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85-418: Until recently, Ramon Hofileña, one of the children and heirs, resided in this ancestral house and personally toured guests who visited his abode. Silay's stone houses, or bahay na bato —most of which are owned by landed farmers and sugar barons—are material reminders of the life of the affluent in the late 19th century to the early 20th century, the golden age of Silay and the peak of the sugar industry in

170-487: A bahay na bato but uses wooden wall instead of stone walls covering the bottom floor. These arts were brought by the Visayan settlers to the coastal towns of Mindanao . The Ivatan people of Batanes have a very different style of bahay na bato . As the islands of Batanes were absorbed to the colonial Philippines much later through Spanish conquest, their bahay na bato developed much later as well. Structures combined

255-524: A 2007 exhibition in Havana. During his lifetime, Amorsolo had a total of 14 children from two marriages and a common-law-wife. In 1916, he married Salud Tolentino Jorge, with whom he had six children; Salud died in 1931. He then met and lived with common-law wife, Virginia Guevarra Santos, with whom he had three children, namely Manuel (who followed in his father's footstep, with a degree in Fine Arts from

340-437: A blushing girl." Amorsolo used natural light in his paintings and developed the backlighting technique, Chiaroscuro , which became his artistic trademark and his greatest contribution to Philippine painting. In a typical Amorsolo painting, figures are outlined against a characteristic glow, and intense light on one part of the canvas highlights nearby details. Philippine sunlight was a constant feature of Amorsolo's work; he

425-535: A dark burning city tinged with red from fire and blood." Amorsolo frequently portrayed the lives and suffering of Filipina women during World War II. Other World War II-era paintings by Amorsolo include a portrait in absentia of General Douglas MacArthur as well as self-portraits and paintings of Japanese occupation soldiers. In 1948, Amorsolo's wartime paintings were exhibited at the Malacañang Palace . Amorsolo's supporters consider his portrayals of

510-724: A historical marker installed by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) on April 6, 1993. In 1989, the BBC television series "Far Eastern Cookery" shot some of its scenes in the Hofileña Ancestral House when it featured Ilonggo delicacies. The house was also used as a setting by a Canadian movie company for a documentary on the sugar industry in Negros, which was shown at

595-685: A major collection of Amorsolo's work. Major works by Amorsolo include: Source: In 1972, Fernando Amorsolo became the first Filipino to be distinguished as the Philippine's National Artist in Painting. He was named as the "Grand Old Man of Philippine Art" during the inauguration of the Manila Hilton 's art center, where his paintings were exhibited on January 23, 1969. Outside the Philippines, his exhibitions were held in Belgium, at

680-579: A master of the Philippine landscape as landscape, even outranking Luna and Hidalgo who also did some Philippine landscapes of the same dimensions." After being confined at the St. Luke's Hospital in Quezon City for about two months, Amorsolo passed away of heart failure at the age of 79 on April 24, 1972. Four days after his death, Amorsolo was posthumously honored as the first National Artist of

765-766: A portrait of American Senator Warren Grant Magnuson (1905–1989), of the Democratic Party from Washington, whom the Warren G. Magnuson Health Sciences Building at the University of Washington, and the Warren G. Magnuson Clinical Center at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland are named after. After the onset of World War II, Amorsolo's typical pastoral scenes were replaced by

850-490: A record price of PHP19.136 million (US$ 376,177) at a Christie's auction in Hong Kong. This record on May 30, 2010, was later broken as a work from 1923 Lavanderas previously held by an American-based collector sold for PHP20.83 million (US$ 434,067) also at a Christie's auction in Hong Kong. By the 2010s, the prominence of local auction houses in the country has substantially increased the value of Amorsolo's works with

935-860: A two-storey house. The mainland bahay na bato influence is very much clear in the rakuh building. Many convents, monasteries, schools, hospitals, offices, stations, etc. also adapted the bahay kubo architecture to the Spanish colonial style. As a result, many of these buildings end up being a bahay na bato as well. Examples of such buildings include the University of Santo Tomas (Intramuros), Colegio de Santa Rosa Manila campus, San Juan de Dios Educational Foundation , Tutuban station , AMOSUP hospital, Hotel de Oriente in Binondo, Malacañang Palace , and many other church convents which are still standing today. Examples: The Intramuros Register of Styles

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1020-703: A young painter came in 1908, when his painting Leyendo el periódico took second place at the Bazar Escolta , a contest organized by the Asociacion Internacional de Artistas . Between 1909 and 1914, he enrolled at the Art School of the Liceo de Manila. His most notable work as a student at the Liceo was his painting of a young man and a young woman in a garden, which won him the first prize in

1105-449: Is a sketch made by the young Jose Rizal , the national hero, and a painting by Spanish artist Francisco Goya . On July 5, 2024, the museum announced the theft of a 1936 painting by Fernando Amorsolo titled Mango Harvesters , which hung from the second floor of the house and previously belonged to Ramon Hofileña. The theft was believed to have occurred during the museum's operating hours on July 3. Two suspects were believed to have taken

1190-488: Is adapted to the tropical climate , stormy season, and earthquake-prone environment of the whole archipelago of the Philippines, and fuses it with the influence of Spanish colonizers. It is one of the many architecture throughout the Spanish Empire known as Arquitectura mestiza. The style is a hybrid of Austronesian and Spanish architecture ; and later, with early 20th-century American architecture , supporting

1275-513: Is based on the traditional stilt houses of the Austronesian people of Southeast Asia . The first buildings during the early years of Spanish occupation were Bahay kubo which are made of wood and bamboo materials, a type of construction with which the pre-Hispanic indigenous Filipinos had been working expertly since early times known as Austronesian architecture . Bahay kubo roofs were made of nipa palm or cogon grass. In its most basic form,

1360-607: Is believed to have painted a rainy-day scene only once. In 2018, the National Museum of the Philippines officially identified Amorsolo's last known painting of an unfinished creative work of the late Florencia "Nena" Singson Gonzalez-Belo (September 29, 1927-May 11, 2016), wife of Enrique Belo and mother of Vicki Belo . It was donated by Amorsolo's widow, Maria del Carmen Amorsolo as confirmed in 2016 by Judy Araneta Roxas . Vicki Bello further affirmed that her mother's 5 sisters had Amorsolo paintings. The painting stood at

1445-456: Is commonly used in bahay na bato , churches and other constructed buildings, walls, monuments and fortification of the region. Brick was the essential building material in northern Luzon ; houses and churches of brick were also built in scattered areas of the archipelago, all the way down to Jolo, Sulu . Unique designs of the north may include having the façade walls of the second level made up of stone material in many buildings, rather than

1530-533: Is entirely different from the material of the same name found in Latin America (adobe in those Hispanic countries refers to mud and straw formed into rectangular blocks which are then dried in the sun). In Manila, the largest, fanciest, and most prestigious companies eventually established themselves along the Escolta ; by the second half of the 19th century it was the most important commercial district in

1615-612: Is the agency of the Philippine Government responsible for the implementation of the Register of Styles. Intramuros in Manila is the only locality in the Philippines where, for cultural reasons, the use, height, scale, and aesthetics of all new constructions and development are pre-determined and strictly regulated under the force of a national law. The Register of Styles, as an integral part of Presidential Decree No. 1616,

1700-635: Is the main architectural code of Intramuros , the historic core of the City of Manila , Philippines . The Register of Styles prescribes the Bahay na bato as the default style for new constructions in Intramuros. The Register became part of Presidential Decree No. 1616, as amended, when it was gazetted by the Official Gazette of the Philippines on June 17, 2022. The Intramuros Administration

1785-595: Is the main legal document prescribing and guiding the implementation of pre-war architectural colonial styles in Intramuros. The Register of Styles is the first document to detail the historical styles of Intramuros. It was authored by Rancho Arcilla, who was then the Archivist of the Intramural Administration, and under the initiative of Guiller Asido , the former Administrator of Intramuros. Being an integral part of Presidential Decree No. 1616,

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1870-599: The Pasyon . Amorsolo graduated with medals from the University of the Philippines in 1914. After graduating from the University of the Philippines, Amorsolo worked as a draftsman for the Bureau of Public Works as a chief artist at the Pacific Commercial Company and as a part-time instructor at the University of the Philippines. He taught at the University for 38 years, including 14 years as director of

1955-481: The Ming dynasty . Some of them date back as far as 3,000 years ago, like the old Israeli oil juglet. The dining area is also where the first wood-printing in Negros happened. The machine has remained in this room where Mr. Hofileña often demonstrates the art of paper printing to guests. The bedroom is adorned by a four-poster bed made of narra wood. The beddings are made of embroidery, typical of most Filipino households in

2040-606: The Spanish colonial period of the Philippines . It is an updated version of the traditional bahay kubo of the Christianized lowlanders, known for its use of masonry in its construction, using stone and brick materials and later synthetic concrete, rather than just full organic materials of the former style. Its design has evolved throughout the ages, but still maintains the bahay kubo 's architectural principle, which

2125-497: The Toronto Film Festival in 2011. Since it was built in the 1930s, the period when Art Deco and Art Nouveau flourished in the country, the Hofileña Ancestral House also reflects such styles. Most of its architectural details were influenced by other houses. Its roof is of classic steep and wide eaves, unlike the galvanized iron sheets that have been the popular roofing material in Manila. The wide steps that lead to

2210-431: The "Grand Old Man of Philippine Art," he was the first-ever to be recognized as a National Artist of the Philippines . He was recognized as such for his "pioneering use of impressionistic technique" as well as his skill in the use of lighting and backlighting in his paintings, "significant not only in the development of Philippine art but also in the formation of Filipino notions of self and identity." Fernando Amorsolo

2295-446: The 1930s, Amorsolo's work was exhibited widely in the Philippines and abroad. Amorsolo was sought after by influential Filipinos including Luis Araneta, Antonio Araneta and Jorge B. Vargas . Due to his popularity, Amorsolo had to resort to photographing his works, sticking and mounting them in an album allowing patrons to choose from this catalog of his work. Amorsolo avoided creating exact replicas of his trademark themes by recreating

2380-400: The 1950s until his death in 1972, Amorsolo averaged finishing 10 paintings a month. However, during his later years, diabetes, cataracts, arthritis, headaches, dizziness and the death of two of his sons affected the execution of his works. Amorsolo underwent a cataract operation when he was 70 years old, a surgery that did not impede him from drawing and painting. Amorsolo was a close friend of

2465-435: The 20th century. Apart from its overall look, the house is also a repository of art finds collected by the owner-curator Ramon Hofileña and his family. The second floor is a gallery of over 1,000 art treasures, featuring the paintings and sketches of national artists Juan Luna , Felix Resurrecion Hidalgo , Fernando Amorsolo , Ang Kiukok , Vicente Manansala , Hernando R. Ocampo , and BenCab . Alongside these master's works

2550-595: The American-era Gabaldon school buildings , all with few adjustments. This architecture was still used during the American colonization of the Philippines . After the Second World War , construction of these houses declined and eventually stopped in favor of post-World War II modern architecture . Today, these houses are more commonly called ancestral houses , due to most ancestral homes in

2635-676: The Art Department. After three years as an instructor and commercial artist, Amorsolo was given a grant to study at the Academia de San Fernando in Madrid , Spain by Filipino businessman Enrique Zóbel de Ayala . During his seven months in Spain, Amorsolo sketched at museums and along the streets of Madrid experimenting with the use of light and color. Still through the Zóbel grant, Amorsolo

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2720-613: The Bicol peninsula took advantage of the abundant volcanic stone from nearby volcanoes. One characteristic of houses in Bicol is that ground-floor overhangs are common, considering the region's rainy climate. Decorations tend to be minimal for these houses. Larger towns in Bicol boast many bahay na bato homes. Most bahay na bato in Visayas uses coral stone material though many are still adobe and bricks. Cebu, Bohol, Negros, and Iloilo are famous for their bahay na bato houses. Throughout

2805-823: The Exposicion de Panama in 1914, at a one-man show at the Grand Central Art Galleries in New York City in 1925, and at the National Museum on November 6, 1948. During the 1931 Paris Exposition, Amorsolo exhibited one of his anecdotal paintings, The Conversion of the Filipinos . Amorsolo's entries at the Exposicion in Panama were a portrait of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and the piece La Muerte de Socrates . In 1948 an Amorsolo exhibit

2890-491: The Fernando C. Amorsolo Art Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving Fernando Amorsolo's legacy, promoting his style and vision, and preserving a national heritage through the conservation and promotion of his works. Since the 2000s, works by Amorsolo have achieved record prices at auction with the growth of the Philippine art market. On April 28, 2002, an early work from 1915 called Portrait of Fernanda de Jesus sold for

2975-492: The Jesuit Antonio Sedeño, edifices began to be constructed of stone. Fr. Sedeño built the first stone building, which was the residence of Bishop Salazar. By 1587, Governor General Santiago de Vera required all buildings in Manila to be built of stone. For this purpose, the indigenous Filipinos were taught how to quarry and dress stone, prepare and use mortar, and mould bricks. Thus began what has been called

3060-614: The National Museum of the Philippines' Gallery VI since 2015. Amorsolo was an incessant sketch artist, often drawing sketches at his home, at Luneta Park , and in the countryside. He drew the people he saw around him, from farmers to city-dwellers coping with the Japanese occupation . Amorsolo's impressionistic tendencies, which may be seen in his paintings as well, were at their height in his sketches. His figures were not completely finished but were mere "suggestions" of

3145-617: The PHP20 million mark including a 1946 genre work by Amorsolo titled Cooking under the Mango Tree previously in the collection of the Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas (Tabacalera) was sold at another Leon Gallery auction in Manila for a record PHP 23.360 million on February 23, 2019. More recently, a 1949 genre work called Planting Rice reached PHP 30.368 million at a Salcedo Auctions sale on March 13, 2021, presently

3230-620: The Philippine Flag in 1955, has been frequently reproduced in commercial goods and has become a mainstay in Filipino popular culture. Amorsolo also painted oil portraits of Presidents like General Emilio Aguinaldo , Manuel L. Quezon , and Elpidio Quirino , and other prominent individuals such as Don Alfredo Jacób and Doña Pura Garchitorena Toral of Camarines Sur . He also painted the wedding picture of Don Mariano Garchitorena and Doña Caridad Pamintuan of Pampanga . He also did

3315-498: The Philippine sculptor Guillermo Tolentino , the creator of Filipino patriot Andrés Bonifacio's monument in Caloocan . Amorsolo, acclaimed as “Painter of Philippine Sunlight,” is best known for his illuminated landscapes, which often portrayed traditional Filipino customs, culture, fiestas and occupations. His pastoral works presented "an imagined sense of nationhood in counterpoint to American colonial rule" and were important to

3400-570: The Philippines at the Cultural Center of the Philippines . The volume of paintings, sketches, and studies of Amorsolo is believed to have reached more than 10,000 pieces. Amorsolo was an important influence on contemporary Filipino art and artists, even beyond the so-called "Amorsolo school." Amorsolo's influence can be seen in many landscape paintings by Filipino artists, including early landscape paintings by abstract painter Federico Aguilar Alcuaz . In 2003, Amorsolo's children founded

3485-489: The Philippines being of bahay na bato architecture. Though the Filipino term bahay na bato means "house of stone", these houses are not entirely made up of stone; some are dominated more by wooden materials, while some more modern ones use concrete materials, in contrast to the organic materials that make up the bahay kubo . The name was applied to the architecture over generations. Precolonial Philippine architecture

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3570-528: The Philippines, has some of the most diverse styles and materials of bahay na bato , ranging from the early period of Spanish colonization to the American era. Many were destroyed by World War II . However, the Metro Manila area still has one of the largest concentrations of bahay na bato houses. Most buildings in Manila and Central Luzon were of adobe, a volcanic tuff quarried from the hills, which

3655-501: The Register of Styles is the only architectural stylebook in the Philippines with the force and potency of a national law. By form, the urban landscape of Intramuros mostly lacked setbacks, with buildings that were mostly terraced (rowhouses) . Courtyards or backyards were exceptionally well adapted to the climate. By style Intramuros was described as both vernacular and cosmopolitan. While its Church and State buildings were European in orientation, albeit adapted and localized, most of

3740-458: The Register of Styles prescribes tha Bahay na bato as the default style for new constructions in Intramuros. As with any vernacular architecture, different features of bahay na bato vary from building to building, and houses may have or lack certain elements from the following list: Fernando Amorsolo Fernando Amorsolo y Cueto (May 30, 1892 – April 24, 1972) was a portraitist and painter of rural Philippine landscapes. Nicknamed

3825-542: The University of the Philippines), Jorge and Norma before he met his would-be second wife, Maria del Carmen. While they were still together, Virginia found an engagement ring in one of Amorsolo's drawers; she knew the ring was for Maria, that prompted her to leave his house with her three children. In 1935, Fernando married Maria del Carmen who gave him eight more children. Among her daughters with her are Sylvia Amorsolo-Lazo and Luz. But while they were married and Maria

3910-475: The Visayas, the craft of cutting coral stones was virtually elevated into a fine art, with blocks fitting so precisely into each other that not even a razor blade could be inserted between blocks. The material was so durable that it did not have to be protected with a layer of paletada . Aside from bahay na bato Visayan noble settlements are also dominated by mansion-type payag ( bahay kubo ), which forms like

3995-907: The art school exhibition during his graduation year. After graduating from the Liceo , he entered the University of the Philippines ' School of Fine Arts, where De la Cruz taught at that time. During college, Fernando Amorsolo's primary influences were the Portuguese people court painter Diego Velázquez , John Singer Sargent , Anders Zorn , Claude Monet , Pierre-Auguste Renoir , but mostly his contemporary Spanish masters Joaquín Sorolla Bastida and Ignacio Zuloaga . To make money during school, Amorsolo joined competitions and did illustrations for various Philippine publications, including Severino Reyes ’ first novel in Tagalog language, Parusa ng Diyos ("Punishment of God"), Iñigo Ed. Regalado 's Madaling Araw ("Dawn"), as well as illustrations for editions of

4080-549: The basic form, the 19th-century bahay na bato reflected changing tastes by incorporating motifs from the prevalent styles. Houses such as the Vega Ancestral House that have emerging stone works at the bottom part of the house but have almost wooden materials appearance even to the first level walls are still considered bahay na bato ; the name bahay na bato was applied to this architecture over generations, as most of these houses use stone materials, contrary to

4165-471: The buildings enclaved within its walls embraced tropical vernacular constructions as exemplified by the Bahay na bato . Churches, fortifications, and palaces fashioned in European styles, though few, became icons and objects of popular imagination. In contrast, the vernacular Bahay na Bato, which was adopted in majority of buildings, prevailed in terms of number of constructions. Except in certain instances,

4250-478: The characteristics of the bahay kubo of the natives and applied it to Spanish Colonial architecture . This type of construction was soon called bahay na bato or as Jesuit Ignacio Alzina calls it, "arquitectura mestiza" or “mixed architecture”. Under more than three centuries of Spanish initiative, buildings of wood, stone, and brick were constructed all over the archipelago, from the Batanes Islands in

4335-732: The coasts of Luzon , especially in Batangas , used roughly hewn blocks of coral and adobe stone. The bahay na bato in Bulacan and many in Central Luzon are famous for their carvings. The most notable ones are in the Malolos , in its heritage core, where ancestral houses are located. Since adobe lends itself to sculpture, houses in Bulacan had façades decorated with carved flowers, leaves, and religious symbols. Many constructions in

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4420-434: The common sinadumparan , which is similar to the mainland bahay na bato , having storage areas below and living quarters above. However, the storage floor is partially underground, acting as a basement, and the first floor serves as living quarters, appearing as a one-story house. The rakuh style, however, upholds the mainland tradition of having the first floor as storage and the second floor as living quarters, appearing as

4505-525: The constant repatriation of Philippine art. On June 9, 2018, a 1931 work called the Mango Gatherers better known as the Conde de Peracamps Amorsolo as it was previously in the collection of Antonio Méilan Zóbel, the 4th Count of Peracamps, was sold at a Leon Gallery auction in Manila for a then-world record price of PHP46.720 million (US$ 883,883). In its wake, other works by Amorsolo have surpassed

4590-560: The country. The opening of Manila as a free port encouraged British people , Germans , French people , and other foreigners to set up businesses on the Escolta and adjacent streets, and majestic bahay na bato buildings were built. Northern Luzon has some of the best preserved bahay na bato in the Philippines. The unique style of the north, commonly in the Ilocos Region , usually bases its design on brick materials. This material

4675-605: The countryside as "the true reflections of the Filipino Soul." Amorsolo has been accused, however, of succumbing to commercialism and merely producing souvenir paintings for American soldiers. Critic Francisco Arcellana wrote in 1948 that Amorsolo's paintings "have nothing to say" and that they were not hard to understand because "there is nothing to understand." Critics have criticized Amorsolo's portraits of Philippine Commonwealth personalities, his large, mid-career anecdotal works, and his large historical paintings. Of

4760-503: The depictions of a war-torn nation. During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II, Amorsolo spent his days at his home near the Japanese garrison , where he sketched war scenes from the house's windows or rooftop. During the war, he documented the destruction of many landmarks in Manila and the pain, tragedy and death experienced by Filipino people, with his subjects including "women mourning their dead husbands, files of people with pushcarts and makeshift bags leaving

4845-408: The fact that the Philippines is a result of these cultures mixing. Its most common appearance features an elevated, overhanging wooden upper story (with balustrades, ventanillas , and capiz-shell sliding windows ) standing on wooden posts in a rectangular arrangement as a foundation. The posts are placed behind Spanish-style solid stone blocks or bricks, giving the impression of a first floor. Still,

4930-450: The final canvas. For his pre-colonial and 16th-century depiction of the Philippines, Amorsolo referred to the written accounts of Antonio Pigafetta , other available reading materials, and visual sources. He consulted with the Philippine scholars of the time, H. Pardo de Tavera and Epifanio de los Santos . His work on historical periods, especially his most famous work in popular culture, Confeccion de la Standarte Nacionale or Making of

5015-594: The first golden age of building in stone. This new community setup made construction using heavier, more permanent materials desirable. Some of these materials included bricks, mortar, tiles, and stone. Glowing accounts of towering palaces and splendid mansions reached the peninsula. However, the ambitious plans of the Spaniards were dashed in 1645 when a terrible earthquake struck Manila. The twin dangers of fire and earthquake gave rise to another type of architecture. Finding European construction styles impractical in local conditions, Spanish and Filipino builders quickly adapted

5100-420: The formation of Filipino national identity. He was educated in the classical tradition and aimed "to achieve his Philippine version of the Greek ideal for the human form." In his paintings of Filipina women , Amorsolo rejected Western ideals of beauty in favor of Filipino ideals and was fond of basing the faces of his subjects on members of his family. "[The women I paint should have] a rounded face, not of

5185-492: The gable roof, hip roof, and a traditional combination of both (similar to the East Asian hip-and-gable roof ). Horses for carriages are housed in stables called caballerizas . It was popular among the elite or middle-class. The 19th century was the high point of these houses’ construction, when wealthy Filipinos built them all over the archipelago. The same architectural style was used for Spanish-era convents, monasteries, schools, hotels, factories, and hospitals, with some of

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5270-441: The ground level contains storage rooms, cellars, shops, or other business-related functions. The second floor is the elevated residential apartment, as it is with the bahay kubo . The roof materials are either Spanish-style curving clay tiles ( teja de curva ) or thatched with leaves (like nipa , sago palm , or cogon ), with later 19th-century designs featuring galvanization. Roof styles are traditionally high pitched and include

5355-403: The house consisted of four walls enclosing one or more rooms, with the whole structure raised above ground on stilts. The Spaniards then quickly introduced Spanish architecture to the idea of building more permanent communities with the church and government as focal points inherited from the Romans . By the mid-1580s, through the efforts of Domingo Salazar, the first bishop of Manila, and of

5440-420: The image. Amorsolo also painted a series of historical paintings on pre-Colonial and Spanish Colonization events. Amorsolo's Making of the Philippine Flag , in particular, was widely reproduced. His The First Baptism in the Philippines required numerous detailed sketches and colored studies of its elements. These diverse elements were meticulously and carefully set by the artist before being transferred to

5525-565: The latter, critics have said that his "artistic temperament was simply not suited to generating the sense of dramatic tension necessary for such works." Another critic, however, while noting that most of Amorsolo's estimated ten thousand works were underwhelming, considering his talent, argues that Amorsolo's oeuvre should nonetheless be judged by his best works instead of his worst. Amorsolo's small landscapes, especially those of his early career, have been judged as his best works, "hold[ing] well together plastic-ally." Amorsolo may "be considered

5610-453: The mixing of styles and aesthetics of these houses. Many later bahay na bato adapted design styles such as Art Deco during the latter era of American rule, and even through the postwar period of loose restoration. These mixes give the bahay na bato a distinct architectural style reflective of the Philippines' unified cultures and society. The style of bahay na bato may also vary by area. Each region evolved its own building style, which

5695-428: The more common wooden second level façade in the rest of the country. However, buildings built in this style in the region remain faithful to the nipa hut principle. These non-wooden (stone) second level façade walls styles are also present in some of the bahay na bato of other regions besides the north, like the 1730 Jesuit house of Cebu in Visayas . The wooden second level façade bahay na bato are still present in

5780-572: The north to Tawi-Tawi in the south, from Palawan in the west to Samar in the east. During World War II , the American and Japanese forces destroyed many of these houses. Different styles depend on each house's individual appearance. For example, some bahay na bato do not have ventanillas , some do not have Capiz windows , and some lack both. Some have galvanized roofs, some have tiled roofs, and some have nipa or cogon roofs. Ground-level walls may be made of bricks, adobe, coral, or wood; modern structures typically use concrete. Although retaining

5865-445: The north. In Vigan, the capital of Ilocos Sur , many homeowners built both stories in brick, which was available in large quantities. With the massive walls, the volada (an overhanging balcony) disappeared in many residences, and the kitchen became an extension in stone, with vents piercing the walls to let out smoke. Calabarzon has some of the most thoroughly preserved heritage houses, built mostly using adobe stones. Towns along

5950-457: The oval type often presented to us in newspapers and magazine illustrations. The eyes should be exceptionally lively, not the dreamy, sleepy type that characterizes the Mongolian. The nose should be of the blunt form but firm and strongly marked. ... So the ideal Filipina beauty should not necessarily be white complexioned, nor of the dark brown color of the typical Malayan, but of the clear skin or fresh colored type which we often witness when we met

6035-429: The painting and smuggled it inside a bag. The painting was recovered in Quezon City on July 12 by the National Bureau of Investigation , which arrested two people on suspicion of trying to sell the artwork for P3.5 million. Bahay na bato The báhay na bató ( Filipino for "stone house"), also known in Visayan languages as baláy na bató or balay nga bato , is a type of building originating during

6120-423: The paintings by varying some elements. His works later appeared on the cover and pages of children textbooks, in novels, in commercial designs, in cartoons and illustrations for Philippine publications such The Independent , Philippine Magazine , Telembang , El Renacimiento Filipino , and Excelsior . He served as the director of the University of the Philippine's College of Fine Arts from 1938 to 1952. During

6205-522: The photos of the nine siblings, each one of them involved in the arts. There are Spanish chairs in this room and a hand-carved kamagong sofa. The sala leads to a smaller room, a library, where a vast collection of books, albums, and souvenir items are kept. The bookshelves contain Filipiniana books, some of which were authored by Ramon Hofileña, and the world's first pocketbooks for World War II American soldiers. There were also religious images, such as

6290-681: The portico is of American influence. Materials used were hardwood. The grand staircase, which came from Gilda Hofileña's ancestral house, is made of ironwood , or "balayong", which is not susceptible to termites and impenetrable by nails. The balustrades were individually carved by carpenters. The floor is made of narra , and polished regularly, giving it a shiny surface. The walls are made of balayong as well. The doors are wide and have tracery cutwork, also known as callado, that provides space for air and light to pass through. Hofileña's living room, or sala, displays old photos of every family member. On top of its 200-year-old German Steinweig piano stand

6375-420: The pre-colonial Ivatan-style (presumably the jin-jin) and colonial Filipino-style bahay na bato, particularly the northern style from Ilocos and Cagayan, but with the use of thick limestone blocks instead of the bricks traditionally used in the northern mainland. In addition, structures incorporated practical methods suitable to their unique environment prone to destructive typhoons. Their variant styles include

6460-613: The precolonial era that used little to no stones at all. The same principle applies to the nipa hut: not all nipa huts use nipa materials; some use cogon. Though many houses are built in standard design, many houses are also mixed, arranged, patterned and/or coated with varieties of designs from different architectural styles from cultures connected to the Philippines, by any means, including Chinese , Romanesque and Classical etc. These houses could have an unprecedented mixing and matching of architectural styles, such that it can have Neogothic and Neo-Mudéjar or Moorish Revival details in

6545-498: The province. One of these houses, the Hofileña Ancestral House, was built in 1934. During World War II, when the family fled to the mountains, the house was used by Japanese commanders who had meetings here. The house was later occupied by the Americans. In 1962 the house was opened to the public. It was the first ancestral house to be opened in the city. The next house to do so was 30 years later. The Hofileña Ancestral House has

6630-697: The same corners – that is, on top of the Baroque . Although retaining the basic form, the 19th-century bahay na bato reflected changing tastes through the incorporation of motifs from prevalent styles such as Victorian , Renaissance Revival and Neoclassical decorations which included columns , pilasters , caryatids , atlases and friezes adopted from Greco-Roman architecture, the civilizations from which Spanish culture descend. Classical traditions in these houses also appeared in Beaux-Arts later in history. The dawn of Art Nouveau also greatly influenced

6715-411: The wooden image of Saint Vincent Ferrer . One of the cupboards display the toys Hofileña amassed throughout his travels. What Hofileña claimed as the world's smallest dolls are kept behind the glass-paneled cabinet doors. He also has some sought-after tektite stones as one of his collections. The dining room, or comedor, features cabinets of antique pieces, such as Chinese porcelain wares and jars from

6800-420: The world record price for a post-war work by the artist. On 14 September 2024, Amorsolo's 1929 work Under the Mango Tree that previously was in the collection of American industrialist Edward J. Nell was sold at a record price of PHP 57.676 million at Leon Gallery in Manila, thus becoming the world record price for the artist. The Jorge B. Vargas Museum and Filipiniana Research Center in Manila displays

6885-434: Was also a Filipino painter. At the age of 13, Amorsolo became an apprentice to De la Rosa, who would eventually become the advocate and guide to Amorsolo's painting career. During this time, Amorsolo's mother did embroidery to earn money, while Amorsolo helped by selling water color postcards to a local bookstore for 10 centavos each. His younger brother, Pablo Amorsolo , also became a painter. Amorsolo's first success as

6970-481: Was also able to travel to New York City, where he encountered postwar impressionism and cubism which would become major influences on his work. Amorsolo set up his own studio upon his return to Manila and painted during the 1920s and the 1930s. His Rice Planting (1922), which appeared on posters and tourist brochures became one of the most popular images of the Commonwealth of the Philippines . Beginning in

7055-676: Was born on May 30, 1892, in Metro Manila . His parents were Pedro Amorsolo and Bonifacia Cueto. His father quickly found work in Daet, Camarines Norte months after Fernando's birth, and the family lived there until his father died when Amorsolo was 11. While he studied in a public school in Daet, his parents taught him to read and write Spanish at home. After his father's death, the family moved back to Manila, where they stayed with one of his uncles, Don Fabián de la Rosa , his mother's cousin, who

7140-516: Was in many cases dependent on the materials available. As construction techniques were developed, quarries opened, and kilns constructed, various parts of the country began to show a preference for specific building materials. As a result, bahay na bato have several variations along ethnic lines. The bahay na bato in Cebu, for example, differs from the one in Ilocos and so on. Manila , the capital of

7225-769: Was sponsored by the Art Association of the Philippines in the National Museum. In 1950, Amorsolo exhibited two more historical paintings, Faith Among the Ruins and Baptism of Rajah Humabon at the Missionary Art Exhibit in Rome. In 1979, Fernando Amorsolo's legacy as a painter was celebrated through an exhibition of his works at the Art Center of the Manila Hilton. His art was also featured in

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