Leaves

My initial paintings may be described as realistic. But I am keen to experiment with different styles. Some artists may think this is a disadvantage since artists are often identified by their styles, like it's a brand. I am making up for this by using baybayin as a focal point of the painting. Style is secondary but the painting must be appealing. In my latest work featuring leaves, the painting is more abstract. As in my previous work, 'Makina', I wanted to get more colors and elements on the canvas.

Dahon, 9" x 12" Oil on Canvas

Thickness of Oil Paint

I had a chance to visit the Pinto Art Museum in Antipolo last Saturday. As I go through the works of many famous Filipino painters, I was looking closely at the thickness of the brush strokes. Too close, in fact, that a resident artist cum tour guide noticed me, "You are an artist, aren't you?" I still am not sure of the right thickness for an oil painting. I tend to vacillate between getting it too thick or too thin. When I was starting out, I did a really large painting of Pacquiao using an impasto technique. The paint was so thick that I consumed a lot of paint. It was expensive.

Ang Kampeon (2010), 30" x 40" Oil on Canvas

In another painting, a commissioned portrait of then Imus Bishop Chito Tagle (He is now Archbishop of Manila and soon to be a Cardinal), the thickness was thin. The white canvas seems to be showing in some areas. But still, I achieved the effect that I wanted.

 Bishop Chito Tagle (2010), Oil on Canvas

Maybe, the thickness doesn't matter as long as one gets the desired visual result.

Something green

I wanted to make a painting filled with green color. After thinking of leaves, vegetables and gardens, I settled to paint a green landscape with a tree trunk at the middle. Why a tree trunk? Because, you can carve images on them including baybayin characters. My wife suggested having a heart on the trunk with our initials. Nah...too personal and cheesy (in Filipino, this word connotes something awkwardly romantic). I ended up placing the equivalent of "I love you" - mahal (heart shape) kita (in baybayin).

Mahal Kita, 10" x 14" Oil on Canvas

The missus naturally loved it. Yeah ... it's still too cheesy.  Anyway, one can use it for a special someone or for a campaign to save or to plant more trees.

Still Life

Most of my paintings have a dark background. My wife wanted to see a subject with a brighter color, so I painted a pineapple. It's not something I'm used to paint, but it turned out well.

Pinya, "9 x 12" Oil on Canvas

Eye of the Tiger

The eye of the tiger represents the intensity of focus on a prey. In a way, this is also my state of mind for several days now. I want baybayin to gain popularity in the Filipino Society. It's part of our identity, of who we are before the Spaniards came.

Mata ng Tigre, 9" x 12" Oil on Canvas

Bright Idea

In cartoons, one of the typical representation of a character having an idea, an AHA moment,
is a light bulb. I don't know where this custom originated but it's probably a depiction of what's
in Thomas Edison's mind when he finally invented a working light bulb. Following this
tradition, I painted a light bulb with the filament spelling the word 'ideya' in baybayin.

Ideya, 12" x 14" Oil on Canvas

Machine

As a child, I was fascinated by machines. I still am. Here is a baybayin painting of 'makina', the Filipino word for machine. I thought I could finish the painting in a week but it took longer because of the details. I hope you like it.

 Makina, 12" x 18" Oil on Canvas

Passion from the Heart

My interest in baybayin took off when I got a copy of the book of Marius V. Diaz, "Aklat Sanayan ng Abakadang Rizaleo". While I have heard of baybayin before, this book showed me the possibilities of the ancient Filipino script. He presented several typography of baybayin (with his own modifications). It was beautiful.


Now I am adding  my own contribution to this growing interest in baybayin. I am painting images with the matching word in baybayin. The idea is to teach baybayin through this paintings. Hopefully, the viewer learns baybayin while savoring the visual feast before their eyes. As a tribute to this passion, I have painted a heart.

Tagos sa Puso, 9" x 12" Oil on Canvas

While a typhoon rages

A typhoon hit Manila yesterday. Classes were suspended in the University where I worked. To make productive use of my time, I worked again on a new painting. It's another calligraphic painting using Baybayin, entitled "Ginto" or gold. This was done in oil on a 14" x 18" canvas.

Hello, World!

I started this blog to give a venue for the public to view my paintings. I am currently working on calligraphic paintings using the ancient Filipino alphabet - the BAYBAYIN. I have been fascinated with it for a long time now. But it's only lately that I got the idea of combining my painting hobby with this interest.

Here is one of my first attempts. This is a 16" x 12" oil painting on canvas of a pig (baboy) using Baybayin characters.

There will be more to come. Abangan...