TravelswithCharie

"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 on canvas painting by Juan Luna. It won the coveted first gold medal at the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes in Madrid in 1884. 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 Span

When I first heard about this exhibition, I was disappointed to learn that the works of Carlos “Botong” Francisco would not be part of the show. That said, the 38 paintings and sketches by Juan Luna, Fernando Amorsolo and Fernando Zobel, now on display at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, is an impressive collection spanning 100 years of Philippine Art. Each of these three artists studied and honed their craft in Europe or the United States. As such, their works reflect Western art trends of their respective periods. Juan Luna lived both in Madrid and Paris. His Woman with Shawl (1880-1890) and Lady at the Racetrack (1880-1890) show influences of the Impressionist style of painting. Impressionism had burst into the art scene in France in 1884, precisely the time Luna won the First Gold Medal for his painting, Spoliarium, at the Exposicion de Bellas Artes in Madrid. Luna’s later sketches of Ragamuffin and Study for People and Kings show his foray into the social realism genre

Lino F. Villarruz Lino F. Villarruz graduated with a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Santo Tomas. He is a founding member of the Arts Association of Capiz (formerly Capiz Arts Council) which he served as its Visual Arts Director in 1995. Mr. Villarruz  has received numerous art awards throughout his career including the Capiznon Artist Award. He comes from a musical family and was a guitarist for the band he formed with his brothers when he was in his teens. He lives in Roxas City with his wife and children. How did you come to realize you wanted to be a painter? Lino: I liked drawing and found I was good at it during high school so it was easy for me to decide to study Fine Arts in college. Who were the artists who influenced you the most? Lino: The artists I admired most and who influenced my work were Vicente Manansala, Carlos "Botong" Francisco, Mauro "Malang" Santos and Pablo Picasso. How would you describe your artistic style? Lino: My style of pain

TWG Tea Salon and Boutique at Greenbelt 5 in Makati is a glass and glitz citadel with some of the finest collection of teas in the world. The Wellness Group (TWG) has its origins in Singapore and today has branches in many countries in Asia, The Middle East, UK, and the United States. I didn't come for afternoon tea. I was famished after a morning admiring the works of Carlos Botong Francisco at the Ayala Museum and TWG was in the neighborhood. I was torn between the salmon entreé and the chicken skewer with rice. I chose the latter. A meal would not be complete without tea, as my late grandfather used to say. While perusing the tea menu, I was overwhelmed by the number of tea selections. In fact, they have over 200 teas to choose from so I thought it best to ask my server for help. What I wanted to try was a combination of green tea and chamomile. It was siesta time after all and I needed a transition tea. My server didn't hesitate at all to recommend the Sweet France