Schemes of Belligerence is a multipart installation of embroidered quilts and sculptures, both crafted out of wood and assembled, plotting sequences of masculine valor that reckons with schemes of torture, the centuries- long trap of indebtedness, and martial culture in neocolonies. Taking the format of a trophy room, Theatrics of Power (2021) is made of found uniforms, patches, badges, photographs, totems, and weaponry that deliberate on the emboldening spell of disciplinary authority. The carved wooden sculptures of Methods of Madness (2021) relay the embodied trauma of corporal punishment, circuits of manipulation by puppet governments, and indoctrination strategies that rattle the nerves and sanity of everyday life.

Dayrit’s collaboratively-made tapestries further expose the United States’ interventionist politics, including the massive exports of weapons technology under Rodrigo Duterte’s strongman regime and the Philippines’ recent Anti-Terror Bill. His pictographic references include satellite images of American military bases in the Philippines and South Korea, air raids, and waves of brutality against the Filipino people carried out in the name of defense, allegiance, and development.