A graduate of Communication Arts, Romina Batino first worked in her family’s legal practice in the mid-1990s. In an effort to express a creative spark she’d always known was there, she started a small company and founded 10 Twelve Ventures in 2019, holding weekend workshops to foster a community of lifelong creative learners while she continued her managerial work.
Romina Batino with her carwash photo “Boundless” at her exhibit PlayGround with international sculptor Ovvian Castrillo, UniqueBisyo Pasig.
However, the pandemic came and changed everything. Romina and her husband moved to the US, and 10 Twelve was put on hold. When establishments started opening up, Romina took the opportunity to do volunteer work at an art gallery in Ohio, finding herself surrounded by passionate creatives—and even more strongly fueling her creativity.
Sudden changes and new paths
The pandemic had shown her how quickly life can change without any warning, and this led her to pursue a path she’d wanted, but previously thought was too frivolous. From a backstage organizer helping others express their creativity, she braved the spotlight to become a full-fledged artist two months before turning 50.
Batino’s carwash photo “Enigma”
Romina had already chosen an unusual subject for her art by this point: the surface of their windshield, covered in watery soap suds while reflecting the lights inside a carwash. Frequent carwash trips led to her beholding beauty where others might not, reframing these otherwise ordinary sights into vibrant photographs reminiscent of paintings. She playfully dubbed the technique behind these carwash captures “Roamistry.”
In November 2021, she submitted her photographs for a show in another gallery in Ohio, which unexpectedly accepted all her pieces. Inspired, she kept joining juried and non-juried shows—until Boomer Gallery in London gave her art its biggest break. They invited her to become a resident artist, with the opportunity to display her Roamistry subjects for a full year.
A bright future
Romina continues to exhibit her art not just in the US and the UK, but also locally. Her twenty-second and most recent exhibit, “PlayGround”, was a two-woman show with international sculptor/artist Ovvian Castrillo in UniqueBisyo Pasig, last April 2024. In 2023, one of her photos was included in a collage of artworks on an NYC billboard, while more were included in a book of poems entitled “Let it be Real.” In January this year, the same Ohio gallery she volunteered in featured her as its Artist of the Month.
Batino’s carwash photo “Pursuing Passions”
Esteemed British art critic Anthony Fawcett highlights the deeply poetic nature of her photographs, praising her ability to “transform the most humble of subject matter” into magnificent multicolored and richly textured works. Her work shimmers and glows, often abstract in appearance, although their genesis might be splashed water in a carwash. Fawcett further emphasizes how Romina in her oeuvre reveals a spirit of restless enquiry, and the brightness of her future as an artist.
Her ability to see magic in the most mundane mirrors the strength of her creative spirit, budding during her office career, and nurtured during a time of uncertainty. Her art is proof that it’s never too late to pursue one’s passions, and each piece she shares reveals that captivating beauty can be found in the most unexpected places.
More information about Romina’s art can be found at https://roamingromina.art
ADVT.
This article is brought to you by Roamistry.