FERNANDO CUETO AMORSOLO

Painting: PLANTING RICE

Fernando Amorsolo was born May 30, 1892, in the Paco district of Manila. At 13 he was
apprenticed to the noted Philippine artist Fabian de la Rosa, his mother's first cousin. In 1909
Amorsolo enrolled at the Liceo de Manila and then attended the fine-arts school at the University
of the Philippines, graduating in 1914. After working three years as a commercial artist and part-
time instructor at the university, he studied at the Escuela de San Fernando in Madrid. For seven
months he sketched at the museums and on the streets of Madrid, experimenting with the use of
light and color. That winter he went to New York and discovered the works of the postwar
impressionists and cubists, who became the major influence on his works. On his return to
Manila, he set up his own studio.

During this period, Amorsolo developed the use of light—actually, backlight—which is his
greatest contribution to Philippine painting. Characteristically, an Amorsolo painting contains a
glow against which the figures are outlined, and at one point of the canvas there is generally a
burst of light that highlights the smallest detail. During the 1920s and 1930s Amorsolo's output
of paintings was prodigious. In 1939 his oil Afternoon Meal of the Workers won first prize at the
New York World's Fair. During World War II Amorsolo continued to paint. The Philippine
collector Don Alfonso Ongpin commissioned him to execute a portrait in absentia of Gen.
Douglas MacArthur, which he did at great personal risk. He also painted Japanese occupation
soldiers and self-portraits. His wartime paintings were exhibited at the Malacanang presidential
palace in 1948. After the war Amorsolo served as director of the college of fine arts of the
University of the Philippines, retiring in 1950. Married twice, he had 13 children, five of whom
became painters. Amorsolo was noted for his portraits. He made oils of all the Philippine
presidents, including the revolutionary leader Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, and other noted Philippine
figures. He also painted many wartime scenes, including Bataan, Corner of Hell, and One
Casualty.
Amorsolo, who died in 1972, is said to have painted more than 10,000 pieces. He continued to
paint even in his late 70s, despite arthritis in his hands. Even his late works feature the classic
Amorsolo tropical sunlight. He said he hated "sad and gloomy" paintings, and he executed only
one painting in which rain appears.

HERNANDO OCAMPO
Painting: THE CONTRAST

Hernando Ruiz Ocampo was a leading radical modernist artist in the Philippines. He was a
member of the Saturday Group of artists (also known as the Taza de Oro Group), and was one of
the pre-war Thirteen Moderns, a group of modernist artists founded by Victorio C. Edades in
1938. Famously known for his triumvirate of with neo-realists Vicente S. Manansala and Cesar
Legaspi, his works reflected the harsh realities of his country after the Second World War.
However, many of his works depicted lush sceneries and the beautiful Philippine landscapes
through his skillful use of fierce and bold colors.

H. R. Ocampo was credited for inventing a new mode of abstraction that exemplifies Philippine
flora and fauna, and portrays sunshine, stars and rain. Using movement and bold colors, Ocampo
utilized fantasy and science fiction as the basis for his works. His art is described to be "abstract
compositions of biological forms that seemed to oscillate, quiver, inflame and multiply" like
mutations.

Ocampo was born in Santa Cruz, Manila, but later transferred to #61 Dimasalang St., Caloocan.
His parents were Emilio Ocampo y Saltiero and Delfina Ruiz y Santo. He originally studied law,
commerce and creative writing, and worked as a writer before he taught himself the visual arts.
During his career as a writer, he was one of the organizers of Veronicans, a young group of
progressive and prolific writers. He worked in various periodicals such as Taliba newspaper and
Manila Sunday Chronicle magazine. He also worked as a scriptwriter and director for television,
and produced and directed for the Filipino Players Guild. His works as a writer includes "Don’t
Cry, Don’t Fret" in poetry; "Ikalawang Pagdalaw," "Unang Pamumulaklak," "Rice and Bullets,"
and "Bakia" in fiction; and "Buntot Page," a screenplay written with Mario David. His major
works in the visual arts include Ina ng Balon, Calvary, Slum Dwellers, Nude with Candle and
Flower, Man and Carabao, Angel's Kiss, Palayok at Kalan, Ancestors, Isda at Mangga, The
Resurrection, Fifty-three "Q," Back drop, Fiesta, Mother and Child, Easter Sunday, and his most
acknowledged work Genesis, which served as the basis of curtain design in the Cultural Center
of the Philippines Main Theater. His works were exhibited in Washington, New York, London,
and Tokyo, among others. Famous for his work "We or They" Ocampo died at the age of 67 in
Caloocan.

VICENTE RIVERA
Painting: Supplication

Vicente Rivera Jr. is a writer from the Bicol region who started writing in the
1930s and best known as the editor of the Evening News Magazine. He also wrote
the famous short story entitled, All Over the World, and the serialized novel,
Some Passing Winds.

He was born in Daraga, Albay on 20 September 1920 and finished his

undergraduate studies at the University of the Philippines, Far Eastern University,
and Adamson University. He died in the US in 1999.

Vicente Rivera, a master in Philippine paintings, is commonly underrated due to the

rarity of his works. During his early years in education, he received a silver medal
after taking two head studies. He also received various nominations and awards in
the field of painting. Unknown to everyone, he is one of the founders of U.P. School
of Fine Arts. His famous work, Supplication, depicts a picture of a woman kneeling
down on the nailed feet of Jesus on the cross. The painting has a dramatic
background to clearly express the desperate state of the woman. It is a famous
example of a stylish and an organized approach in Philippine paintings. Rivera’s
organization in paintings made it more appealing to the subject, thus, inspiring
painters to put more passion in their painting rather than painting to make names
for themselves.

VICENTE CABRERA
PAINTING: ‘SABEL IN BLUE’

Fondly known as ‘BenCab’ in the Philippines, Cabrera is the best-selling commercial painter
of his generation and a prominent head of the local contemporary art scene. He studied
under José Joya at the University of the Philippines and received his degree in Fine Arts
in 1963. His fruitful career has spanned five decades, where his paintings, etchings,
sketches, and prints have been exhibited across Asia, Europe, and the US. He currently
resides in the chilly northern hill station of Baguio, where he established his own four-level
BenCab Museum on Asin Road that features an eclectic selection of indigenous artifacts,
personal works, and an overwhelming collection of paintings from contemporary Filipino
artists.

Benedicto Reyes Cabrera (born April 10, 1942), better known as "BenCab",is a Filipino
painter and was awarded National Artist of the Philippines for Visual Arts (Painting) in
2006.[2] He has been noted as "arguably the best-selling painter of his generation of
Filipino artists.
Early life and education
BenCab was born to Democrito Cabrera and Isabel Reyes in Malabon, Philippines on April
10, 1942. He was the youngest of nine children. BenCab's first exposure and discovery of
the arts happened through his elder Brother Salvador, who was already an established
artist during Bencab's childhood.
He went on to study at the University of the Philippines Diliman, where he explored
different art visual forms - photography, draftsmanship, printmaking - while honing his
chosen craft as a painter. He received his bachelor's degree in Fine Arts in 1963

ANG KIUKOK

Painting: ‘The Fishermen’

Ang Kiukok (March 1, 1931 – May 9, 2005) was a Filipino painter of Chinese descent and was a
National Artist for Visual Arts.

Ang was born on March 1, 1931 in Davao, Davao Province, Philippine Islands to Vicente Ang
and Chin Lim[1] who were immigrants from Xiamen, China. Ang Kiukok was the only son in
his family and he had four sisters. Ang Kiukok was originally meant to be named Ang Hua Shing
("Hua Shing" literally means "Chinese-born") but did not push through with the plan upon
learning that his cousin was given the name by Kiukok's uncle.

Ang was taught by a commercial artist at a young age on how to make charcoal portrait. His
influence at the time was the artworks of Qi Baishi. After World War II, the family moved to
Cotabato. Ang made movie billboards here and later his family moved to Manila, where he
attended the University of Santo Tomas where one of his mentors was Vicente Manansala. He
studied in the university from 1952 to 1954
Born to Chinese immigrants, Ang Kiukok is the pioneer of Philippine modern figurative
expressionism. Rewarded as the country’s National Artist in 2001, he was one of the most
successful commercial figures on the local art scene from the 1960s until his death from cancer
in 2005. Like Amorsolo, his paintings are popular at auctions and have received exceptionally
high bids at Sotheby’s and Christie’s. He is known for his distinct cubist and surrealist portrayals
of the crucifixion of Christ and mother and child. However, he is acclaimed for his series of
Fishermen at Sea, which connects both energy, faith and the struggle of fishermen under a
vibrant crimson sun labouring together to bring in the haul for the day.

His notable works are represented in the Cultural Center of the Philippines, the National
Historical Museum of Taipei and the National Museum in Singapore.