Hello everyone, as you can see on the screen, our topic today is about the

Points of Debate
There remained several points of debate between the Conservatives and the Moderns, and
these were spread out through a period of dialogues in the press.
Conservative and Modern art have different perspectives.
Modern art as Edades said that art is an expression of man’s emotion which means you can do
art the way you want it to be. There are no perspective lines/realistic patterns. Modern art for
Edades from technical view of point is that modern art is an outgrowth of classical art. It
connects the past and the present.
Here is the example of Modern Art by Edvard Munch “The Scream”.
According to Munch himself, The Scream was a picture he painted to represent his soul. Rather
than adhering to the art style of the time- that is, painting pictures meticulously to realistically
represent the subjects in them- he chose to use an unrealistic style to paint his emotions, rather
than focus on realism and perfectionism in his art.
While Conservative, artist has a Greek style of realistic impression which follows some rule and
perspective. In contrast, Amorsolo’s influence of art is still strong, many still believes that
Amorsolo’s art and the Conservative art is what “the true reflections of the Filipino Souls”.
Conservative presents the realistic traditions of painting.
Here is the example of Conservative Art by
Twilight in Arcadia, by Adam Miller
Napoleon Crossing the Alps
Jacques- Louis David
-art was to be universal and timeless, above human struggle and strife, and thus not reflecting
contemporary life but an eternal ideal in Plato’s realm of universal and immutable ideas.
-and for Amorsolo, art was romantic nostalgia for a mythic past frozen for all eternity.
-it was assumed that after overcoming the initial resistance of the conservatives, modernism
would take root naturally and unproblematically, like shedding one garment for another.
-an offshoot of the debate between the conservatives and modernists was the firming up of the
relationship between the painters and literati.
-thus, the debate of conservative art versus the modern art is an expected journey towards
determining a revolutionary turn in Philippine’s art history.
Let’s move to the next topic.
Trends in the 1930s and 1940s
It was the decade of the Thirties to the outbreak of the Second World War that saw the
development of modernism in the Philippines. Modernism attracted the most promising young
artists who were seeking a way out of the Amorsolo impasse.
Edades was the pioneer in modernism in the Philippine art scene. In fact, he is known as the
“Father of Modern Philippine Painting”. And Edades formed the “Triumvirate” of modernism
with Francisco and Ocampo.
Right before the war, Edades publicized a roster of artists who, in his view, had modernist
leanings. He called them the Thirteen Moderns. And 13 moderns are a group of artists who
were reacting to the academic style of Luna and Hidalgo and to the sweet style of Amorsolo.
-Victorio C. Edades was a Filipino painter, Father of Philippine Modern Art. He was named a
national artist in 1976. “The Builders” is one of Edades major works that he exhibited during his
one-man show in 1928. The painting became known as the first ever Modernist painting in the
country.
-Carlos “botong” Francisco was a Filipino muralist from Angono, Rizal. His arts are a prime
example of linear paintings. This artwork of Botong “bayanihan” could easily found on a
common tradition of all Filipinos.
-Galo B. Ocampo was a Filipino painter known for rejecting academic tradition and embracing
Western modernism. Among his paintings, the “Brown Madonna” garnered attention in 1938
because of its depiction of Jesus and Mary as non-Caucasian, brown Filipinos, it was also said to
be “flat and two-dimensional”.
-Diosdado M. Lorenzo was a creative visual artist and a Filipino Asian Modern and
contemporary painter. His arts were greatly influenced by Italian Naturalism and
Impressionism. Diosdado truly has a penchant for the beauty of the Manila Cathedral as
observed in his series of paintings. Lorenzo was an artist who believed in the ability of art to be
timeless.
-Demetrio Diego was a Filipino Asian Modern and Contemporary painter, studied Fine Arts at
the University of the Philippines. His subjects dealt mostly on rural scenes and folk art. Capas by
Demetrio a distinguished painter and former chief artist for the Sunday Times Magazine. It
depicts the slow and agonizing death of Filipino prisoners of war in a Tarlac internment camp.
-Hernando Ocampo was a Filipino National Artist in the visual arts. He is also fictionist, a
playwright and editor. One of his paintings is Plantsadora, presents the hard work of a Filipina
ironing men’s top clothing and how hard it was considering the material of the clothing and the
types of iron she was using.
-Vicente Manansala was a Filipino cubist painter and illustrator. His Madonna of the Slums is a
portrayal of a mother and child from the countryside who became urban shanty residents once
in the city.
-Anita Magsaysay-Ho was a Filipina painter who specialized in Social Realism and post-Cubism
regarding to women in Filipino culture. She was the only female member of the "Thirteen
Moderns". One of her paintings “Egg Vendors” the most expensive “balut”. In Egg Vendors, six
women gather around an incandescent light and an egg.
-Cesar Legaspi was a Filipino National Artist in painting. He was also an art director prior to
going full-time in his visual art practice in the 1960s and was part of the Neo-Realists. One of
the paintings of Legaspi is the workers.
-Bonifacio Cristobal was a pioneer modernist and a teacher for many years at the University of
Santo Tomas school of fine arts. A Filipino painter was born in Sorsogon. Known for paintings
that depict Still Lilfe, one of his paintings is Mayon Volcano.
-Jose Pardo belonged to the first generation of modernist painters in the Philippines. Pardo is a
full-time architect and dedicated teacher and one of his works is the marikit with caladium.
-Arsenio Capili was one of the lesser-known members of the 13 moderns, a leading group of
Filipino modernist artist. And one of his paintings in the Tingguian Woman.
-and the last one is Ricarte Puruganan was born in Dingras, Ilocos Norte. He was a part of the 13
moderns, fused Filipino folk art and western modernist techniques in his pieces. One of his
paintings was the feast of the black Nazarene or the procession to be more exact, is probably
one of the most chaotic events in the Philippines every year.
-Edades, Francisco, and Ocampo they produced a mural for the lobby of the Capitol Theater on
Escolta Street. This began the growth of mural painting in the Philippines.
- one of the leading modernists, carlos “botong” as he is fondly called, grew up in Angono, a
small town in the Province of Rizal, east of Manila. Known to his town folks as a “kid who loves
to draw”, his works were influenced by the scenery and the lush landscape of his beloved
hometown.

Let’s move to the last topic

Main Postwar Issues and Trends
-in the wake of the second world war, the granting of independence to the Philippines by the
United States occasioned ferment on the cultural scene. Writers and artist set themselves the
task of defining and sharpening the lineaments of Philippine culture and art. Independence
spurred the creation of a post-colonial discourse.
-the current term “post-colonial” should not serve as a smoke screen for the neo-colonial
reality in which formal colonial ties are ostensibly severed to give way to a more insidious
because covert form of domination in the economic, political, and cultural spheres.
-The rise of nationalism in the postwar decades originated from the perception that vigilance
was necessary against continuing American intervention, which sought to keep the Philippines
in a condition of perpetual tutelage. In relation to the colonial experience, nationalism in the
Philippines was essentially anti-colonial and anti-imperialist in content.
- however, during the Marcos regime, it was articulated into a rightist authoritarian discourse
that sought to unify the people in terms of a common “spirit” (diwa) and cultural heritage.
-With the granting of formal independence, the quest for cultural identity spearheaded by
intellectuals and artists brought up certain aspects of Philippine culture. A new interest in
indigenous and non-Hispanic culture emerged.
- The okir designs of the Muslim Filipinos of Mindanao came into focus, together with the
artistic expressions of the Cordillera and other groups. Ukkil or okir are undoubtedly the most
important to the maranao, Maguindanao, iranun, Tausug, Sama, and badjao of Mindanao. To
these ethnic Muslims, the term ukkil or okir, means both the art of sculpting or carving and a
particular curvilinear design.
-there were also those who foregrounded the “Spanish colonial heritage”, from the illustrado
elite point of view which saw colonialism as the bringer of Christianity in the white man’s
mission civilisatrice. But the Catholic religion as it was adapted in the country had a rich overlay
of folk belief and ritual.
-It was against such cultural issues that the struggle for modernism was resumed with greater
energy after the war. But in all these, the concept of national identity was largely
unproblematized.