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The Philippines

Lagen Island, El Nido, Palawan

Aklan
Boracay - Going Private
Boracay Rejuvenated
Boracay video
Kalibo Art Tour
The Hidden Charms of Aklan
The House That Sam Built - Kalibo
The Score on Boracay

Antique
Driving Along Antique's Coastline
Malumpati Cold Spring
Mararison Island Getaway
Sweet Pandan
The School on the Hill

Batangas

Antonio's Restaurant - Tagaytay City

Bohol
Bohol
Bohol - Images
Balay Mapanag
Balay ni Nanay Lording
BayBay Beach, Roxas City
BayBay Beach video
Baybay Beach - It's a beautiful evening
Boodle Fight at Bitoy's Balay Barbekyuhan

Ayala Museum
Makati Sizzles


Rizal

Romblon

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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...

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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...

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