Fernando Amorsolo Facts

The Philippine artist Fernando Amorsolo (1892-1972) was a portraitist and painter of rural land scapes. He is best known for his
craftsmanship and mastery in the use of light.
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.

ernando Amorsolo was a renowned and famous Philippine artist, whose rural landscapes and portraits were much sought after and
critically acclaimed.

Fernando Amorsolo was born on May 30, 1892, in the Paco district, Manila. From a very early age, his great artistic capabilities became
evident to all, and hence, at the age of 13, he began training as an apprentice for influential Philippine artists, Fabian de la Rosa, who also
happened to be the first cousin of his mother. In 1909, Fernando began attending the Liceo de Manila, and soon after, he enrolled himself
at the fine arts school of the University of Philippines.

Upon graduating in 1914, Fernando began his career as a commercial artists, along with being at the part-time instructor at the University.
However, three years later he grew weary and packed his bags to move to Madrid, where he enrolled himself at the Escuela de San
Fernando. For the next seven months, Fernando immersed himself in giving free reign to his artistic passions, visiting Museums where he
would sit for hours sketching the great works of notable artists, or walking down the streets of Madrid, sketching random people and
experimenting with the interplay of natural light and colors.

After seven months, Fernando decided to visit New York, and there he encountered the works of post-war impressionists and cubists, who
He returned to Manila, and established his own private studio. He began experimenting light,
left a deep and profound influence on his aesthetic sense and artistic style.
and he developed the use of backlight, which is regarded as his greatest contribution to the Philippine art of painting. During the 20s and 30s, he garnered
immense fame, commercial success and critical acclaim, and in 1939, his iconic painting, ‘Afternoon Meal of the Workers’ was awarded the 1st prize at the
New York Worlds’ Fair.

Throughout the WWII, Fernando’s art and production of paintings remained undisturbed, and he emerged as one of the greatest wartime painters. He was
commissioned by Don Alonso Ongpin, an influential Philippine collector, for a portrait in absentia of Gen. Douglas McArthur, which exposed Fernando
to various risks and dangers. During this period, he painted a great deal of Japanese occupation soldiers along with some self-portraits. In 1948, he
showcased his wartime paintings at an exhibition arranged at the Malacanang Presidential Palace.

Following the war, Fernando was appointed as the Director of the College of Fine Arts of the University of the Philippines, he served this post until 1950.
Fernando wanted to create dazzling and captivating canvases that featured a truly remarkable combination of sunlight and colours. Fernando admitted to
have hated “sad and gloomy” paintings, and hence, he has one made on painting that features rain. He has painted over 10,000 paintings, and of which, he
owed his fame largely to his portraits. His work in oils include portraits of Philippine presidents, revolutionary leader Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo and many
others.

Fernando Amorsolo passed away in 1972. Some of his best works include, ‘One Casualty’, ‘Corner of Hell’ and ‘Bataan’ among many others.
Francisco V. Coching was born January 29, 1919, to novelist Gregorio Coching and Juana Vicente, in Pasay City, Metro
Manila. He dedicated his life to his family and to the art of writing and illustrating comics novels for four decades. Mostly a
self-taught artist, Coching started with pen-and-ink drawings and later graduated to storytelling, via comics illustrations.
His father was a novelist for a magazine, and Coching apprenticed under him at first. Under the tutelage of the
acclaimed Tony Velasquez, creator of the "Kenkoy" series, Coching's first serious work was "Bing Bigotilyo," created in
1934. This was followed by "Marabini," a creation interrupted by World War II, during which he joined the ROTC Hunters,
enlisting in its guerrilla group called the Kamagong Unit. In 1944 Coching met and married Filomena Navales, who
became not just his wife but his lifetime assistant.

Coching's seventh creation was "Hagibis," which he created from 1947-1950. Loosely inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs'
"Tarzan," "Hagibis" proved to be so popular it was made into a film with 'Fernando Poe Sr' (Hagibis (1947)) and Coching
followed it up with several sequels. "Hagibis" helped secure his fame as an illustrating artist. From "Hagibis" through
"Pedro Penduko" in 1954 to "Thor" in 1962, "Tiagong Lundag" in 1966 and "El Vibora" in 1972, Coching churned out
endless sagas of romance and adventure, of heroic exploits and mighty deeds that fed the popular imagination of the
Filipino reader and movie-going audience. Coching was very prolific, credited with approximately 60 titles, and his works
covered many genres: mystery, fantasy, romance, adventure, mythology, folklore, horror, biography, sex, drama and
comedy, for example. Although from time to time he was inspired by foreign works like "Tarzan" and Louis L'Amour's
western novels, Coching stuck close to Filipino local color, and today he is considered the "Dean of Filipino illustrators," his
name revered in the same league as one reveres Balagtas and even 'José Rizal'.

Coching died in 1998, and his wife and children gave him a tribute at the Pasig Museum (Pasig City), where huge movie
posters of Coching-written films and studio stills from LVN Pictures, Sampaguita Studios and Premiere Productions
adorned the museum. The lead stars of his works-turned-movies, like Vic Vargas and Cesar Ramirez, attended the tribute.
Coching helped to make the "komiks" an effective medium of verbal and visual literacy, thus promoting Filipino as national
language.

Trivia (5)
Married (in 1944) to Filomena "Luming" Navales, whose mother was a sometime actress for Sampaguita Studios, and was
an intimate family friend of the Vera-Perez family (who owned the studio).

Has been nominated a few times for the title of "National Artist." Coching is considered the "Dean of Filipino illustrators."

Daughter Lulu Coching Rodríguez is a portrait painter. Another daughter, Maridel Coching Cruz, is also a portrait painter
and flamenco dancer.

Suffered debilitating injuries, sustained from a motorcycle accident. Coching, it turns out, was a "daredevil in hot wheels."

Aside from being the Dean of Filipino illustrators, he is also recognized as the Dean of Filipino Comics.

Awards
In 1981, Coching obtained the Makasining na Komiks Award in the Tanging Parangal for Comics Art from the Manila
Commission of Arts and Culture.
In 1984, Coching received the Komiks Operation Brotherhood Inc. (KOMOPEB) Life Achievement Award.
In 1998, he received the Award of Excellence from the government of Pasay City.
Coching received the nomination as a National Artist of the Philippines for the Visual Arts in 1999 and in 2001.[2] On June 20,
2014, Coching was posthumously named as a National Artist for the Visual Arts by virtue of Proclamation No. 808, series of
2014.[8]