SHOWCASE

/ ARTIST / 2026

ARTIST: D.R
COUNTRY: Philippines
CONTACT: instagram.com/artofd.r
Hello, I am D.R, and I'm an illustrator based in Manila, Philippines. My art is a visual diary that highlights experiences through a colorful lens. My art is observant, colorful, and very filipino. Whether its the people I see in my daily commutes or the food I share with my friends, my illustrations showcases bits and pieces of my personal life. I also enjoy watching movies, and my favorite is actually a Thai film called 'Love of Siam.'

Beep, beep, beep, says the jeep

The traffic jams in Manila can get really severe sometimes. I let time pass by daydreaming about the people I see while riding the jeepney, one of the Philippines' public transportation. This is a series of illustrations of the different people I've seen in different times and places I've taken the jeep. I'm the one in the left, sitting next to the driver on the middle drawing.

the LRT-1, MRT-3, and LRT-2

In Manila, there are currently three operating train stations that go around the city: the LRT-1, MRT-3, and LRT-2. This illustration highlights 1 carriage of each train, and the various, colorful people I meet in transport. As an added personal touch too, I placed some of my favorite Pokemon as charms and stickers around the illustration.

All the strays cats in heaven

This is an ode to all the stray cats that have entered and taken shelter in my family's home. They have all sadly passed and gone in different ways and times. This drawing is my way of hoping that they've all peacefully reunited somewhere beyond.

An ode to the cats that were born in my father's plants

We call the first and oldest cat the 'Mother cat,' since it's the one that gave birth to the rest, in different times. My father would get surprised while watering plants in his garden in the morning, because he'd see a litter of tiny kittens hidden behind pots.

A portrait of a 25 year old in a pandemic

I made this drawing a few days after my 25th birthday, expressing what it felt like being in lockdown due to COVID-19. A few days after this too was the first time I tested positive for COVID-19 and I lost my sense of smell and taste for a week.

Iti mapukpukaw

This is a fanart in ode of a favorite local film I've seen in 2023, entitled 'Iti Mapukpukaw' or 'The Missing' in english.

Good days

I wanted to practice being able to illustrate the things I envision in my head, so I started a series where I drew artworks inspired by songs I listen to. This one is inspired by the song 'Good Days' by Sza. The song transported me to a huge garden filled with sunflowers and different plants of all kind; and I can be as free and alone as I can be.

I told sunset about Gyu-don

I was gifted this Beef Gyudon platter by a local restaurant here named 'Kodawari,' to make this drawing as a fan art for them. Seeing the colors and the plating of the platter reminded me of a flourishing farm, where kids would run and escape to after school to play and roam around before going home for dinner. I also saw a Thai drama called 'I told a sunset about you' around the same time.

Food art diaries

I once heard in a film that sometimes, the taste of food changes depending on the people we share it with. This illustration is part of series where I drew the food I ate around Manila, along with the people I shared it with, and the memories that lingered with it.

God bless the gays

The story in my head about the two is that the girl on left has been trying to make girl on right smile the whole day because she’s been conscious about her new braces thinking they’re ugly. So she plays their favorite podcast on her phone, and they share one earphone on their jeepney ride home. They're also wearing school uniforms from the school I went when I was in grade school.