Feng Shui Artist LIZANNE UYCHACO: An Epitome of Perfect Balance

Lizanne Uychaco is known for painting the art of good fortune. She is the first and only Feng Shui artist in the country. Her passion is to create positive energy through her art by surrounding homes and offices with her paintings that elicit harmony and bring about happiness, prosperity, longevity, wealth and success. She has made Feng Shui an unobtrusive part of modern living, capturing ancient beliefs and symbols of luck in her artworks and rendering them in tasteful, contemporary style.

She observes Feng Shui processes of starting a painting on a good day, cleansing and purifying art materials, layering colors in a productive cycle following the elements of water, wood, fire, earth, metal–applying positive ”chi” or energy every step of the way. Her painting tools are non-traditional. She uses palettes shaped in the most prosperous symbol of the yin yang coin or the “pagua” with 8 treasures. Her palette knives are made of soft materials to avoid “sha” or conflicts and emanate from the dragon’s auspicious breath from earth for harmony or jade for longevity, ru yi scepter for wishes to come true, etc. Her textures are like no other as she uses lotus balls, the yin yang coin and other symbols from the 3 sets of 8 treasures to paint to ensure that her works bring good fortune to the collector. Her art containers are inscribed with a hundred ways of writing good fortune, double happiness, long life, wealth, harmony and prosperity.

Many prominent businessmen in the country attest that indeed Lizanne’s works have contributed to their luck and success.

Lizanne’s paintings carry a consistent symbol of the yin yang coin she was worn since childhood for health and luck. For Lizanne, painting is like a prayer, a solemn ritual, a blessing, an expression of gratitude and best wishes, a sacred journey to unravel her heritage and capture what is good and to share and preserve them.

Collectors are fascinated both by the art and the artist herself who is enigmatic and an epitome of perfect balance. She has fully cultivated her left and right brains being both successful in art and in the business world as the former vice president of Globe Telecoms and currently Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of AIG Philamlife. How she manages to achieve this balance has held people in awe and has made her the excellent model that both artists and business professionals must aspire for. She manages to still devote time to be a volunteer art teacher making herself available to the National Commission on Culture and Arts headed by Cecile Guidote Alvarez for less fortunate communities including giving lessons to the children of OFWs in cooperation with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration. She has integrated art and social marketing into her work, creating greeting cards embedded with text-activated micro insurance that protect the poor, provide livelihood and contribute to building homes for Gawad Kalinga and help sustain Children’s hour.

Lizanne believes in constant learning and has finished two masters degrees from the Ateneo and the UA&P while working and has continuously taken lessons in oil painting, water color, acrylics, pastels, sculpture, Chinese painting, calligraphy, pottery and even jewelry making. No wonder her works keep evolving with mixed media and her paintings possess textures and styles like no other artist in the world.

Art has always been a calling for Lizanne. Her mom says that as early as 2 years old Lizanne was painting and her first medium was her lipstick. While in school, Lizanne was the editor of “The Scholastican” and was the chairman of the student council. Even while in schools she spearheaded art contests and created an art gallery of the school’s social hall to give artists and students exposure. She was an agent of change and was in the forefront of student activism for positive reforms. While running resorts for the Kuok Group she invited and painted with artists, exhibiting their works and printing them in cards. She started the tradition of giving sculptures as awards instead of normal plaques and trophies.

Lizanne was first launched in a discovery series by the Ayala Museum around 20 years ago and among others, she largely credits and expresses gratitude to Sonia Ner who was the Museum Director at that time for her success in her art career.

Today Lizanne is among the most featured artists in magazines, newspapers and books. Her works are used by the Philippine Embassy in the US and are included in road shows and exhibits. She is managed by the Art Elements Asian Gallery at Powerplant, Rockwell. She is a mainstay of the gallery and has an ongoing special show on Auspicious Horses that are believed to help ensure that businesses advance and prosper and other Feng Shui related art that bring good luck, happiness, longevity, wealth and prosperity.