Christianity-in-Philippine-Art.pdf

Philippine ART and Christianity 1. HOW DID CHRISTIANITY INFLUENCE ART OF PHILIPPINES 2. WHAT ARE THE MAIN BELIEFS OF CHRISTIANITY THAT INFLUENCE THE WAY ART IS MADE AND INTERPRETED? 3. WHAT WAS THE EFFECT OF FOLK ART TO CHRISTIANITY ART? The Golden Tara of Agusan was found by a Manobo woman af...

Philippine ART and Christianity 1. HOW DID CHRISTIANITY INFLUENCE ART OF PHILIPPINES 2. WHAT ARE THE MAIN BELIEFS OF CHRISTIANITY THAT INFLUENCE THE WAY ART IS MADE AND INTERPRETED? 3. WHAT WAS THE EFFECT OF FOLK ART TO CHRISTIANITY ART? The Golden Tara of Agusan was found by a Manobo woman after a storm swept Agusan Del Sur in July 1917. It is a 21- Karat gold figure and is dated during 850-950 C.E. that weighs 4lbs. It is a sculptural object that portrays a woman in a Buddhist position. It is said to represent the Bodhisattva Tara. Majority of our ancestors were Animists and Polytheists, they believed in numerous gods and goddesses. It is also a fact that our ancestors practiced Hindu- Buddhist beliefs (evidence is seen in the LCI - Laguna Copperplate Inscription) and other mythical creatures. It is also a fact that our ancestors practiced Hindu- Buddhist beliefs (evidence is seen in the LCI - Laguna Copperplate Inscription) and other mythical creatures. These gold masks were buried with the dead to go along with them to the spirit world. They believed that once they are ferried over a spiritual river to the afterlife, those who wore gold and are covered with tattoos are recognized by the ancestors and deities. They are supposed to wear these in order to be accepted. The masks usually covered the eyes, nose and mouth and are delicately decorated depending on social status. The Ancient Filipino people believe that everything around them has spirit therefore worthy to be respected. Anitos ancestor spirits, nature spirits, and deities (diwata) also known as tinagtaggu, is a carved wooden figure used to guard the rice crop by the Ifugao (and their sub-tribe Kalanguya) peoples of northern Luzon. The sculptures are highly stylized representations of ancestors and are thought to gain power from the presence of the ancestral spirit. When the Spaniards arrived in the Philippines in 1521, the colonizers used art as a tool to propagate the Catholic faith through beautiful images. With communication as problem, the friars used images to explain the concepts behind Catholicism, and to tell the stories of Christ’s life and passion. Images of the Holy Family and the saints were introduced to the Filipino psyche through carved santos, the via crucis (Stations of the Cross), engravings on estampas and estampitas, and through paintings on church walls. The concept of patronage emerged. Artisans were commissioned and paid to carve, engrave, and paint. They replaced the arts that were once done in a communal spirit and community setting for rituals. The church, particularly the friars, became the new patron of the arts. The Nuestra Señora de Guía, also known as Our Lady of Guidance, is a 16th-century image of the Blessed Virgin Mary depicted as the Immaculate Conception and widely venerated by Filipinos. The wooden Black Madonna is considered the oldest extant Marian statue in the Philippines. Locally venerated as patroness of navigators and travelers, the image is enshrined at the Ermita Church in the city of Manila. Pope Paul VI granted this image a canonical coronation on December 30, 1955. According to the Anales de la Catedral de Manila, the crew of Miguel López de Legazpi discovered a group of natives in what is now Ermita along the eastern shores of Manila Bay worshiping a statue of a female figure. There are a number of theories as to its origin, it could either be an Animist-Tantrist Diwata which is a localization of the Hindu "Devata" (दे वता), an East Asian idol due to her Chinese features, a Marian icon imported from nearby Portuguese Macau, or, due to its striking resemblance to the Santo Nino de Cebu, may be a relic left by the Magellan expedition when it passed by the Philippines during the first circumnavigation of the world. This sacred statue had managed to survive Islamic Iconoclasm by the Sultanate of Brunei ( ,(‫ﻧ"ﺎرا ﺑروﻧﻲ داراﻟﺳﻼم‬a state that had invaded Manila. Local folklore meanwhile recounts the Spaniards witnessing natives venerating the statue in a "pagan manner", by placing it on a trunk surrounded by pandan plants. The pandan plant itself is a common food ingredient in the Indianised cultures of South and Southeast Asia. This is remembered in the placement of real or imitation pandan leaves around the image's base as one of its iconic attributes. Santo Tomas de Villanueva Parish Church, Miagao, Iloilo, Philippines