Oh, It’s Calligraphy

I have simply forgotten this. I saw it again while cleaning my downloaded files early this morning. It’s actually an app I tried at FB because I was curious how my name would appear using calligraphy of course. My oldest brother used to have a calligraphic pen and a small book on calligraphy writing when I was in college. He learned but I didn’t.  It’s an art that would never go stale through the years.

And I love the background too, so serene and so cool to look at. I wish I could draw something like this but I am really not that artistic.

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A Legacy of Art

 I just can’t resist posting this lovely painting of Anita Magsaysay Ho,  (Seated Women Sewing) a  gifted and talented artist who is known  for  “her paintings that depict figurative abstracts of women at everyday tasks.” Four years ago,  Bank of the Philippine Islands, where I used to work, started publishing pictures of paintings that they own via a lovely journal  and my daughter who works there now gifted me with a copy. She has given me copies of these journal/diary/calendar  that I collect since then. This year, it’s called A Legacy of Art (a treasury of paintings by Artists of National Prominence from the BPI Art Collection).  I am almost afraid to write on its pristine pages because I like the paintings that they publish there. Here’s one more entitled Old Farmer With Hat by our National Artist  Fernando Amorsolo done in 1929, oil on canvas.

 

 

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Angono, An Artist’ Haven

In one of our many road trips more than two years ago, we discovered an exciting place teeming with murals  of one of our National Artists, Carlos V. Francisco popularly known as Botong Francisco. And here I thought, Balaw Balaw Restaurant And Food Gallery was enough for me but in a place where so many artists abound, you’ll be glad to discover something more. Botong Francisco,  was the second Filipino artist to receive the title National Artist in Painting after Fernando Amorsolo. He is well-known in the art of mural painting.

Dona Aurora St.  in one such place ,  the whole stretch of the street is literally teeming with Botong Francisco’s artworks. The sun was too hot on our backs so Nissa and I had to take some quick shots of the place. I even saw maestro Lucio San Pedro’s lyrics and notes of his composition, Sa Ugoy ng Duyan but I was not able to record it in my camera.

Bayanihan

Bayanihan, which loosely translated in English means helping each other is a typical Filipino trait that is still being practiced until now especially in the province where you only need to invite neighbors and relatives to help you with a particular work or task and they do.

Kaingin – 1945

Magpupukot -1957

Magpupukot means pulling in the net. The above picture is the actual painting where the mural was probably copied. Painting the lives of the fishing community was one of Botong’s favourite subjects. Angono, his hometown where he was based, was a fishing village.

Pista Sa Nayon – 1947

Pista, taken from the Spanish word fiesta (festival or feast) depicts revelry and thanksgiving. We celebrate many fiestas here in the Philippines. Such popular devotions and festivals are the Sinulog in Cebu, the Ati-Atihan in Aklan, and the Pahiyas in Lucban, Quezon to name a few. Philippine fiesta has its roots during the pre-colonial period.

If you have the chance to visit Angono, visit Aurora St. and you’ll surely be surprised by the richness of murals painted in almost every wall of the houses there.

And it’s more fun in the Philippines.

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Walking Through History (Revisiting the University of Santo Tomas Museum)

It’s been years, close to four decades in fact since I last visited the UST Museum. There was a time , when I was still a student, when I used to spend hours just looking at the  vast collections of the museum but there were a lot more added through the years and the place has been renovated. I could spend a whole day just looking at everything here but since I was meeting a friend at the  UST Priory, I just took a few shots of the place. Imagine yourself visiting the oldest existing museum in the Philippines and all you could utter are oohs and aahs just absorbing and thinking how UST has collected and saved all these and we’re talking of more than 300 years.

This is the grand staircase of  the UST Main building where the museum is housed. Notice the murals hanging on the walls, they are creations of Filipino masters Galo Ocampo and Carlos “Botong” Francisco.

The Natural History Collection

Shelter Collection – Ethnography

Clothing Collection – Ethnography

Hunting, Fishing Collection – Ethnography

Metal Craft

The Papal chair used by Blessed  JP II during the 1995 World Youth Day in Manila.

Coins, Medals and Memorabilia – Natural History Collection

This year UST will have its Neo Centennial Celebration and the UST Museum will open its doors to an exhibit dubbed as ” 400 Shots To Immortality” which will run from January 20 to February 10, 2012.

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It’s Why I Love It!

Nissa gave me this just before she left for a seminar in Batangas yesterday. It’s a BPI planner for 2010 and it doesn’t come free.  You might wonder why I am raving about it.  It’s about 7 x 10 in size with glossy pages and a collection of modern paintings from the art collection of Bank of the Philippine Islands.  It’s more like a book than a journal, yes, I’m going to use it as my journal for this year.

The cover is an untitled artwork by one of our national artists HR Ocampo.

Woman Figure in Blue by Mauro Malang Santos. Beautiful , isn’t it?

Fishing Scene by Oscar Zalamea

The Lake Series I, Geyser #2 by Phyllis Zaballero

January 30, 1970 by National Artist Jose Joya

The Scene by National Artist Cesar Legaspi

Fragmented Landscape by Florencio Concepcion

Abstract by National Artist Federico Aguilar Alcuaz

Actually there were a lot more featured contemporary paintings in this gem of a planner. I love them all.  Sometimes I just miss the years I spent working at Bank of PI.

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