Carzen A. Esprela(b. South Cotabato, 1994) is a graduate of Philippine High School for the Arts, where he majored in visual arts. In 2016,he graduated from the University of the Philippines Diliman with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (major in Painting). His thesis work ‘Bag and a Boat’ sculpture has been featured in various public spaces and art exhibitions such as UP Fine Arts ground, part of group shows 8 Questions (Tin-aw Art Gallery, 2016), Traversals/Trajectories: Expansive Localities (UP Vargas Museum, 2017) and was featured as one of the Special Exhibitions in Art In The Park 2017.His first solo exhibition titled “Hinumdom” which means “to look back” in Visayan vernacular was held in 2020 at the Pinto Art Museum. Since 2013, he has participated in exhibitions around the Philippines.
Through sculptures made of epoxy and found objects, and paintings made of oil or acrylic, and rubber latex, Esprela depicts his personal experiences and how these eventually turn into memories. Now, his works study the intricacies of memory and remembering, especially people and places that made an impact on his life. His references for his works usually were based from old photos or his experienced environment and playing around the composition through fragmented images, forms and colors. His works are veritable postcards of memory made permanent in paint, inflected with his weight of emotional and mental associations.