CONTEMPORARY ARTS L03: PHILIPPINE ARTS DURING THE DIFFERENT COLONIAL PERIOD

01 PRE-CONQUEST ✓ Elaborate Okkir designs can also be found in

the panolong or protruding beams of the
• Prior to colonization, art of the ancient Filipinos Sultan’s house called the Torogan.
were woven into the fabric of everyday life
• They did not distinguish forms into different 4. It can be also found in the
categories like music, theater, visual arts, etc. Badjao’s sunduk or grave
• Everyday expressions were all integrated within markers as well as marking
rituals that marked significant moments in a for ceremonial boats.
community’s life (planting and harvesting, rites
of passage, funerary ceremonies, weddings,
among others.)
• Our ancestors were hunter-gatherers.
• They imitated the movement of animals and
prey, and the sounds that they made.
• In this simple activity alone evolved ritual,
music, dance, theater and even literature. PRE– CONQUEST ORNAMENTS
• Rituals were officiated by a shaman or
✓ Boaya- Bontoc warrior’s head-hunting necklace
mumbaki and babaylan
which is made of carved shell, boar tusk, rattan
• Mayvanuvanua - or “making port” refers to a
fiber, and bone
sacrificial rite performed at the beginning of the
summer fishing season by mataw fishers in ✓ Ancient Filipinos had expressed paintings
Batanes. through tattoos and cave paintings.
• Cañao or kanyaw - a ritual rites in the CAR
which involves animal sacrifice, where the ✓ The Pintados (painted ones) believe that
entrails are read through a process of divination tattoos protect them from evil spirits, and in
that is performed either for healing, announcing some cases, it was considered as a badge of
the birth of a child, wakes, weddings and burial maturity and bravery. Shared by other regions
ceremonies in SE Asia and New Zealand, other Philippine
ethnolinguistic groups which practiced tattooing
• Kashawing – a ritual to ensure abundance
include the Kalinga, Buscalan, Kankanay,
during rice planting and harvesting in Lake
Ibaloy and Ifugao.
Lanao, Mindanao
✓ Aside from bodily inscriptions, jewelry is also
PRE-CONQUEST CARVINGS
believed to make the wearer more attractive to
1. Bulul- regarded as the granary god the opposite sex in as much as it is considered
that plays important role in rituals. pleasing to the Gods.

02 SPANISH COLONIAL PERIOD (1521-1898)

RELIGION
2. The Ifugao’s Hagabi- a • Spain introduced Christianity to the Philippines
wooden bench that marks in 1565 with the arrival of Miguel Lopez de
the socioeconomic status of Legaspi
the owner. • Spaniards brought Christianism in the
3. Okkir – curvilinear decorations which employed Philippines when they stepped foot in our
in woodcarving. Sensuous figures sometimes country, and along with the Christianity are the
painted in primary colors follows the basic major constructions of different churches across
design of the mythical chicken or sarimanok, the entire country.
the serpent or naga and the fern or pako • The Legazpi expedition of 1565 that was
rabong. organized from Mexico City marked the
beginning of the Hispanisation of the
Philippines, beginning with Cebu.
CONTEMPORARY ARTS L03: PHILIPPINE ARTS DURING THE DIFFERENT COLONIAL PERIOD
• Christianity expanded from Cebu when the resettled in towns structured according to the
remaining Spanish missionaries were forced plaza complex.
westwards due to conflict with the Portuguese,
• The complex was designated as the town
and laid the foundations of the Christian
center and consisted of the municipio or local
community in the Panay between around 1560
government office and the church.
to 1571. A year later the second batch of
missionaries reached Cebu. • During this period, cruciform churches following
• Images of saints and interpretations of biblical the shape of the Latin cross were built.
narratives were considered essential to
worship. • Baroque Churches- characterized by
• Under the strict watch and patronage of the grandeur, drama and elaborate details that
church, images were produced through purposely appealed to the emotions.
painting, sculpting and engraving. • The use of adobe, limestone or brick and the
• Santos or santos- made of ivory or wood and construction of thick buttresses or wing- like
the imagery were based on classical and projections reinforce the church structure to
baroque models. make it more resistant to earthquakes
• Chinese Artisans- people under the Spanish
supervisions were engaged in making icons or
saints.
• Retablo- a small decorative altar niche and is
often embellished with rosettes, and other
decorations.
• Via Crusis- a representation of 14 paintings or
relief sculptures depicting Christ’s crucifixion CHURCHES
and resurrection
• Church altars are sometimes decorated with 1. SAN AGUSTIN CHURCH (MANILA)
carved figurative protrusions on the surfaces o located inside the Historic walled city of
called relleves, or with the organic designs of Intramuros Manila.
hammered silver or the plateria. o Also known as the Archdiocesan Shrine of
• Plateria technique is also applied in the body of Nuestra Señora de la Consolación y
the carroza, where the santos are paraded Correa or the Immaculate Conception
during town processions. Parish
o 1993- one of the four Philippine
4 Baroque Churches that has survived up to Churches constructed during the
this day Spanish Colonial Period to be designated
✓ San Agustin Church (Manila) as World Heritage Site by UNESCO
✓ Morong Church (Rizal) o named as National historical Landmark by
✓ Paoay Church (Ilocos Norte) the Philippine Government in 1976
✓ Sto. Tomas de Villanueva (Miag-Ao Ilo-Ilo)
o What makes it unique is its ceiling paintings
in the tromp l'oeil style.
o The centuries-old church bore witness to
ARCHITECTURE the 400 years of Spanish rule in the country.
It has survived many bombings and
• Art that flourished during the Spanish colonial earthquakes, and through its countless
period conformed to the demands of the church renovations, incorporated other influences
and the colonial state. including Filipino and Chinese designs.
• Religious orders were dispatched to convert the
natives to Catholicism as part of the larger
project of colonization.

• To carry out the project of colonization and

Christianization, the natives were forcibly
CONTEMPORARY ARTS L03: PHILIPPINE ARTS DURING THE DIFFERENT COLONIAL PERIOD
2. MORONG CHURCH (RIZAL) 4. MIAG-AO CHURCH (ILO-ILO)
o Saint Jerome church was built by Chinese
o Also known as Santo
artisans in 1615 with stone and mortars.
Tomas De Villanueva
o Its design was distinct from Chinese-
Church since it served
Baroque Architecture.
as defensive tower of the
o It has two Chinese lion sculptures at the
town against Muslim
entrance that serve as the storey façade
raids.
and the octagonal bell tower of the church.
o There are pock marks on the walls and o declared as a UNESCO
surroundings of the church caused by bullet World Heritage Site on
holes indicating fights between Katipuneros December 11,1993
and Guardia Civils during the revolt of the
Filipinos against the Spaniards in the later o The church is famous for
part of 19th century. the artistic sculptural
o It was built under forced labor during the relief carved on its
Spanish colonization in the country, where facade.
men, women and even children had to dig
stones from a hill called ‘Kay Ngaya’; lime
from the stones of the mountain, ‘Kay THEATER
Maputi’ and sand and gravel from Morong
Cenakulo
river.
✓ a play which depicts the passion, death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ
✓ done by Catholic people during Lenten
Season.
✓ usually done in plaza near the church
Zarzuela
3. PAOAY CHURCH (ILOCOS NORTE) ✓ a Spanish traditional form of musical comedy
o Also known as St. Augustine Church
✓ an operetta which features singing and dancing
o the Roman Catholic Church of the
together with prose dialogue which allowed the
municipality of Paoay.
story to be carried out in song
o What makes Paoay Church outstanding
from other well-known churches around the Comedia
country is its impressive pyramid-like
✓ a Spanish regular-verse drama or comedy.
structure considered as a primary example Specific forms include the comedia de capa y
of the earthquake baroque style of espada, a cloak-and-sword comedy of love and
architecture characterized by its thick walls intrigue, and the comedia de figuron, a form in
made from coral stones and bricks. which the emphasis is placed on one particular
o Completed in 1710, the church is famous character, who is presented as an exaggerated
for its distinct architecture highlighted by personification of a vice or flaw.
enormous buttresses on the sides and back
of the building
o Declared as Natural Cultural Treasure in 03 AMERICAN COLONIAL PERIOD (1898-1940)
1972 TO THE POST WAR REPUBLIC (1946-1969)
o UNESCO World
Heritage (1993) AMERICAN COLONIAL PERIOD

• Bound by the treaty of Paris in 1898, Spain

“surrendered” the Philippines to the Unites
States.
CONTEMPORARY ARTS L03: PHILIPPINE ARTS DURING THE DIFFERENT COLONIAL PERIOD
• From 1899 to 1913, the bloody Philippine – • In the beginning of the 20th century, a new
American war occurs, claiming the lives of urban pattern that responded to the secular
many Filipinos. goals of education, governance, and health
was imposed.
• They change natives into the American way
of life, creating a lasting influence of Filipino • Architect Daniel Burnham was
culture. commissioned by the American
Government to design Manila
• Americans banned Filipino Playwrights to and Baguio
write, print, and publication materials
advocating Philippine independence, and • Architect
engaging in activities which championed William Parsons implemented
this cause. the Burnham Plan

• Some Filipino Playwrights use their works

as a medium as political protest, openly
attacking the americans like;
• Burnham Plan
✓ Juan Abad- Tanikalang Guinto/ golden
chain (1902) ✓ Inspired by the City Beautiful Movement
✓ Juan Matapang Cruz- Hindi Aco Patay/ ✓ Introduced in 1893 at the Chicago World
I am not Dead (1903) Fair
✓ Aurelio Tolentino- Kahapon, Ngayon, ✓ New urban designs which employed
at Bukas/ Yesterday, Today and Neoclassic architecture and with the
Tomorrow (1903) integration of parks and lawns to make the
city more attractive.

• Tomas Mapua, Juan

Arellano, Andres Luna
de San Pedro, and
Antonio Toledo were
among the Filipino
architects who
designed building
MAJOR ART MOVEMENT
during this period
• Introduced English as a medium for teaching which received their
Filipino students. (Lingua Franca) training in the US or in
Europe.
• Thomasites- American Teachers who landed in
the Philippines (during the Colonization) to
teach Filipino Children.

• In less than a decade, Filipino Playwrights AMERICAN COLONIAL PERIOD (ARTISTS)

began to write plays in English.
Fabian Dela Rosa
• Lino Castillejo and Jesus Araullo authored A
Modern Filipina (first Filipino playwright written • Known for his naturalist paintings characterized
in English) in 1915 by restraint and formality in brush works, choice
of somber colors, and subject matter.
• Vaudeville (France) or Bodabil (Philippines) is
the slaptick, songs, dances, acrobatics, comedy
skits, chorus girls, magic acts, and stand-up
comedy art was introduced here in the
Philippines by the Americans in 1920’s.
CONTEMPORARY ARTS L03: PHILIPPINE ARTS DURING THE DIFFERENT COLONIAL PERIOD
• Planting rice (1921) and El kundiman (1930) attack. The long-awaited war with Japan had
finally come.
• Confusion followed about what to do with
American planes on the ground in the
Philippines. No decision to prepare for a
defense or to attack Japanese positions lead
to unreadiness. Instead, many American
planes were caught on the ground and
Fernando Amorsolo destroyed in Japanese air attacks.
• Studied Fine Arts in Spain KALIBAPI (Kapisanan ng Paglilingkod ng
• National artist (1972) Bagong Pilipinas)
• Known for Romantic
• a Filipino political party that serve as a sole
Paintings that captured warm
party state during the Japanese occupation
glow of the Philippine sunlight
and sponsored art competitions.
• Dalagang Filipina, Idyllic
• Japanese forces led the formation of the
landscapes, and Historical
Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, a
paintings
propaganda movement that sought to create
• Rendered drawings for the
a Pan-Asian identity that rejected Western
textbook series: The Philippine
traditions.
Readers as well as illustrations
• “Asia for Asians” made its way to the
for the newspaper The
public through posters, comics and
Independent
Japanese sponsored publications such as
• Design the logo of Ginebra San Miguel
Shin-Seiki and in newspapers and
• A professor in Fine Arts at UP
magazines such as Liwayway and Tribune
Guillermo Tolentino • Japanese Information Bureau or Hodobu
employed the local artists and cultural
• Studied Fine Arts workers
in Rome
Felipe Padilla De Leon
• Bonifacio
Monument in Caloocan • National Artist
(1933) • Was said to have
• Oblation (1935-Original) (1958- bronze cast) been “commanded at the
point of the gun” to write
• The Oblation Awit sa Paglikha ng
Bagong Pilipinas
✓ is a concrete statue by
Filipino artist Guillermo E.
Tolentino which serves as the Fernando Amorsolo
iconic symbol of the University of
the Philippines. It depicts a man • National Artist
facing upward with arms • His paintings evoked a semblance of
outstretched, symbolizing selfless peace, idealized work in the
offering of oneself to his count countryside, and promoted values of
docile industriousness
• Harvest Scene and Rice Planting (1942)
JAPANESE COLONIAL PERIOD/ JAPANESE
OCCUPATION (1941-1945)

• On December 8, 1941, around 3 am local

time, the news reached US forces in the
Philippines that Pearl Harbor was under
CONTEMPORARY ARTS L03: PHILIPPINE ARTS DURING THE DIFFERENT COLONIAL PERIOD
Sylvia La Torre Cesar Legaspi

• Known as the Queen of Kundiman • Neo Realist/ refining

• Sa Kabukiran Cubism
• Written in Tagalog in the 1940’s by
• Gadgets- depicts the mutant
the acclaimed composer Levi Celerio
fusing of man and machine in
• La torre’s operatic singing along with
an age where the industrial
an energetic tempo offered an escape was both feared and
from the troubles of the war. mythologized..
• Bar Girls- He depicts
His Excellency Jorge B. Vargas
two women with harsh,
• chairman of the Philippine almost masculine
Executive Commission 1943 features, sitting down for
a smoke, perhaps waiting
for their next
His Excellency Premier Tojo, customer. Legaspi painted their faces green,
making them even more sinister, almost
• who promised the Independence of grotesque.
the Philippines. (1943)
Hernando Ruiz Ocampo
✓ was a Filipino artist best
known for his abstract paintings.
Non- Realism, Abstraction and Other Modern ✓ Following in Modernist
Style traditions, Ocampo used bold
color palettes and biomorphic
• Involves explorations in subject matter, content,
shapes inspired by both his
and form as well as debates between arts for country’s landscape and by
art’s sake and art that exposed the “true social
science fiction writing.
conditions” of the period.
Vicente Manansala GENESIS (1968)

• Transparent Cubism
• uses transparent cubism which
explored the grim social realities with
his work showcasing the slums.
• Beggars (1952), distorted images of slum
dwellers depict the bleak life in poverty
against the backdrop of industrialization

TUBA DRINKERS (1954)

THE BEGGARS (1952)