19/02/2018
The National Museum soft-opens the exhibition of Filipino Struggles Through History to the public today at the National Museum of Fine Arts.
As a major highlight of its commemoration of National Arts Month 2018, the National Museum today reopens the Old Senate Session Hall of the National Museum of Fine Arts at the Old Legislative Building, which has been closed for the past two months, with the installation of the major part of Filipino Struggles Through History, also known as History of Manila, the monumental series of paintings by National Artist Carlos “Botong” V. Francisco (1912-1969) that were commissioned in 1968 for Manila City Hall by Mayor Antonio J. Villegas.
Filipino Struggles Through History is arguably Botong’s greatest extant work of art - and among his last, as it was finished only months before his death on March 31, 1969. In recognition of the superlative artistic achievement that it represents, Filipino Struggles Through History was declared a National Cultural Treasure, the highest official designation given to a cultural property, by Director Gabriel S. Casal of the National Museum in 1996.
The paintings, which had deteriorated and suffered damage through the decades, were removed from Manila City Hall in January, 2013, at the urgent request of Mayor Alfredo S. Lim upon the recommendation of his adviser on culture, former Tourism Secretary and National Museum Director Gemma Cruz Araneta, to undergo painstaking restoration under the supervision of the National Museum, with funding by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) that was facilitated by its then-Chairman, Secretary Ramon R.Jimenez, Jr., of the Department of Tourism.
Following this, a landmark agreement was approved in 2017 by Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada and the Manila City Council to allow the original paintings to remain at the National Museum for enhanced public access and appreciation to what can be considered as among the most famous of all Philippine works of art, perhaps second only to Spoliarium by Juan Luna (1884).
At the same time, museum-quality reproductions will be provided by the National Museum for display in their original location at the Office of the Mayor in Manila City Hall that would be more durable, especially given the present and very heavy demands upon the concerned space necessary for the continued service by the Mayor of Manila to the millions of Manileño constituents and stakeholders.
Three of the four paintings, consisting of seven separate panels, are featured in the Old Senate Session Hall, together covering the centuries that depict flourishing Maynilad from before Western contact until Philippine independence from the United States in 1946.
The fourth painting of the series, which consists of three panels that depict Mayor Villegas’ progressive vision for the City of Manila, grounded on a proud past of Filipino leadership and the fervent nationalism that he himself vigorously promoted and is well-remembered for, will soon be accessible for public viewing in the adjacent Vicente and Carmen Fabella Hall (Gallery XIII) of the National Museum of Fine Arts.
The National Museum takes this opportunity to express its admiration and gratitude to the Government of the City of Manila, led by its Mayor, former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, for the partnership that allows for the wider promotion of this artistic National Cultural Treasure that, perhaps more than any other extant work of art, successfully portrays the saga of the Filipino people through the centuries.
Don't forget - admission to the National Museum is free! Come and visit us this Chinese New Year long weekend! The National Museum is open from 10am to 5pm every Tuesday to Sunday, and is closed only on Mondays for maintenance and on certain public holidays for religious observances.
Photo by Danelyn Sumaylo/NM Fine Arts Department.
©The National Museum of the Philippines (2018)
