Module 11

FAMOUS FILIPINO
PAINTERS AND
COMPOSERS
 FERNANDO AMORSOLO
(1892-1972)
• Labelled the country’s first National
Artist in 1972 by then President
Marcos, Fernando Amorsolo is often
known as the ‘Grand Old Man of
Philippine Art’. The Spanish-trained
realist developed a backlighting
technique, where his colorful
depictions of local people reflect the
radiance of the Philippine sun. The
figures and illuminated landscapes
magically glow on the canvas. Despite
his deteriorating health and failing
eyesight, he remained prolific until the
end, producing up to 10 paintings a
month until his death at the age of 80.
Amorsolo’s creativity defines the
nation’s culture and heritage to this
day.
‘The Fruit Gatherer’, 1950 | © Fernando Amorsolo • The Vargas Musuem – found inside
the campus of his alma mater, the
University of the Philippines, displays
a notable selection of his work. FIRST UP 2
CONSULTANTS
 JOSÉ JOYA (1931-1995)
• A Filipino pioneer of Abstract expressionism,
multi-media painter José Joya uses bold and
vibrant colours with a variety of painting
techniques, layering, loose impasto strokes and
controlled drips. His harmonious colours are
influenced by Philippine landscapes and tropical
wildlife. His mastery lies in gestural paintings,
where the paint is applied spontaneously on
canvas, sometimes directly out of the tube or
through the use of broad strokes with brushes.
Joya influenced younger artists to explore other
mediums such as pottery and printmaking while
‘Granadean Arabesque’, 1958 | © Joya he served as the Dean of the College of Fine
Arts at the University of the Philippines. In
1964, Joya represented the country in the Venice
Biennial, showcasing the advancement of
modern art in the Philippines.
• His most notable painting from 1958,
called Granadean Arabesque, is a large scale
yellow hued mural that features clusters of sand
and impasto. It can be viewed at the Ateneo Art
Gallery in Manila. FIRST UP 3
CONSULTANTS
 PACITA ABAD (1946-2004)

• Born on the northern island of Batanes, the internationally revered artist first obtained a
degree in Political Science at the University of the Philippines. Her staunch activism
against the Marcos regime in the 1970s, led her to move to San Francisco to initially
study law – but she found her true calling with art. Her paintings consist of vibrant
colors and a constant change of patterns and materials. Earlier work dealt with
socio-political depictions of people, indigenous masks, tropical flowers, and underwater
scenes. Pacita created a unique technique called ‘trapunto’, where she stitches and stuffs
her vibrant canvases with a wide range of materials such as cloth, metal, beads, buttons,
shells, glass and ceramics, to give her work a three-dimensional look. Her many travels
across the globe with her husband have served as an inspiration for the techniques and
materials used in her art. Pacita has participated in over 60 exhibitions across the United
States, Latin America, and Europe.
• She is noted to have worked on more than 5,000 pieces of art – her masterwork
being Alkaff Bridge, Singapore, a 55-meter bridge covered in over 2,000 colourful
circles. It was completed a few months before she passed away from lung cancer in
2004.

FIRST UP 4
CONSULTANTS
Alkaff
bridge by
Pacita
Abad | ©
joachim
affeldt /
Alamy Stock
Photo

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 ANG KIUKOK (1935-2005)
• Born to Chinese immigrants, Ang Kiukok is the
pioneer of Philippine modern figurative
expressionism. Rewarded as the country’s
National Artist in 2001, he was one of the most
successful commercial figures on the local art
scene from the 1960s until his death from cancer
in 2005. Like Amorsolo, his paintings are
popular at auctions and have received
exceptionally high bids at Sotheby’s and
Christie’s. He is known for his distinct cubist
and surrealist portrayals of the crucifixion of
Christ and mother and child. However, he is
acclaimed for his series of Fishermen at Sea,
‘The Fishermen’, 1981 | © Ang Kiukok
which connects both energy, faith and the
struggle of fishermen under a vibrant crimson
sun labouring together to bring in the haul for
the day.
• His notable works are represented in the Cultural
Center of the Philippines, the National Historical
Museum of Taipei and the National Museum in
Singapore.
FIRST UP 6
CONSULTANTS
 BENEDICTO CABRERA (1942-PRESENT)

• Fondly known as ‘BenCab’ in the

Philippines, Cabrera is the
best-selling commercial painter of his
generation and a prominent head of
the local contemporary art scene. He
studied under José Joya at the
University of the Philippines and
received his degree in Fine Arts in
1963. His fruitful career has spanned
five decades, where his paintings,
etchings, sketches, and prints have
been exhibited across Asia, Europe,
and the US. He currently resides in
the chilly northern hill station
of Baguio, where he established his
own four-level BenCab Museum on
Asin Road that features an eclectic
selection of indigenous artifacts,
personal works, and an
overwhelming collection of paintings
from contemporary Filipino artists.
‘Sabel in Blue’, 2006 | © Bencab
FIRST UP 7
CONSULTANTS
 KIDLAT TAHIMIK (1942-PRESENT)
• A close friend of BenCab and Baguio native is critically acclaimed director Kidlat
Tahimik. Known as the father of Philippine independent film, the government
recently conferred upon him the Order of National Artist for Film in October 2018.
Born Eric de Guia, Kidlat Tahimik means ‘silent lightning’ in Tagalog. Before
entering cinema, Kidlat studied at the prestigious University of Pennsylvania’s
Wharton School, earning a Masters in Business Administration. His work is
associated with Third Cinema, a film movement that denounces neo-colonialism and
the capitalist system. His films have been prominent at film festivals across America,
Europe, and Asia.
• He is highly respected among directors Werner Herzog and Francis Ford Copolla,
who were both instrumental in helping him present his most famous
semi-autobiographical work Perfumed Nightmare in 1977. The film combines
documentary and essay techniques that provide a somewhat humorous but sharp
critique of the social divide between the rich and poor in the Philippines.
• If you happen to be in Baguio, drop by his artist café and vegetarian restaurant Oh
My Gulay, which rests in the heart of Session Road on the fifth floor of the La
Azotea Building. The old building does not house an elevator, but the long way up is
worth the trip and view. The café is a quirky wonderland of Kidlat’s imagination,
featuring wooden bridges, bright blue fish ponds, paintings and native sculptures
surrounded by a healthy array of plants. On Assumption Road, he created a massive
artist village inspired by his first café, called Ili-likha (or, to create), which is a
must-see before leaving Baguio. FIRST UP 8
CONSULTANTS
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 EDUARDO MASFERRÉ (1909-1995)
• Further north of Baguio, in the mountainous
province of Sagada, Eduardo Masferré was born to a
Filipino mother and Spanish soldier. He is regarded
as the Father of Philippine photography. He
documented with great detail the everyday lives of
indigenous people of the Cordilleras. The self-taught
photographer processed his own film in a makeshift
darkroom and managed to even produce prints
without electricity. His photographs capture the
culture of the people in his community and serve as
a documentation of their customary practices and
rituals. Masferré’s photographs have found their
way into exhibitions around the world. The
Smithsonian Institution carries at least 120 prints of
his works for the National Museum of Natural
History in Washington D.C.
• He is remembered for his book on the People of the
Philippine Cordillera Photographs 1934-1956,
which was published in 1988. A country inn and
‘Sagada’, 1952 | © Masferre café in Sagada is named after him and is worth the
visit to see copies of his prints and purchase
souvenirs created in Masferré’s honor. FIRST UP 10
CONSULTANTS
 AGNES ARELLANO
(1949-PRESENT)
• Born to a family of prominent
male architects, sculptress
Agnes Arellano is best known
for her surrealist and
expressionist work in plaster,
bronze and cold-cast marble.
Her sculptures highlight the
female body and draw from
themes surrounding sexuality,
religion, and mysticism.
Borrowing from the term of
poet Gerard Manley Hopkins,
Agnes attributes her work to
‘inscapes’, that assert an
internal unity among various
elements in her installations and
sculptures. Drawing from the
tragic death of her parents and
sister from a house fire in 1981,
her work explores themes of
creation and destruction, and the
‘Carcass-Cornucopia’, 1987 | © Agnes Arellano cycles of life from birth to
death. FIRST UP 11
CONSULTANTS
 ROBERTO CHABET
(1937-2013)
• Born Roberto Rodriguez, he used his mother’s
maiden name Chabet when he began his career in
art. He was a mentor to many students at the
University of the Philippines, where he taught for
over 30 years, and is acknowledged as the father of
conceptual art in the Philippines. Chabet initially
studied architecture but his conceptual art
installations, collages, and sculptures in the 1960s
and 70s made him a rebellious figure on the local
art scene. He was the founding museum director of
the Cultural Center of the Philippines from
1967-1970, where he established the 13 Artists
Awards that highlight the achievements of young
artists whose works show a contemporary view of
art-making and thinking.
Roberto Chabet’s ‘Onethingafteranother’, at • He describes himself as a “custodian” and his work
the Mission House, Manila Biennale as “creatures of memory”. His multi-faceted skills
2018 | © Mark Demayo in drawing, sculpture, installations, photography,
printmaking, and collages question modernity. His
works reflect the importance of space and how the
displacement of ordinary objects can alter their
meaning. FIRST UP 12
CONSULTANTS
 NAPOLEON ABUEVA
(1930-2018)
• Noted as the Father of Modern Filipino sculpture, Abueva
attended the University of the Philippines with Joya and was
mentored by noted sculptor Guillermo Tolentino, at the
College of Fine Arts. Born in Bohol, he is also the youngest
National Artist awardee appointed by then President Marcos, at
the age of 46. His expertise was seen in a wide array of
materials such as hard wood, abode, steel, cement, marble, and
bronze.
• Abueva is adept in traditional representation and modern
abstract forms of sculpture. A trip around the University of the
Philippines will show you a number of his works, such as
the University Gateway and Nine Muses near the old faculty
centre. He was also responsible for the relief marble sculptures
seen in the war memorial cross in Mt. Samat, Bataan.
• It is the second highest cross in the world and the tallest in
Asia. Under the commission of the Philippine government,
Abueva collaborated with designer Lorenzo del Castillo to
create a shrine that commemorates the thousands of Filipino
The Cross at Mt. Samat. and American soldiers who lost their lives during the
Bataan completed in 1970 | © Japanese-led Bataan Death March in 1942. Make sure to walk
Abueva / 1Bataan up the flight of stairs inside the cross to reach the top, and
experience the fabulous views of Bataan. FIRST UP 13
CONSULTANTS
THANK YOU
Instructor: Maybelyn Mata

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