Hispanic Art in the Philippines (1565-1700)

Hispanic Art (1565-1700)

• Spanish culture and religion influenced portraiture in the Philippines, combining with local traditions (ikon + imagen) and (bua + larawan) to create Philippine colonial art.
• The primary purpose of Hispanic art was to promote Christianity, similar to Philippine pre-Hispanic art.
• Chinese migrants were the first artists in the Philippines, introducing techniques such as ivory sculpture, which became a unique Philippine contribution to Hispanic art.
• Features of colonial art include:
  • Flowing drapery
  • Almond eyes
  • Soft brushworks
  • Emphasis on line rather than light and shadow

Sculpture

• Indio sculptors and carvers were commissioned to create icons for newly built churches.
• The "popular" style of religious sculpture emerged from the combination of indigenous traditions and Christian forms.
• Painters, both Chinese and Indios, were employed to animate the works of santo-makers, initially making painting subordinate to sculpture.

Artists and Their Works

• Juan de los Santos of San Pablo, Laguna (ca. 1590-ca. 1660) was a notable Filipino sculptor who created a huge retablo now in the San Agustin Museum.
• Unknown artists created works such as "Blessed Trinity" (late 18th-early 19th century), "Immaculate Conception" (17th century), and "Santo Cristo" (17th century).
• Damian Domingo created works such as "La Sagrada Familia" (ca. 1830) and "Una Mestiza Mercadera de Manila" (ca. 1830).

The Formative Years (1700-1800)

• The 18th century was the formative period of Philippine art.
• Common subjects of religious painting and sculpture reflected Filipino social values and circumstances.
• A three-generation Holy Family motif emerged, emphasizing the importance of family in Filipino culture.
• Patron saints were assigned to each town and barrio, becoming the devotional object of each year's local fiesta.

Colonial Engraving

• Francisco Suarez (ca. 1690-ca. 1760) and Nicolas de la Cruz Bagay (1702-ca. 1765) were leading Filipino engravers who created genre and religious works, showcasing different racial and social classes.
• The printmakers/engravers were the first Filipino artists to sign their work and reproduce brown Madonnas like the Nuestra Señora de Guia (1711).

Colonial Painting

• Colonial painting began to flourish in the late 18th century as interest in black-and-white prints declined.
• The policies of King Charles III of Spain nurtured the growth of colonial painting in the Philippines.
• King Charles III dispatched scientific expeditions to record the flora and fauna, as well as the customs of the Filipino.
• Tipos del Pais (human types of the country) became a fresh topic of local artists.
• The Conquest of Batanes was the earliest known painting of a Philippine historical episode.

Quiotan, Domingo, and Philippine Academic Art (1800-1850)

• Faustino Quiotan (ca. 1770-1825) was a Chinese mestizo who showed emotion in his subjects.
• Damian Domingo (ca. 1790-1832) was a Filipino master of the early 19th century who set up the first private art school in the country in 1821.
• Filipino portraiture came of age in the 19th century.
• In 1823, the Real Sociedad Economica founded an art school, which was offered to Domingo in 1826 and known as Academia de Debujo.