A N G O N O

Art for the Day ...and a little sustenance

An absolute must for art lovers is a visit to Angono, a dusty little fishing town just 40 kilometers east of Manila. For here in the Rizal Province you will find an extraordinary collection of artists and art galleries. In fact you can make a day of it, moving from one arthouse to the next. This is the 'stomping ground' of painters like Nemiranda, Jose Blanco and Vicente Reyes and, if you're lucky, you may even meet them sipping a coffee at the local café. Is it purely genetic, do artists marry artists and breed more artists? Yes, it appears they do, for this town is bursting at the seams with artists and artworks!

My first stop was the arthouse of Jose Blanco, located at 312 Ibañez Street. Better known as Pitok, this famed artist was born in Angono in March 1932, the son of a fisherman. Life was simple and times were hard but this young man pursued his creative career and graduated at the University of Santo Tomas in 1955. Soon after, Pitok married Loring and together they raised seven children, two girls and five boys. But this is no ordinary family, for both parents and all the children are gifted artists in their own right! When I first heard this story I thought, rather cynically, well it is easy if you have a famous father to ride in his limelight. But this is certainly no case of jumping on the bandwagon.

Do visit the Blanco Family Museum and see for yourself. If you enjoy art, it will be an experience you will never forget, for tucked away in an ordinary street in a simple lakeshore village, you will find the most extraordinary collection of paintings. It is a real find, but more than that, it is an amazing story of family spirit, of love and warmth and village life. Pitok and Loring have kept and framed the paintings of all their children. You can see the work of Peter Paul, the youngest child at age eleven months. And yes, this babe-in-arms produced colorful scribblings, but what will shock you is that by the time he is five years old he is painting complex fishing scenes and by the age of seven he has progressed to painting convincing, detailed portraits! You can follow the development of all Pitok's children and you will note this same astonishing development that moves from nursery pictures to fine art in fifteen years. It is truly a gift of pure genius mixed with excellent training!

Looking at Gay Blanco's Mangyan Mother and Child, I was totally drawn to this incredible painting. The mother and babe are so life-like, the facial creases and veins in the arm are visible and realistic. You can almost feel the loosely woven fabric round the mother's waist and smell the leather belt! This captivating painting was produced when Gay was just 15 years of age! Another entrancing painting titled My Grandfather, by Michael Blanco is a scene of two men repairing their fishing net. You can see every blade of grass in the background and every string of the draped net! Jose, father and maestro of this talented brood has a few rooms dedicated to his own works. Many of his paintings are huge oils depicting Philippine folkways. His people are real, showing natural emotion. And his masterpieces capture the essence and spirit of village festivals-pictorial historical accounts. I have been to galleries around the world but this experience was particularly moving.

With tears in my eyes and passion in my heart I needed substance and, as you may know, my main job is food critic, so here I must digress and take you to lunch. If you visit Angono on this art expedition do stop at Balaw-Balaw, meaning fermented shrimp. This charming eatery cum art gallery is owned by artist, Perdigon Vocalan. As I drove up to the entrance I met with 4 giant papier-mâché figures standing 15 feet high-what a big welcome! This little rustic restaurant is a place to rest your feet and indulge in some good local dishes. The menu is in Tagalog so I had to rely on my waiter's suggestions. I tried the one meal family dish called Minaluto; it comes in a huge bamboo steamer and consists of a large mound of rice and an assortment of meat and vegetables. We had mussels, prawns, battered squid, salted egg, adobo, eggplant and okra. It cost P750 and there was enough to feed an army! Certainly 10 people. Here you can also purchase bottles of fish sauce, vinegar and fresh honey. In this charming restaurant you will find a talking minah bird that kept us entertained throughout lunch! And after eating you must visit the gallery upstairs--yes, more art!

With tummies full we went round the corner to Nemiranda's new gallery, which opened in November and is managed by daughter and painter Katrina. Here you can stop and view the works of all the artists in the area. Not entirely completed, it is a four-story building containing exhibition rooms and will soon house an art school, a frame center and many more art-related ventures! This is not the end of the excursion-hold on there is more! Within walking distance is No 10 Dona Elena St; here you will find Nemiranda's original gallery set in a lofty old house. Nemiranda, a figurative artist sometimes deemed as an erotic painter has an extensive collection of works on about three floors. Over the doorway is a massive blue stone mermaid luring you into this wondrous cavern. Nemiranda's work inevitably evolves round the female form. As you walk into the gallery you will note there is a collection of nudes done in different styles. A wonderful painting that interests every body is of a mother who has just given birth. It is not shocking; it is stylized and tasteful and employs a painting method similar to pointillism. Here the artist creates form by the application of small dabs of paint. The newborn babe is still attached to the umbilical cord, the mother is calm, relaxed and beautiful, and in the company of her family who appear in so involved with the event. Rather confusing to me is a man in the background, is he the father? He appears uninterested in the birth but intent on pouring himself a drink! Another beautiful painting is of a young couple, semi-nude, in blissful sleep! It is a romantic picture with lacey pillows, lovebirds and a red rose.

I have only taken you on a guided tour of a few places, however if you do visit the Rizal province there are many other interesting 'arty' haunts. These include the Angono Caves in Binangonan where you will see wall carvings estimated to be 3000 years old. These old murals have been carved in volcanic rock. Manansala' Shrine can be viewed at San Carlos Heights, Binangonan. This is the residence of the late artist Vicente Manansala, whose works ranging from realism to cubism can also be viewed. The famous finger painter Rafael Pacheco has his original technique. The MVP has organized a trip in the past. However, if you go on your own, try and get hold of a brochure titled Rizal lakeshore artist village. It features a map locating all the arthouses or you could drive to Angono and stop by at the City Hall, here the staff will be happy to advise you where to go.

--June O'Connell