Masterpieces from the National Museum of the Philippines

"If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him." John F. Kennedy

Spoliarium by Juan Luna

The Spoliarium is an oil painting by Juan Luna. It won the coveted first gold medal at the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes in Madrid in 1884.

Felix Hidalgo The Assassination of Governor Bustamente

The Assassination of Governor Bustamente by F. Hidalgo

Felix Resurección Hidalgo studied at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando de Madrid as a pensionado of the Ayuntamiento de Manila. He won the ninth silver medal in 1884 for his work, Las Virgines Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho at the Exposicion General de Bellas Artes in Madrid at which event, Juan Luna won the gold medal for his Spoliarium. The Assassination of Governor General Fernando Bustamante y Rueda is a controversial painting for its depiction of the Dominican friars as active participants in the murder of the Governor. In fact, Fr. Fidel Villaroel, Ph.D., a Spanish historian and Filipinologist from the University of Santo Tomas contends that the friars were imprisoned together with the bishop at the time of the murder.

Carlos Francisco The Struggles of the Filipino People

The Struggles of the Filipino People by Carlos 'Botong' Francisco

The Struggles of the Filipino People is a series of paintings by 1973 National Artist, Carlos Botong Francisco commissioned by former Manila Mayor, Antonio Villegas, for the Manila City Hall. The image above is a bird's eye view of the paintings on display at the former Senate Session Hall.

The Struggles of the Filipino People

In the painting above, a Datu/Sultan and his princess examine the trade goods presented by a Chinese merchant while a Muslim preacher in the background introduces Islam to the people around him. (pre-colonial Philippines) Check this link for more information about The Struggles of the Filipino People:

https://www.travelswithcharie.com/2019/05/filipino-struggles-in-history-carlos.html

Pamilya

Pamilya is part of a series of large scale paintings by 1981 National Artist, Vicente Manansala. It is on loan from PhilAm Life. To see and learn more about the entire PhilAm Life series of paintings by Manansala, click this link:

https://www.travelswithcharie.com/2020/08/the-philippine-village-life-by-vicente.html

Sulayman and His Court

Rajah Sulayman and His Court is a wood relief by Napoleon V. Abueva, a 1976 National Artist for Sculpture with the assistance of Renato Rocha and Jose Mendoza.

Show Window by Federico Aguilar Alcuaz

Show Window is a non woven tapestry (Art Protis) by Federico Aguilar Alcuaz, a 2009 National Artist for Visual Arts. This tapestry is from the GSIS collection.

The fine art collection of the National Museum also includes the works of Fernando Amorsolo, a beloved Filipino painter known for his colorful scenes of the Philippine countryside and the idyllic life.

I was amazed by the breadth of the art collection at the National Museum. There's so much to see and learn about Philippine art and heritage that a day at this museum isn't quite enough to take it all in.

About the National Museum:
P. Burgos Drive, Rizal Park, Manila
nationalmuseum.gov.ph
Entrance is free. Drop off handbags, backpacks and any hand carried items at the coat check counter in the front lobby. Photos with no flash may be taken.

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Images by TravelswithCharie

The Art of Carlos Botong Francisco - Progress of Medicine in the Philippines

Pre-colonial period Pag-unlad ng Panggagamot sa Pilipinas (The Progress of Medicine in the Philippines) is a group of four large-scale paintings depicting healing practices in the Philippines from pre-colonial times to the modern period. Carlos Botong Francisco was commissioned in 1953 by Dr. Agerico Sison who was then the director of Philippine General Hospital (PGH) together with Dr. Eduardo Quisumbing of the National Museum, Dr. Florentino Herrera, Jr. and Dr. Constantino Manahan. These oil on canvas paintings measure 2.92 meters in height and 2.76 meters in width (9.71 ft x 8.92 ft) and were displayed at the main entrance hall of PGH for over five decades. Owing to its location, the artworks were in a state of "severe deterioration" at the beginning of the 21st century from exposure to heat, humidity, dirt, dust, smoke, insect stains, grime, termites and an oxidized synthetic resin used in an earlier restoration. These canvases were restored three times, the last was

Filipino Struggles in History - Carlos Botong Francisco

In 1968, Antonio Villegas (then Mayor of Manila), commissioned Carlos "Botong" Francisco to paint the history of Manila for Manila City Hall. The series of large scale paintings was called Kasaysayan ng Maynila (History of Manila). The paintings deteriorated over time and no attempt was made to preserve these historical canvases until 2013 when Mayor Amado Lim sent them to the National Museum for extensive restoration. Four years later, in 2017, Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada and the Manila City Council signed an agreement with the National Museum to leave the paintings at the museum so they may reach a larger audience in exchange for museum grade reproductions to replace the originals. Kasaysayan ng Maynila was later renamed Filipino Struggles in History and is now on display at the Senate Hall of the National Museum . Carlos "Botong" Francisco died in March 1969, a few months after completing the paintings. He is one of the first Filipino modernists and

8 Heritage Houses of Iloilo

Lizares Mansion The province of Iloilo on the island of Panay has a rich trove of heritage houses, left over from the sugar industry boom in the 19th century. Iloilo also had the largest port in the Philippines at that time which facilitated the export of sugar to foreign shores and deposited money in the hands of the sugar barons. The barons dropped their earnings into the acquisition of properties in Negros and the construction of beautiful homes in Iloilo, many of which are located in the vicinity of the Jaro Cathedral. The Lizares Mansion was built in 1937 by Don Emiliano Lizares for his wife, Concepcion Gamboa and five children. The family fled to safety when World War II broke out and the house was occupied by the Japanese military. The family returned to the house after the war but left once again after the demise of Don Emiliano. It was sold to the Dominican order in the 1960s and was converted in 1978 to a private school, Angelicum School. The mansion now houses the

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