Monthly Archives: December 2011

The Amazing Street Art of Angono (Rizal)

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After our tour of the Ang Nuno Artist Foundation Gallery at Balaw-Balaw Restaurant, Jandy and I again boarded our car to tour the town proper.  Angono’s streets are very narrow and hopelessly riddled with traffic.

C.V. Francisco – Bunung Brazo, 1958 (Charlie Anorico, 2005)

However, upon reaching Dona Aurora St., my exasperation was somewhat mitigated when we caught sight of amazing concrete murals beautifully embellishing and adorning this street, all meant to honor Angono’s artistic roots.

Mt. Makiling in the Eyes of Botong (Carlos V. Francisco)

These extraordinary works of art are bas relief reproductions of local son and well-known Filipino muralist Carlos “Botong” Francisco’s works cast in concrete, all done by Charlie Anorico, Gerry Bantang and Ebong Pimpino.

C. V. Francisco – Merienda, 1958 (Charlie B. Anorico, 1999)

Upon turning a different corner, we were greeted by another mural honoring Lucio San Pedro, another local son, whose most famous composition, the perennial Filipino lullaby “Sa Ugoy ng Duyan,” is depicted on a wall as a music sheet, with cast metal notes jutting out of the concrete.

In fact, these murals as well as sculptures are a recurring theme throughout the town, with a  preponderance of mermaids.  The stone marker of Brgy. Poblaction is a sculpture of “Ang Nuno” (meaning “old man”), the origin of the town’s name.

There’s even a reproduction of the Statue of Liberty, painted in gold.  Angono is truly a town still very much in touch with its unique artistic heritage.

Bayanihan (Carlos V. Francisco, 1960)

Angono Street Murals: Dona Aurora St., Brgy. Poblacion Itaas, Angono, Rizal

Ang Nuno Artists Foundation Gallery (Angono, Rizal)

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Balaw-Balaw Restaurant

After my interview with Nemi R. Miranda, Jandy and I moved next door to the Balaw-Balaw Specialty Restaurant.  This restaurant, made famous by Andrew Zimmern in Discovery Travel and Living’s “Bizarre Foods,” offers truly exotic cuisine such as sautéed ants and crickets, wood worms and frog cooked adobo style, Soup No. 5 (cow butt and testicles),  adobong uok (beetle larvae), among others.

Wooden sculptures of Angono’s higantes

Andrew tried the last two.  However, having already taken lunch, we weren’t there for the exotic food (Maybe next time).  Rather, we wanted to explore the Ang Nuno Artists Foundation Gallery  at the second floor.

Luckily, Andre, the restaurant manager (and also an artist) son of the late artist and sculptor Perdigon N. Vocalan, was there and he granted us permission to explore the gallery upstairs. The dining area is already a gallery of sorts, with colorful paper mache sculptures and paintings (with subjects ranging from basket of fruits to mythical creatures) all around the patchwork property.  Outside, soda bottle lanterns hang from trees.

Upon climbing the spiral staircase, we were ushered into an impressive repository of Philippine treasures that showcases Filipino heritage through colorful papier mache, antiques and artworks by Perdigon, his sons Andre and Rembrandt as well as other independent and budding local artists and craftsmen from Angono and other Rizal towns.

A collection of wood sculpture and furniture

The accomplished Vocalan was influenced by the late National Artist and Angonon Carlos “Botong” Francisco (November 4, 1912 – March 31, 1969) and his  various paintings, sculptures and woodcarvings, inspired by Filipino traditions and legends,capture Angono’s rich cultural heritage as well as depict folk stories and characters like the kapre (a menacing creature that seeks refuge in big trees), duwende (goblin), tikbalang (demon horse), manananggal (a woman with the ability to detach the two halves of its body at the waist), and the like. He also depicted women in all their glory and beauty.  There are also several depictions of the Mother and Child.

Dining table with tapayan above it

The gallery, a reflection of Perdigon’s eclectic taste, also has an impressive collection of antiques and religious objects such as statues of saints (some just heads without a body), a complete tableau of the Last Supper and a Santo Entierro (statue of the dead Christ). There’s also a collection of antique furniture including folding chairs, a complete dining table set (with earthen, knee-tall jars or tapayans hanging above it)  and a huge, intricately carved wooden door.

Tableau of Last Supper

I also took a peek, via a spiral stairway, at the third floor which houses a workshop  where huge, colorful masks of the higantes for the Higantes Festival are made. In 1987, Perdigon conceived the idea of the Higantes Festival.

Wooden sculpture of a mermaid

He advocated having more higantes (papier mache giants) in the town fiesta by coordinating with the barangays of Angono to come up with higantes that will represent their barangay. Miniature papier mache dolls, great examples of Filipino folk art, are also made here for souvenir hunters.

More wooden sculpture

Ang Nuno Artists Foundation Gallery: Balaw-Balaw Specialty Restaurant, 16 Doña Justa Subd., Phase I, Brgy. San Roque, Angono, Rizal.  Tel: (632) 651-0110 & 295-2698. Mobile number: (0923) 714-4209. E-mail: balaw2x@yahoo.com. Open daily, 10 AM-10 PM.

Nemiranda Arthouse (Angono, Rizal)

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Nemiranda Arthouse/Atelier Cafe

After lunch at a Shakey’s outlet in Taytay,  Jandy and I proceeded to the next town of Angono, the “Arts Capital of the Philippines.”  Using the only Angono map I had, I tried to find the Nemiranda Arthouse/Atelier Cafe only to find out it wasn’t where its supposed to be in the map.

I finally resorted to asking the locals.  That worked and soon enough we found the place, a lofty old wood, bamboo and concrete house converted into a home-studio with a prominent signage at the street corner.

I entered the arthouse (also known as “The House of Myths and Legends”), via a side gate, into the coffee shop where I was welcomed by Katrina, the painter daughter of 62 year old local artist Nemesio “Nemi” R. Miranda (popularly known in the art circle as Nemiranda), who was currently touring some children around the art gallery.

I was hoping to interview Nemiranda, but Katrina told me that I just missed him as he left on his motorcycle.  She gave us free rein to tour the extensive, 3-floor art gallery ourselves.  A massive, larger-than-life, pastel blue stone mermaid (sirena) is prominently placed above the art gallery’s arched entrance.

Art Gallery entrance

A Fine Arts graduate of  University of Sto. Tomas and a disciple of the late noted Angono artist Carlos “Botong” Francisco, this highly figurative artist’s artworks employ figurative realism  (which he calls “imaginative figurism”) wherein the human form is drawn from pure imagination.

Nemiranda’s work inevitably evolves around the female form and it is vividly seen in almost every artwork that we observed. These include mother and child sketches, mermaids, nudes (Nemiranda is also deemed as an erotic painter) done in different styles, women giving birth, nursing mothers, etc..

Nemiranda’s Imaginary Figurism

Other stunningly beautiful paintings depict random subjects such as rural life (families in pastoral scenes, etc.) and subjects from local folklore such as mythical creatures and nature goddesses.  On display at one section are wood carvings of the “Stations of the Cross.” Also on display are artworks by Nemiranda’s 5 sons and daughter Katrina as well as fellow artists from Rizal.

Wood carvings of the “Stations of the Cross”

We also saw Nemiranda’s impressive collection of local and international awards, proof of his countless unparalleled excellence and achievements in the arts.   At the end of the gallery are some art pieces for sale. This veteran artist has launched over 35 solo art exhibitions in various parts of the world and was commissioned to do monumental sculptures and mural paintings throughout the country.

Sculpture of a pregnant woman

Some of Nemiranda’s popular and impressive commissioned works includes the “History of the Philippine Army,” a relief sculpture located at the parade ground of Fort Bonifacio; the EDSA Shrine Mural (along with 14 other Angono artists), muted murals interpreting and depicting the 4-day  People Power revolution in the main chapel of the EDSA Shrine; the EDSA II Relief Sculptures; “The Way of Mary,” a 20-relief sculpture of the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary, from EDSA Shrine to Antipolo Shrine; and the 40-ft. high “Crucified Christ” (unveiled in Tacloban City in 2002), the map of Leyte interpreted as a sculptural island shaped by nature into the image of the crucified Christ. His paintings also hang in the many prestigious homes and offices, both here and abroad.

A collection of nude paintings

Jandy and I were still exploring the art gallery when Nemiranda finally arrived.  We were introduced to him by Katrina and I proceeded to interview him at length. As a true-blooded Angonon, Nemiranda has been instrumental in making Angono as the “Art Capital of the Philippines,” making great contributions in promoting the town’s rich heritage.

The Arthouse is also part of Nemiranda’s mission to nurture the artistic consciousness, not just for the Angonons, but for all Filipinos as well, conducting, for years on a regular basis, lectures, guiding services and painting workshops designed to inspire the youth who, by talking to Nemiranda and watching the artist go through the creative process, might see how an idea can grow into a finished work of art.

Some of Nemiranda’s numerous awards

In 1975, Nemiranda  founded the renowned Angono Ateliers Association, the first in the town to popularize sculpture in concrete (started in 1970).  He was also chairman of the Angono Tourism Council and the promoter of the town’s Higantes (“giant”) Festival and the fluvial procession dedicated to San Clemente, Angono’s patron saint. He also institutionalized the Nemiranda Family Art Museum, the Angono School for the Arts and the Nemiranda Atelier Café, all catering to the development, promotion and growth of the Angono art community.

The author with Nemiranda
Nemiranda Arthouse/Atelier Cafe: 10 Doña Elena St., Doña Justa Village, Brgy. San Roque, Angono, Rizal. Tel:  (632) 651-0109-10. Fax: (632) 651-3867. Email: inquiry@nemiranda.net and nemi_miranda@yahoo.com. Website: www.nemiranda.net. Admission fee: PhP30.

Church of St. John the Baptist (Taytay, Rizal)

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Church of St. John the Baptist

The town’s first church (Visita de Sta. Ana de Sapa) was a chapel made of light materials near the shores of Laguna de Bay dedicated to its patron saint, John the Baptist.

Due to frequent flooding from the shores of Laguna de Bay, it was transferred by Jesuit Fr. Pedro Chirino (who documented the Tagalog language as well as the way of life of Filipinos from his interactions with the inhabitants, forming the basis for his book Relación de las Islas Filipinas) to its present site, a higher location in a hill which called San Juan del Monte where the parish has remained to this day.

The Early Renaissance facade

The town’s church, started in 1599 and completed in 1601, was considered to be the first church built by the Jesuits out of stone outside Manila.

Bas-relief of the Holy Eucharist.  The fluted Ionic pilasters are both topped by angels.

In 1630, a larger church was constructed by Fr. Juan de Salazar. In 1632, a typhoon blew away the roofing of the new church, which was soon replaced with the help of the townspeople.

Bas-relief of Crossed Keys. The two symbolic keys form a St. Andrew’s Cross. These keys appear on the coat-of-arms of the Holy See,Vatican City and of every pope since the 12th century.

In 1639, the church sustained significant damage when the Chinese, during their revolt against Spanish authorities, set fire to the church.

Bas-relief of a cross between two lambs. The lambs represent the faithful coming to Christ (represented by the Cross)

St. Pedro Calungsod (the second Filipino declared as a saint by the Catholic Church) once served as an altar boy in the church in 1666 and then serving as assistant to Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores in the Marianas in 1672 (when both were martyred). In 1768 (under secular priests) and 1864 (under Augustinian Recollects), additional works were made to the church.

Statue of St. John the Baptist

During the Philippine–American War, both the church and the convent were reduced to ruins. After the war, the church was reconstructed. Massive renovations in the 1970s left very little of the original Classic façade.

Jandy with the church interior in the background

The present church, built with concrete, shows no traces of the old Jesuit church. In 1992, the National Historical Institute (NHI), now the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), unveiled a historical marker in the church.

NHI plaque installed in 1992

AUTHOR’S NOTES:

The church’s Early Renaissance facade has three levels of superpositioned, fluted pilasters (the first level is Doric and the other two Ionic).  The first level has a semicircular arch main door with canopy (a later addition), with a semicircular arch statued niche above it and along the flanks.

The walls of the second and third levels are decorated with pairs of huge bas-reliefs of the Crossed Keys and a Cross between two lambs and one of the Holy Eucharist.  The triangular pediment, topped by a cross, is lined with dentils.

The four-storey square bell tower, on the right side of the church, has semicircular arch windows and is topped by a pyramidal roof.  On the left side of the church is a huge statue of St. John the Baptist.

The main altar

Church of St. John the Baptist: J. Sumulong St., Brgy. San Isidro, Taytay, Rizal.  View Map>>> Tel: (632) 8658-6489.  Feast of St. John the Baptist: June 24.

How to Get There: Taytay is located 23.4 kms. from Manila and kms. (a drive) from Antipolo City.