Oh, woe is he that hath no faith.

Good thing our hero Odi has that – lots of it. Odi, Kenichi Wani’s definitive character, charges off to joust with the windmills of the gods and leaps offthe brink of the universe. What isn’t possible for Odi? But Kenichi Wani doesn’t only bring Odi to life – he makes Odi and friends experience life in all its ordinary mundanities. If Odi is destined to face the impossible and pull off death (and logic) defying-stunts, Odi can also surmount the ordinary and survive the familiar. Perhaps, to Wani, even the mundane can have its challenges.

Panels depicting Odi’s daily life – whether naptime with dog Popo or ajaunt with pony Jaju – represent imaginary (or is it?) adventures. It doesn’t take much for a tiny annoyance to morph into a full-blown disaster, or a new kid on the block to be cast as a villain. Hence, Odi to the rescue.

A Fine Arts graduate of the University of the Philippines-Cebu, Wani has spent years evolving and perfecting Odi. Candy colors and flippant tableaux belie the seriously mature works that Wani delivers, transporting both believers and critics unto a cartoon-perfect expanse. But careful, because beneath the pastel palette lies a watchful, faintly sinister underworld that Wani manifests into being. So up onto Odi’s faithful steed, we all must mount.

Exhibition notes and curated by JT Gonzales