Upcoming events
Film screening: Macho Dancer
Join Saluhan for the screening of Macho Dancer (1988), a queer feature film by celebrated Filipino filmmaker Lino Brocka as part of King’s DRIVEWAY Program on Thursday 3 July at 5.30pm.
MJ Flamiano will introduce Macho Dancer and her new artwork, queerness isn’t a translation; it’s a white-hot burn in your cheeks, inspired by the film.
The menu will include Tanduay hot toddys + toasted marshmallows + savoury snacks. The screening is taking place outdoors, so rug up and BYO blanket!
Set under the neon lights of 1980s Manila, the film follows Pol, a young man forced to leave his provincial hometown after the departure of his American lover and former sugar daddy. Determined to support his family, he relocates to the city and finds work as a macho dancer and hustler at Mama Charlie’s gay nightclub. As he navigates the harsh realities of urban poverty, he finds moments of romance and connection with fellow dancer Noel and seasoned sex worker Bambi. Through these relationships, Brocka offers a layered portrayal of queer life, sexual fluidity, and the bonds formed through shared struggle, heartache, love, and friendship.
2hrs, 16min + intermission
Tagalog, English subtitles
Film themes include rape/sexual assault, sex worker exploitation, self-harm, addiction and drug use. Recommended rating for viewers aged 15+ years.
If the event is rained out or we get too cold to finish, we’ll send all ticket-holders a viewing copy of the film, Pirate Bay-style!
Venue:
Kings ARI
69 Capel Street,
Naarm/West Melbourne
Favourable Impressions
Favourable impressions: Join us to celebrate the mythic trio that is Dodong and the Dai’s at Blindside on Thursday 29 May from 6-8pm.
Favourable impressions is a new video installation presented by Saluhan Collective members Catherine Ortega-Sandow, Kenneth L. Suico, and MJ Flamiano. The work builds on the artist’s earlier video work, Dodong and the Dai’s developed during Mainit Illusion/Mainit Fantasy at Arts House in 2024. Exploring contemporary Filipino aesthetics, they draw on karaoke culture, New Wave influences, and the queering of Catholic rituals and iconography.
Venue:
Blindside,
Nicholas Building
Level 7, Room 14
37 Swanston Street,
Naarm/Melbourne
Mainit Fantasy
To launch the exhibition, Mainit Illusion, join the artists for Mainit Fantasy, a one-night curated spectacle of sweet and salty art, sound, and performance from 8.30pm.
Then at 9.00pm, Mariam Ella Arcilla presents an aperitif of A mango is shaped like a heart, but its own heart is a stone, a new video installation and reading.
At 9.30pm, join our Venus, Kenneth Suico for a voyeuristic rendition of the Pointer Sisters in a steamy clam.
At 10pm, descend on the smokey basement for a Midori-laced shot and back-to-back DJ sets by the Holy Trinity of Kuya Neil x Del Lumanta x Various Asses, presenting their rendition of experimental club meets NuMetal, prepped for the dancefloor.
Be sure to pack your sweatrag.
Get tickets
Standard $35
Reduced $20
BLAKTIX $10
Image: MJ Flamiano, Mainit Fantasy (or visions from Limasawa Island), 2024, digital collage.
Mainit Illusion
Bringing together the creative forces of Saluhan Collective and Liquid Architecture, Mainit Illusion is a multidisciplinary exhibition informed by voyeurism and the post-paradise palate of the Philippines.
Working in sound, installation, and video, Filipinx artists from the Kulin and Eora Nations come together to present newly commissioned works across Arts House from 19 February to 23 March.
The opening event, Mainit Fantasy, will be held on Saturday, 24 February from 8.30pm. Get tickets.
Featuring:
Neil Cabatingan (aka Kuya Neil)
Raquel Solier (aka Various Asses)
Kenneth Suico
Del Lumanta
Ranima Montes
MJ Flamiano
Catherine Ortega-Sandow
Mariam Ella Arcilla (Magenta House)
Image: MJ Flamiano, Mainit Illusion (or visions from Bulakan, Bulacan), 2024, digital collage.
Resistance x Pagbasa Archive
Saluhan presents Resistance x Pagbasa Archive at Future Archives.
Pagbasa Archive x Resistance is a curated selection of works from Pagbasa Archive. This selection draws attention to the creative ways that artists have mobilised in the fight against oppression in the Philippines and stands in solidarity with freedom movements in Palestine and across the world.
The Station House will be open from 4 - 7pm, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
All films are presented with closed-captions in English.
Kalampag Tracking Agency + Saluhan
Overshare Video Festival is curated by Garden Reflexxx and recess; creatively produced by Lana Nguyen; and hosted by Testing Grounds.
The Kalampag Tracking Agency + Saluhan collaborate for an evening of films, Filipino food and archives at Testing Grounds Emporium from 6.30pm.
Free event - tickets essential.
Exhibition opening: Archival aesthetics
Opening event for Archival aesthetics exhibition, Wednesday, 20 September, 6-8pm
Workshop 2: Archival aesthetics
Workshop 2: Archival aesthetics, Saturday, 16 September, 11am
Workshop 1: Archival Aesthetics
Workshop 2: Archival aesthetics, Saturday, 9 September, 11am