JUAN NOVICIO LUNA (b. Ilocos Norte, Oct. 24, 1857 d. Dec.

7, 1899)

THE GREAT ONE.

Juan Luna is considered one of the greatest Filipino artists in Philippine history with masterpieces such
as Spolarium, The Death of Cleopatra and Blood Compact. Not only did he excel in artistry, but he was
also a political activist during the time of the Philippine Revolution during the late 19thcentury. His close
friendship with National Hero Jose Rizal has sparked Philippine nationalism and pride. Juan Luna was
mostly known for his works as being dramatic and dynamic, focusing on romanticism and realism styles
of art

Juan Luna y Novicio (October 23, 1857 – December 7, 1899) was a Filipino painter, sculptor and a
political activist of the Philippine Revolutionduring the late 19th century. He became one of the first
recognized Philippine artists.

Born on October 23, 1857 in the town of Badoc in Ilocos Norte, Juan was the son of Don Joaquin Luna de
San Pedro y Posadas and Doña Laureana Novicio y Ancheta. Juan’s early interest in art was due to the
influence of his brother, Manuel, who was also a painter. He received his degree in Bachelor of Arts at
Ateneo de Manila and enrolled later at Escuela Nautica de Manila((now Philippine Merchant Marine
Academy) where he became a sailor(where after five years of theoretical courses and practical sailing to
Asian ports like Hongkong, Amoy, Singapore, Colombo, and Batavia, he obtained the certificate of piloto
de altos mares tercer clase (pilot of the high seass third class). This did not stop Luna from his pursuit in
developing his artistic skills. He took lessons under the famous painting teacher Lorenzo Guerrero-
Ermita, Manila and also enrolled at Academia de Dibujo y Pintura under the Spanish artist Agustin Saez.
In Manila where he was influenced and taught how to draw by the Spanish artist Agustin Saez.
Unfortunately, Luna's vigorous brush strokes displeased his teacher and Luna was discharged from the
Academy. However, Guerrero was impressed by his skill and urged Luna to travel to Spain to further
pursue his studies.

In 1877, Juan Luna traveled to Europe to continue his studies and enrolled at Escuela de Bellas Artes de
San Fernando. It was in 1881 when he received his first major achievement as an artist and this is through
winning a silver medal at the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes (National Demonstration of Fine Arts)
with his work The Death of Cleopatra. From there, he continued to gain recognition and respect as an
artist. Juan Luna kept on impressing the European and Filipino society through the Exposición Nacional
de Bellas Artes with outstanding works such as the Spolarium which won gold in 1884 and Battle at
Lepanto in 1887.

Juan Luna’s other popular works include The Happy Beauty and the Blind Slave, Tampuhan, Mestiza
Lady at her Dresser and Roman Ladies. He died in 1899 at the age of 42 after he suffered from a heart
attack. Today, several of his works can be found in esteemed museums in the Philippines such as the
Lopez Museum and National.

He had four brothers:

Manuel 1855(violin virtuoso); Jose 1861, (a physician); Joaquin Damoso, 1864, governor, congressman,
and

Senator and Antonio I866, writer and general of the Philippine Revolution Army.

On December 7, 1886, Juan married

Paz (Chiching) Pardo de Tavera y Gorricho with whom he had two children, Andres Luna San Pedro, and
Maria de la

Paz. Both died at early ages.

HIGHLIGTHS IN THE LIFE OF JUAN LUNA

1. In a rife over his suspicion of infidelity on the part of his wife, he mercilessly shot her and her mother
to death in SEPTEMBER 1892. Tried by french court and subsequently convicted in 1893, he was
sentenced to pay the victims immediate kin but one franc each their loss, as the court had deemed the
murders a crime of passion. In 1894, Luna returned to his mother land, after absence of almost 20 years.
Luna was acquitted of charges on February 8, 1893, on grounds of temporary insanity; the "unwritten
law" at the time forgave men for killing unfaithful wives.[He was ordered to pay the Pardo de Taveras a
sum of one thousand six hundred fifty one francs and eighty three cents, and an additional twenty five
francs for postage, in addition to the interest of damages.

2. His most Famous pieces SPOLIARIUM for which he won the top prize at the Madrid Exposition hangs
in the National Museum in Manila.

3. Two years after his return to the Philippines, he was arrested under suspicion of sedition(pagbawal sa
pangangampanya para sa kalayaan: Parusa: Kamatayan o mahabang pagkakakulong(Act. 1901). He was
later pardoned. His brother, Genaral ANTONIO LUNA was an active participant in the insurgent
KATIPUNAN movement.

4. In 1898, after the United states defeated Spain in the Spanish - American War, the fledgling Phillipines
Republic appointed him has delegate to the paris convetion and to Washington D.C., to help gain
recognition of the Philippines sovereignty and independence.

5. Luna died in Hong Kong on December &, 1899 at the age of 42 after he suffered from a heart attack.
He was rushing home from Europe after hearing of his Brother's assassination by members of the
Katipunan .

6. . In 1881, his La Muerte de Cleopatra (The Death of Cleopatra)[1][2] won him a silver medal and came
in second place. Luna's growing reputation as an artist led to a pensionado (pension) scholarship at 600
pesos annually through the Ayuntamiento of Manila. The condition was that he was obliged to develop a
painting which captured the essence of Philippine history which would then become the Ayuntamiento's
property.
7. That evening, Rizal prepared a speech for his friend, addressing the two significant things of his art
work, which included the glorification of genius and the grandeur of his artistic skills.

8. Luna enrolled at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid. There he obtained an
award for outstanding color, composition and antique studies but did not stay long. Instead he apprenticed
himself with Alejo Vera,

9. Luna was acquitted of charges on February 8, 1893. He was ordered to pay the Pardo de Taveras a sum
of one

Thousand six hundred fifty one francs and eighty three cents, and an additional twenty five francs for
postage, in addition

To the interest of damages. Five days later, Luna went to Madrid with his brother, Antonio Luna, and his
son, Andrés.

10. Lin Spain, Luna executed two worker themed paintings: "La Colada" (The Strainer) and a genre scene
entitled

"Interior de los Talleres del Acero Robert" (Interior of the Robert Steel Foundy). In May 1894, after an
odyssey

Of 17 years, Juan returned to Manila with his son and his brother Antonio. In the summer of 1896, he
traveled to

Japan with his student Gaston O'Farrell. Juan did as many as 20 paintings in Japan. In August 1896, he
was arrested

Together with his brothers by the Spanish constabulary for complicity in the Katipunan Rebellion.

11. He painted landscapes like "Taal Volcano," "Marikina," and genre scenes like "Tampuhan (Sulking)."
Back in Spain,

12. Luna developed a friendly relationship with the King of Spain and was later commissioned by the
Spanish Senate to paint a large canvas which was called the La Batalla de Lepanto (The Battle of
Lepanto).[3] He moved to Paris in 1885 where he opened his own studio and befriended Hidalgo. A year
after, he finished the piece El Pacto de Sangre (The Blood Compact) in accordance with the agreement he
had with the Ayuntamiento of Manila. Depicted in this piece was the blood compact ceremony between
the Datu Sikatuna, one of the lords in Bohol island, and the Spanish conquistadormiguel López de
Legazpi.[4] It is now displayed in the Malacañan Palace. He also sent two other paintings in addition to the
one required; the second canvas sent to Manila was a portrait of López de Legazpi reconstructed by Luna
from his recollection of a similar portrait he saw in the hall of the Cabildo, and the third was of Governor-
general Ramón Blanco y Erenas,

He won peace by his art and love for his country.

JUAN LUNA

*his last major work, was acclaimed the best entry to the Saint Louis World's Fair in the United
States.Unfortunately some of his paintings were destroyed by fire in World War II.

WORKS OF JUAN LUNA

Spoliarium Painting by Juan Luna 1884

An oil painting on poplar, the Spoliarium was painted by Juan Luna in Rome in 1884, winning the second
prize at the Madrid Academy Exhibition of Oil Paintings. The Municipality of Barcelona purchased this
chef dʼoeuvre for the City Hall. It is arguably the most internationally renowned piece of modern Filipino
art. Today, it can be viewed in the main gallery located on the ground floor of the National Museum of
the Philippines.

The Spoliarium is very large, measuring four meters in height and seven meters in width. The painting
depicts the bodies of dead gladiators being dragged from a Roman arena. On the left side are spectators,
while on the far right is a woman with her back turned to the scene, her back partially uncovered. The
painting's title is often misspelled as Spolarium.

In ancient Rome, the word spoliarium referred to the Coliseum's morgue.

Artist Juan Luna

Year Circa 1884

Type Oil on poplar

Dimensions 400 cm × 700 cm (160 in × 280 in)

 Location National Museum of the Philippines

The Death of Cleopatra, also known simply as Cleopatra, is an 1881 painting made by the Filipino painter
Juan Luna. The famous painting was a silver medalist or second prize winner during the 1881 National
Exposition of Fine Arts in Madrid. 1881

Las Damas Romanas, also known as The Roman Maidens, The Roman Women, or The Roman
Ladies, is an oil on canvas painting by Juan Luna, one of the most important Filipino painters of the
Spanish period in the Philippines.1882

Artist: Juan Luna

Dimensions: 1.00 m x 1.70 m

Created: 1882

Media: Oil paint

España y Filipinas 1886, meaning “Spain and the Philippines” in translation, is an 1886 oil on wood
by Filipino painter, ilustrado, propagandist, and paladin, Juan Luna

Juan Luna

Year 1886

Type Oil on canvas

Location Lopez Memorial Museum

The Blood Compact is an award-winning 1886 “historic and historical' painting by Filipino painter
Juan Luna
Location: Malacañang Palace

Dimensions: 2.00 m x 3.0 m

Created: 1886

Genre: History painting

Subject: Datu Sikatuna

 Sandugo, the blood compact performed between the Spanish explorer Miguel López de Legazpi and
Datu Sikatuna of Bohol in 1565 in the Philippines.
 Blood compact (film), a 1972 Filipino film starring Joseph Estrada.

Las Damas Romanas

Artist Juan Luna

Year 1882

Type Oil on canvas

Dimensions 100 cm × 170 cm (39 in × 67 in)

Location Unknown

La Bulaqueña

The Parisian Life

Juan Luna

Year 1892

Dimensions 57 cm × 79 cm (22 in × 31 in)

Location National Museum of the Philippines

Ensueños de Amor

Artist Juan Luna

Year Circa 1890s

Dimensions 26.7 cm × 32.4 cm (10 1⁄2 in × 12 3⁄4 in)

 Location Lopez Museum

Odalisque

Artist Juan Luna

Year 1885

Location Don Luis Araneta Collection (Philippines)