TravelswithCharie

Masaganang Ani (Bountiful Harvest), oil on canvas, 1962 The International Rice Institute of the Philippines (IRRI) was founded in the Philippines in 1960 by the Ford and Rockefeller foundations with the support of the Philippines government. The goal of IRRI is “to improve livelihoods, abolish poverty, hunger and malnutrition among those who depend on rice based agri-food systems”. Their headquarters is in Los Baños, Laguna. These two Manansala large scale paintings were commissioned by IRRI in 1962 to depict Filipino life, labor and leisure activities. The paintings were hung on the walls of the dining room and cafeteria  at its headquarters. These weren’t ideal places to hang the canvasses because the smoke from the kitchen and the cleaning solutions used by the staff threatened the paintings. They are now on loan to the National Museum of the Philippines which declared these two masterpieces as National Cultural Treasures. In Masaganang Ani, Manansala chose themes celebrating th...

Timbulan ng Laya at Diwang Dakila, Carlos Botong Francisco, 1968, oil on canvas In 1963,  Mayor Antonio Villegas wrote a report, Building a Better Manila, where he indicated in detail his accomplishments on his first year as Mayor of Manila and his vision for the future of the city. Villegas aspired for a prosperous Manila by providing its residents access to health, family and housing services, opportunities for education and employment and improved infrastructure for water and road systems. *Notice the hands at the top of the painting. These hands symbolize the protective reach of God over the city of Manila. Central Panel On either side of the seal of Manila are the former mayors of the city. At the bottom are the city’s old seals. Seal of Manila adopted in 1965 under Mayor Antonio Villegas Timbulan ng Laya (Beacon of Freedom) at Diwang Dakila (Noble Spirit) are written on the seal. A sunburst with 15 rays cast light across the canvas. Below the sun, in red, is the Baybayin let...

I Believe in God, 1948, oil on masonite  One of the group of Thirteen Moderns and Neo Realists, Vicente Silva Manansala had the good fortune to study art in Canada, the United States, France and Switzerland through a number of grants he received from UNESCO, the French government and the U.S. State Department. He studied at the Ecole de Beaux Arts in 1950 under the mentorship of Fernand Léger, a renowned French artist and exponent of cubism. Manansala’s early works were influenced by Fernando Amorsolo whose paintings celebrated Philippine landscapes and local culture. Manansala’s oeuvres portray the working class like the fish and candle vendors, the man with the rooster, or the family praying together (above image). I believe in God is a painting completed by Manansala before he dabbled into cubism. The figures and forms are solid depictions of farmers in the rural landscape. Procession, 1948, oil on canvas 1948 was three years after the second world war. The Philippines was qui...

Third Station: Jesus falls the first time 1960. Oil on canvas. Don Bosco Chapel Series It’s been several years since I’ve been trying to see the complete set of paintings of the Stations of the Cross by Carlos “Botong” Francisco but the pandemic got in the way and then in 2023, we were denied entry to the two schools where these stations of the cross are displayed; at FEU University’s Our Lady of Fatima Chapel and Don Bosco Technical College. Both are in Metro Manila. We were denied entry to these chapels because a permit is required for non students to enter school grounds. I did as the staff suggested and sent requests online to view these paintings in March 2024 when I was in the Philippines but neither of them responded affirmatively or at all. I’m saddened by this denial as my intention is simple: to write and inform my readers about the artworks of Francisco. My blogs about his paintings have been viewed by more than 100,000 readers and it’s obvious there’s a profound interes...

Pamilya (Family) With the completion of their new headquarters in Manila in 1961, PhilAm Life (a life insurance company) commissioned Vicente Silva Manansala to do a series of paintings for their cafeteria. (Lucky employees!) Before long these seven large-scale paintings about Philippine village life were moved to the front lobby which was deemed a more appropriate setting for the canvases. They remained there until the building was sold in 2012. Mindful of the cultural significance of the paintings and the need for its preservation and conservation, the management of PhilAm Life decided to loan these treasures to the National Museum in 2014. “Pamilya reflects Filipino values of family solidarity and solemnity showing a common scenario of praying before sharing a meal with one’s family.” National Museum of the Philippines Pagkain (Food) One of the Thirteen Moderns and Neo Realists, Vicente Silva Manansala had the good fortune to study art in Canada, the United States, France and Switz...