WOMEN WHO WERE PIONEERS IN ART IN THE PHILIPPINES

Purita Kalaw-Ledesma

anila was a city left in ruins after World War 2. Only a handful of buildings survived the carnage
— and even then, many of these former concrete fortresses were left pockmarked and riddled
with bullet holes, in desperate need of costly repairs. Still, Purita Kalaw-Ledesma chose to set
up shop within one of the surviving pre-war buildings. The space she chose, with its white walls
and cramped rooms, would eventually become the Art Association of the Philippines—
Kilometer 0 for the budding modernist art movement at the time.

It was Purita Kalaw- Ledesma who stood as modern art’s staunchest defender at a time when
the traditional style of painting was the norm. Her magnum opus, ‘The Struggle for Philippine
Modern Art,’ (a collectible in itself!) details the set-backs, critiques, and ultimately, the triumph of
modern art in the country.
Anita Magsaysay-Ho

Filipina women were the subject Anita Magsaysay-Ho painted the most. Throughout her
body of work, she would encapsulate the spirit of the Filipina—as a doting mother, a
friend engrossed in the latest gossip, or a market-goer haggling for goods with other
women.

Magsaysay-Ho sought to tell the story of the Filipina, both at work and at play. It was the
subject she felt a profound kinship with, despite the fact that much of her adult life was
spent living in various countries.

bstract artist Nena Saguil actually trained in academic tradition. At the time, this meant
mastering classical techniques in order to perfectly recreate masterpieces. In doing so,
many felt that a big part of the artist’s creativity was stripped in the process.

One could venture to guess that it was this rigidity that drove Saguil towards her
explorations of form and space in modernism. After graduation, she dabbled in
surrealism— a far cry from the picturesque landscapes she learned to paint while at
university.

Pacita Abad was a force to be reckoned with— her art paralleled her eccentric
personality; it was loud, vibrant, and layered with narratives of life, culture, politics, and
society.

Abad had the soul of a nomadic free-spirit; and it shows in her body of work. Using the
Italian “trapunto” technique, which involved layering and stitching textiles together, she
retold such complex stories— tales of her travels and of the people she met along the
way, through these layered visual narratives.

he towering sculpture that stands at the corner of Metro Manila’s main artery and
Ortigas Avenue was made by none other than Virginia Ty-Navarro. Our Lady Queen of
Peace watches over pedestrians and rush hour traffic daily and is one of the most iconic
modern landmarks in the country.

Before she embarked upon the monumental project that defined her legacy, Ty-Navarro
worked with different types of metal to build her sculptures (on a much smaller scale, of
course).

Lydia de Vega-Mercado, athletics

The first true transcendent Filipina athlete was Lydia de Vega-Mercado.

A two-time Olympian, she was not only an elite sprinter but also a star athlete,
recognized by the entire sports world, her influence extending even beyond sports.
She was the most recognizable sportswoman of the country in the 1980s.

INFLUENTIAL LEADERS AND POLITICIANS

The first female senator elected in the Philippines was Geronima Pecson, who reaped
the third largest number of votes during the Philippine senatorial elections of 1947.
During her senatorial term, Pecson headed the Senate Committee on Education, the
Senate Committee on Health and Public Welfare, and the Joint Congressional
Committee on Education.[1]
Eva Estrada-Kalaw was the first woman to be re-elected as senator.
Nikki Coseteng was the youngest senator during the 9th and 10th Congress. She was
first elected in 1992 and then re-elected in 1995.
Loren Legarda is the first Filipino woman senator to top the Senate race twice in 1998
and 2007. She also became the first Filipino woman to become Majority Floor Leader of
the Senate. She was also the youngest senator during the 11th Congress.
Pia Cayetano is the youngest woman elected senator in Philippine history at the age of
38. She was elected in 2004, then re-elected in 2010. She returned to the Senate in
2019.
Loi Ejercito Estrada became the first First Spouse (to Joseph Ejercito Estrada) to be
elected in the Senate. She served from 2001 to 2007 after her husband's removal from
the presidency in 2001.
Leticia Ramos-Shahani became the first Filipino woman to become President pro
tempore of the Senate in 1993.
Santanina Rasul is the first Filipina Muslim senator.
Tecla San Andres Ziga was the first woman in the Philippines to top the bar
examinations for law degree graduates. She was elected as a senator in 1963.[2]
Miriam Defensor Santiago was the first Filipino and first Asian from a developing
country to be elected as a judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on December
12, 2011.[3] She later resigned the post due to chronic fatigue syndrome, which turned
out to be lung cancer.[4][5]
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was the first female senator who was elected as Vice
President (1998–2001) and later installed to the presidency (2001–2010).
Risa Hontiveros is the Philippines' first socialist woman senator, representing
the Akbayan party.

Among the principal influences to the Filipina image of herself and to her writings we
include four women in Philippine history, namely: Gabriela Silang, Leonor
Rivera, Imelda Marcos and Corazon Aquino. Often mentioned in Philippine literature,
these four represent the struggle, perception and character of how it is to be a woman in
Philippine society. Gabriela Silang was a katipunera or a revolutionary – a
representation of female bravery – who fought against Spanish colonialism in the 18th
century. Silang was a contrast to the chaste and religiously devout image of the Filipino
lady as portrayed by Jose Rizal through his Spanish-language novels, Noli Me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo. Within the pages of these 19th century novels, Rizal
depicted Leonor Rivera - a girlfriend of his - through the fictional character of Maria
Clara as the epitome of virtue, i.e., the ideal Filipina. Then there was the arrival
of Imelda Marcos – the “beauty queen and dictator’s wife … a power-seeking type of
woman…” – after that, the country saw the advent and rise of Corazon C. Aquino, the
first woman president in Asia and the Philippines – the elected 1986 replacement of a
male despot, Ferdinand Marcos. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, after two male presidents
(Fidel V. Ramos and Joseph Estrada, respectively), followed in the footsteps of Corazon
Aquino to become a leader and political figure of an Asian nation.[1][2]

1. Francisca Reyes-Aquino. Reyes-Aquino is considered the mother of Filipino

folk dance. Born in Bocaue, Bulacan, Reyes-Aquino graduated with a BS
Education degree from the University of the Philippines. She traveled to
various parts of the country to record dances from different provinces.
2. Leonor Orosa-Goquingco. Orosa-Goquingco is known as the “Mother of
Philippine Dance Theater” and “Dean of Filipino Performing Arts Critics.” Born
in Jolo, Sulu, Orosa-Goquinco finished a BS Education degree, summa cum
laude at St. Scholastica’s College. She then took graduate courses in theater
craft, drama, and music at Columbia University and Teachers College in New
York.

3. Lucrecia Reyes-Urtula. Lucrecia Reyes-Urtula started her love for folk dance
when she was young. Born in Iloilo, Lucrecia was exposed to many folk dances
because of her father, a colonel, who was stationed in various parts of the
Philippines.

4. She took ballet lessons in Baguio and also apprenticed under Francisca Reyes-
Aquino. She graduated with a degree in Physical Education from the Philippine
Women’s University (PWU) in 1950.

5. Alice Reyes. Alice Reyes comes from a family of performers. Her father
Ricardo Reyes was “Mr Folk Dancer” and a pianist, while her mother
Adoracion was voice teacher. Her sisters Denisa Reyes and Edna Vida are
also dancer-choreographers, while sisters Betty and Cecile are musicians.

Encarnacion Alzona
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu_glqMnZuP/

Encarnacion Alzona was the first Filipina historian and the first to earn a doctorate
degree. In 1919, she participated in the American government’s pensionado program,
which provided equal opportunities for middle- and upper-class Filipinas to study in the
US at a timewhen women were deemed inferior to men when it comes to obtaining an
education.

After getting her doctorate in history from Columbia University in 1923, Encarnacion
served as the chairperson of the Department of History in the University of the
Philippines Diliman and used her platform to demand women’s rights to education and
suffrage. According to FilipiKnow, she would host tea parties with legislators and talk to
them about granting voting equality in the country.

Clemencia Lopez y Castelo

Another Filipina who advocated for women’s suffrage was Clemencia Lopez y Castelo.
She was an activist involved in the fight for Philippine Independence during the
American colonization. She was the first Filipina to visit and give a speech at the White
House, where she expressed the need for Filipinas’ right to vote and liberation from
American rule.

In 1905, Clemencia co-founded the Philippine Feminist Association, which was

dedicated to the“promotion of social welfare and the encouragement of the participation
of women in public affairs.”

Natividad Almeda-Lopez
https://www.facebook.com/tukodproject/photos/
pcb.1767085473592458/1767085140259158/?type=3&theater

Natividad Lopez was the first Filipina lawyer to publicly practice law as

other women were expected to stay at home at the time. She used her position to
defend the poor and fellow women, including “an acquittal for her client who was
accused of harming a man ‘in defense of her honor’” and a groundbreaking speech
before the Philippine Assembly in 1918 where she emphasized the need for equal
rights.

Sister Mary John Mananzan

This Benedictine nun is a feminist activist with a strong belief in gender equality. So
much that she was widely quoted for being pro-RH, which is something you wouldn’t
normally hear from a Catholic figure. Sister Mary John told the Global Sisters
Report that the Philippines should go back to a time when men and women were
treated equally, citing how babaylans or female spiritual healers were respected during
the pre-colonial period. “We have to take back our foremothers’ active role not only in
the home, but in society and in commerce,” she said. Despite having stances that go
against the Catholic church, Sister Mary John told La Croix there’s “no contradiction
between her faith and her politics.” She also acknowledges the Church’s conservatism
and how it can hinder with the advancement of women’s rights.

Nikki Luna
Feminist Nikki Luna uses art as a platform to raise awareness on abuses against
women and their rights. Her works include sculptures and installations that tackle issues
like sexual assault against children and women, the patriarchy, the conditions of female
migrant workers, and how women have lived under the rule of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros

Several of the women-centric bills and laws we see today are thanks to Sen. Risa
Hontiveros. She is a feminist and an LGBTQ+ ally who has advocated for women’s
rights and the welfare of other minorities in the country. In the past year, Sen.
Hontiveros oversaw the passage of laws like the Expanded Maternity Leave Law and
the “Bawal Bastos” Law. Right now, her focus is to pass bills like the SOGIE Equality
Bill and the Absolute Divorce Bill during the 18th Congress.

Mich Dulce
Mich Dulce is someone who’s not afraid to speak her mind against misogyny, as well as the
impossible standards imposed on women. As a designer, she used her stitching and beading
skills to launch an exhibit about her egg-freezing process. As a women’s rights advocate, she
started Grrrl Gang Manila, a group that creates an open forum for women who want to know
what feminism is about, among other discussions. She is also part of The Male Gaze, an all-
female grunge band that aims to “flick a polished middle finger at gender stereotypes and
‘perverts.’” Mich was also part of our Preen Sessions on rape culture in 2018 where she talked
about how rape culture affects society, and the roles men and women should play in combating
it.

Sara Zimmerman Duterte-Carpio

Hidilyn Diaz
Hidilyn Diaz, the first athlete to win an Olympic gold medal for the Philippines.