The mountains
Mount San Cristobal (1,470
m - 4,820 ft) is a dormant volcano in Quezon province on the island of
Luzon, Philippines. The mountain is one of the volcanic features of
Macolod Corridor.Mount San Cristobal is considered the Devil's mountain
in Filipino folklore. It is the alter-ego of the Holy Mountain,
Mount Banahaw,(2,
170m- 7, 120 ft) and is part of Mounts Banahaw–San Cristobal
Protected Landscape covering 10,901 hectares (26,940 acres) of land.
The mountain is bounded by San Pablo, province of Laguna at its
northern slope and Dolores, province of Quezon at its southern slope.
The painter
Fernando Cueto Amorsolo
was one of the most important artists in the history of painting in the
Philippines.Amorsolo was a portraitist and painter of rural Philippine
landscapes. He is popularly known for his craftsmanship and mastery in
the use of light. After graduating from the Univeajor influences on his
work. Amorsolo set up his own studio upon his return to Manila and
painted prodigiously during the 1920s and the 1930s. His Rice Planting
(1922), which appeared on posters and tourist brochures, became one of
the most popular images of the Commonwealth of the Philippines.
Beginning in the 1930s, Amorsolo's work was exhibited widely both in the
Philippines and abroad. His bright,optimistic, pastoral images set the
tone for Philippine painting before World War II . Except for his darker
World War II-era paintings, Amorsolo painted quiet and peaceful scenes
throughout his career.
Amorsolo was sought after by influential
Filipinos including Luis Araneta, Antonio Araneta and Jorge B. Vargas.
Amorsolo also became the favourite Philippine artist of United States
officials and visitors to the country. Due to his popularity, Amorsolo
had to resort to photographing his works and pasted and mounted them in
an album. Prospective patrons could then choose from this catalog of his
works. Amorsolo did not create exact replicas of his trademark themes;
he recreated the paintings by varying some elements.
His works
later appeared on the cover and pages of children textbooks, in novels,
in commercial designs, in cartoons and illustrations for the Philippine
publications such The Independent, Philippine Magazine, Telembang, El
Renacimiento Filipino, and Excelsior. He was the director of the
University of the Philippine's College of Fine Arts from 1938 to 1952.
During the 1950s until his death in 1972, Amorsolo averaged to
finishing 10 paintings a month. However, during his later years,
diabetes, cataracts, arthritis, headaches, dizziness and the death of
two sons affected the execution of his works. Amorsolo underwent a
cataract operation when he was 70 years old, a surgery that did not
impede him from drawing and painting.
After being confined at the
St. Luke's Hospital in Quezon City for two months, Amorsolo died at the
age of 79 on April 24, 1972. The volume of paintings, sketches and
studies of Amorsolo is believed to have reached more than 10,000 pieces.
Amorsolo was an important influence on contemporary Filipino art and
artists, even beyond the so-called "Amorsolo school." Amorsolo's
influence can be seen in many landscape paintings by Filipino artists,
including early landscape paintings by abstract painter Federico Aguilar
Alcuaz.
In 2003, Amorsolo's children founded the Fernando C.
Amorsolo Art Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving Fernando
Amorsolo's legacy, promoting his style and vision, and preserving a
national heritage through the conservation and promotion of his works.
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2022 - Wandering Vertexes...
by Francis Rousseau
