Pride of PlaceVisions of heaven in BoholBy Augusto Villalon
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:25:00 06/23/2008
MANILA, Philippines - “Kisame: Visions of Heaven on Earth†is a photo exhibition running until July 20 at Ayala Museum. It looks to the ceilings of Spanish colonial churches that reveal visions of heaven from the Boholano earth.
A group of itinerant Cebuano artists painted the ceilings of Spanish colonial churches during the decades of the American colonial period starting in the 1920s.
Several young untrained Cebuano painters, who eventually distinguished themselves as first-rate artists, were responsible for the religious art that adorned Boholano churches and those in Cebu and other neighboring island-provinces as well.
Probably the most renowned of the traveling band of artists was Raymundo Francia, who painted numerous church ceilings and, alluding to Michelangelo’s travails painting the Sistine Chapel ceiling in the Vatican, was called “Cebu’s Michelangelo.â€
The equally talented Canuto Avila assisted Francia in many projects.
Francia’s largest body of work is found in the churches of Bohol.
Having painted an estimated 80 percent of Bohol’s churches, Francia developed his own style, even formulating his own special paint mixture that, until this day, retains the original color and brilliance of his works in spite of the passage of almost a century since their execution.
His skillful rendering and shading add three-dimensional volume to his paintings. His perspective extends vistas toward the infinite, as in the European trompel’oeil style popular in earlier historical periods.
Many examples of his ceiling paintings, much revered by generation after generation of parishioners, still survive in the old churches of Bohol despite threats ranging from deterioration to poor maintenance, leaking roofs and bat droppings.
Magnificent
Of the Spanish colonial churches under the care of the Diocese of Tagbilaran, 12 boast of magnificent, intricately painted ceilings in various stages of preservation, including masterpieces in the parishes of Albuquerque, Baclayon, Cortes, Dauis, Dimiao, Lila, Loay, Loboc, Loon, Maribojoc, Panglao and Tubigon.
Living landmarks of Spanish influence in the Philippines, these massive church structures were established in Bohol by the early Catholic missionaries, called doctrineros, as early as 1595.
Shortly after their arrival, the Jesuits erected a small visita on the Baclayon coastline near Tagbilaran that has evolved into today’s famed Baclayon Church. (The current structure was built by the Recoletos.)
The main church, of square blocks of coral stones quarried from the sea that were cemented together with millions of egg whites, was constructed by hundreds of locals on polo, a system of community service.
Terra-cotta tile roofs rested on massive timber trusses supported by thick stone walls and enormous solid-stone buttresses. Bells hung from massive towers that doubled as vantage points or lookouts, warning people of pirate raids coming from the sea.
Churches, doubling as fortresses, were usually large enough to shelter an entire village in case of siege.
The massive structures, fruits of native labor from many centuries past, have survived into this century not only as places of worship and centers for the local community. They are also the most significant depositories of art, sculpture and music in the Philippines.
Aside from the richness of ceiling painting and wall frescoes, unknown traditional carvers sculpted statues of saints, wooden reliefs for wall or door panels, and exquisite altars, legacy of artists who “worked lovingly but arduously, to bequeath us these treasures,†said Ayala Museum director Maritoni Ortigas.
Archival treasures
In the late 1990s, the archives of Baclayon and Dimiao churches yielded different parts of the complete score for the 1826 Missa Baclayana, a Mass especially composed for Baclayon church that has recently been revived by University of Santo Tomas musicologists for contemporary performances in the church.
Fr. Milan Ted Torralba of the Diocese of Tagbilaran curated the exhibition. An indefatigable church conservationist, he has been not only instrumental in the cultural renaissance of Bohol, he has also worked closely with both church and government authorities in the preparation leading to the drafting, signing and exchange of instruments of ratification of the Holy See-Philippines Agreement on the Cultural Heritage of the Catholic Church in the Philippines that finally set a legal basis to safeguard church heritage.
Romola Savellon, the founding curator of Cebu Normal University, and Marianito José Luspo, of the faculty of Holy Name University in Tagbilaran and the leading authority on Bohol history and culture, are other featured writers of the exhibition. Photography is by Paquito Ochoa Jr.
The exhibition opens up small glimpses of heaven to us still in this world. It proves the artistic mastery and technical skill of early Cebuano painters (not to mention the strain as they lay on their backs while painting ceilings).
Most of all, the exhibition brings to the forefront the traditional excellence of Philippine artistic talent seen in the work of the many unknown artists who have enriched our culture so much.
To show our appreciation to these unknowns, more churches and heritage structures should be documented, as Father Torralba and his team have done so exhaustively in Bohol, so that we rediscover more folk painters, sculptors, musicians and artists we can celebrate as they show that Filipinos have always been a people of vision and excellence.
For “Kisame†exhibition information, visit
www.ayalamuseum.orgLinkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=13541.0
Topic: Heavenly visions in Bohol churches (Read 2422 times)