Fernando amorsolo

(1892-1972)
 INTRODUCTION
 Art is a diverse range of human activities in creating visual, auditory or
performing artifacts or artworks, expressing the author’s imaginative,
conceptual idea, or technical skill, intended to be appreciated for their
beauty or emotional power. in their most general form these activities
include the production of works of art, the criticism of art, the study of
the history of art, and the aesthetic dissemination of art.
 art is important in modern society is the fact that art is, above all, a
means of expressing the way one thinks, a manifestation of what you
believe and how you think, in a form which can be shown to others, to
enrich them
 Fernando Amorsolo was the son of Pedre Amorsolo– a
bookkeeper– and Bonofacia Cueto. He spent his youthful days
in Daet, Camarines Norte when his father died in 1903.
bonifacia moved the entire family to Manila to live with a first
cousin, painter Fablan de la Rosa.
 To raise money, young Amorsolo sold watermelon, postcards to
a bookstore which paid him 10 centavos a piece.
 While her mother did embroidery work. Somehow, he managed
to complete his schooling at the Liceo de Manila.
 Where he earned honorable mention in drawing and painting.
 at 17 he enrolled at the University of the Philippines (UP) School
where his uncle Fabian de la Rosa taught. While a student,
Amorsolo lived in a rented accesoria and , in order to survive,
joined competitions, including Severino Reyes’ first novel, Parusa
ng diyos (God’s Punishment). He also designed chairs for the
Bureau of Public Works.
 During his college he was influenced by the works of the Spanish
painter Deigo de Velasquez as well as other European painter
including John Singer Sargent, Andres Zorn, Joaquin Sorolla y
Bastida, and Ignacio Zuluaga.
 He was one of the first graduates of the University of the
Philippines in 1919, receiving several medals for excellence.
 Upon graduation, he became an instructor at the UP School of Fine
Arts, while at the same time working for the Bureau of Public Works.
For the next 38 years, he was with UP.
 In 1922, he made his first painting which became one of the most
popular images of the commonwealth period.
 Amorloso designed the logo for Ginebra San Miguel (markang
demonyo) depicting St. Michael vanquishing the devil. The logo is
still in use in its original form today. The owner of the beverage
company, Don Enrique Zobel, who is an ardent patron of the arts, was
so impressed by his work offered to send Amorsolo to the Academia
de San Fernando in Madrid for the further studies with the generous
stipend for himself and his family.
Markang demonyo
 Despite his exposure to Western influences, Amorsolo retained his Filipino
consciousness. He was drawn more towards the gentle rolling hills and rice
fields of the Philippines rather than the cosmopolitan worlds of Europe’s
proud cities. Even his illustrations of the Spanish women were drawn with
slender physiques, narrower hips, and smaller breasts more typical of
Filipinas rather than full bodied Caucasian women.
 After his stint in Madrid, Amorsolo came home to the Philippines ready to
apply what he learned. American servicemen, officials and businessmen
sought out his paintings to bring home to the States as a token of
remembrance for their stay in the Philippines. One of Amorsolo Client was
Capt. Robert Kennedy who brought home to the U.S. a few of Amorsolo,s
pieces and had them farmed at the Art Center Gallery in New York.
 The gallery owners inquired about the artist which led to
Amorsolo’s first one-man show in New York in 1925. of the
40 pieces, 24 were immediately purchased. Amorsolo often
uses his family members to pose for his paintings. At one time,
he made his house helpers pose for him and paid them for
posing for him. His daughter asked why he had to pay them
additional on top of their regular salary. He replied, “We have
tired them to do housework and not to pose for me. Therefore,
they should be compensated for posing for my painting.”
TINIKLING IN BARRIO 1951
EL CIEGO 1929
FARM LIFE
MAIDEN BY A STREAM 1961
 Amosolo’s first wife passed away in 1931 leaving
him with six children. He had six more children by a
common-law wife. In 1935, he married Maria del
Carmen who gave him eight more children.
Fortunately, his reputation was growing fast as his
brood and his work was more than enough to provide
for his large family.
WOMAN WITH BANGA
LAPU-LAPU
When World War II broke out in 1941 and the Japanese occupied
Manial, Amorsolo lived in the city along with his family.
Amorsolo rented a house near Raon street for his wife and
children. He and some male relatives lived at their Azcarraga (now
Claro M. Recto Ave) residence which was near a Ja[anise garrison.
During the war, Amorsolo witnessed Filipino civilians, soldiers
brought to Far Eastern Univeristy (FEU) to be jailed. According to
some witness, when American forces attacked Manila, all of the
prisoners at FEU were slaughtered by the Japanese soldiers.
 Some of the subjects of Amorsolo’s paintings during World War
II were about suffering and destruction. A few of these paintings
are: “THE RAPE OF MANILA”(1942), “THE BOMBING OF
INTENDENCIA” (1942) and “THE EXPLOSION” (1944). One
of his famous war era painting is the “DEFENSE OF A
FILIPINA WOWAM”S HONOR”. Where it showed a Filipino
man holding a bolo about to defend his wife and daughter from
being raped by an unseen Japanese soldier, his wartime
paintings are considered among finest work and were exhibited
at Malacanang Palace in 1948.
BOMBING OF INTENDENCIA 1942
DEFENSE OF A FILIPINA WOMANS’ HONOR 1945
Afternoon meal of the workers (1939)
Assassination of governor Bustamante bataan
The building of intramuros
Burning of the idol
The burning of manila
(1946)
 AFTER THE WAR, Amorsolo went back to painting the bright
sun-drenched countryside scenes for which he was most well-
known. Ge reached the peak of his popularity in the late 1940s
and 1950s garnering numerous awards.
 Amosolo’s painting were in such high demand that he
photographed his art works and placed them in an album.
Prospective patrons could then choose from his art catalogue
and Amorsolo would paint them. Amorosolo did not create
exact replicas of his trademarks themes but instead recreated the
paintings by varying some elements.
 Amorsolo by then was so pure of his strokes when
he painted that he is able to finish painting a
picture in a very short period of time. At one point,
he was able to finish ten paintings a month. It is
believed that part of his motivation to finish a high
number of paintings was to support his family.
PALAY MAIDEN 1920
MAKING THE PHILIPPINE FLAG
 Some group of artist criticized Amorsolo’s machine-like
efficiency in producing paintings. In the midst of a swarm of
criticism. Amorsolo never raised his voice and put up a
defense. There was no shortage of people who stood up to
defend the artist. Among Amorsolo’s staunchest supporter was
his best friend, Guillermo Tolentino, the finest sculptor in the
Philippines. When Amorsolo was asked why he never spoke
up in his own defense, the artist responded that he had already
matured as an artist. He had nothing left to prove and was
comfortable painting what he wished in the form of expression
that he chose.
 Amorsolo worked until the last year of his life. Age was
starting to catch up with him. He was afflicted with diabetes
and arthritis in addition to his heart condition. His eyesight was
also beginning to fail him and he had to undergo a cataract
operation. In his later works, his failing vision led to wayward
brush strokes of red and blue lines where a mound of earth
should be. Despite these challenges, the quality of his output
remained high and his popularity never waned.
 Four days after he died, then President Ferdinand
Marcos posthumously confirmed on Amorosolo the
title National Artist
BICOL GIRL
THE BURNING OF STO. DOMINGO CHURCH
PLANTING RICE WITH MOUNT VOLCANO
THE FRUIT PICKER
Early sulu wedding
The explosion (1944)
The first baptism in the philippines
The first mass in the philippines
The mestiza (1943)
THE END