: Products that are a fusion of beauty and art supporting humanity.
Shu Uemura has made it a worldwide effort to have the proceeds from the sale of the bottles go to a charity organization that supports children and the arts.
Shu Uemura Phils. has chosen CENTEX (Center of Excellence in Public Elementary Education), a project of the Ayala Foundation to be the beneficiary of this project.
CENTEX has always understood the importance of the “wholelistic” development of children. They believe that the key factor in this development is the inclusion of music and art in a child’s education.
For most public schools, these programs receive the least priority. Shu Uemura and CENTEX believe that each child deserves to be exposed to art, regardless of his/her background.
In full support of this vision, Shu Uemura will donate the proceeds from the sale of the Limited Edition Cleansing Oil bottles to CENTEX so that they may be able to set up an art program for the 1,000 children that they are now educating.
On Oct. 6, guests will experience firsthand the worlds of these two Japanese artists. Hosted by Tim Yap and Tessa Valdes, attendees will have the opportunity to bid at a silent auction of artwork by Shu Uemura and Ai Yamaguchi.
Works done by for CENTEX by Filipino artists Mauro Malang, Romulo Galicano and Anita Magsaysay-Ho will also go under the hammer.
Guests will also have the opportunity to bring home Ai Yamaguchi’s work at a reasonable price than the $1,500 to $5,000 that her work goes for internationally.
