Now in its 10th edition, the Asian Cultural Council’s Fundraising Auction continues its mission of supporting promising artists.
With February as National Arts Month in the Philippines, the art community gathered for the Asian Cultural Council’s (ACC) Fundraising Auction. The much anticipated event’s 10th edition, which featured works by some of our most illustrious local artists, was held last February 22, at the Leon Gallery in Makati.
“The past ten years have been fruitful collaborating with the ACC in their pursuit of granting numerous talented Filipino artists the opportunity to spread their creative wings abroad, (which) has always been our utmost privilege,” says Leon Gallery director Jaime Ponce de Leon.
A portion of the auction directly benefits ACC Philippines’ Fellowship Program, providing opportunities and empowering Filipino artists to engage in apprenticeship, collaborations, and research. The local office’s list of grantees has always been impressive, including both icons and promising artists in theatre, conservation, visual arts, dance, among others.
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The Philippine office has, for the past 25 years, been rooted in ACC’s global mission of advancing dialogue and cultural exchange, and fostering mutual understanding and respect since its founding in 1963 by John D. Rockefeller. ACC has encouraged conversations between art, culture, and a sense of identity, much like its other affiliates across Asia.
Young dancer and choreographer Japhet Mari Cabling describes his experience as fulfilling, giving him the courage to try “anything he wants” during the months as an ACC grantee in the US. Conservation specialist Peter John Natividad, meanwhile, delved into research, specifically on environmental, climate, and seismic impact on museum displays and storage.
Stage actress Toni Go relishes attending conferences, workshops, and immersing herself in New York City’s rich cultural community, an experience she hopes would help her foster groups outside Manila, while playwright and director Joshua Lim So, who is set to leave in July, is putting together reflections about intergenerational differences among Filipinos here and elsewhere.
“The life of the Asian Cultural Council are the grantees,” says ACC Philippines program director Teresa S. Rances during the launch of the fundraising auction.
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Through the years, the ACC has supported nearly 300 grantees, some having even been conferred the coveted title of National Artist: Lamberto Javellana, Alice Reyes, Lucrecia Kasilag, Alejandro Roces, Jose Maceda, Francisco Feliciano, Ramon Santos, Kidlat Tahimik, and Jose Joya.
“Monumental pieces await in honor of the watershed moment,” says Ponce de Leon. “Through them, the ACC underlines the importance of sponsorship and mentoring, for the spreading and development of Philippine art.”
In a previous auction, Joya’s “Space Transfiguration” sold for a whopping P112 million. One cannot deny the significance of the pieces assembled each year, especially by notable former grantees like Joya, whose “Evening in Shanghai” went under the gavel this time, along with Robert Chabet’s “Pillow Series” (1978) and 2012 grantee Riel Hilario’s mixed media folk and spirituality work.
A highlight of the upcoming auction is Fernando Zobel’s “Septiembre, a las siete de la tarde, en Tres Juncos,” a key work from Time magazine’s 1966 feature on Museo de Arte Abstracto Español in Cuenca, Spain. Considered one of Zobel’s most important works, being featured on the cover of the recent Fundacion Juan March exhibition in Madrid no less, the painting is said to be dedicated to the mayor of Cuenca, who allowed the painter to build a museum in his hometown.
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Interestingly, Zobel had also helped pave the way for Filipino artists to hone their work and vision, such as National Artist Vicente Manansala, who straddled between the religious in his work “Dambana,” and the seemingly ordinary and profane with “Sabungero,” a rich, stained glass inspired depiction of Filipino lives.
Another Fernando—Fernando Amorsolo—also saw his works such as “Stream” and “Harvest Season” auctioned off.
Two works from active collectors Arthur and Julie Hill, Ford Foundation’s Philippine representatives, caught much attention: H.R. Ocampo’s “A Song for Summer” and Ang Kiukok’s “Mother and Child.” The Hills have always helped underprivileged yet promising students who had been accepted to the University of the Philippines through the sale from the collection.
Among the other 140 pieces that were up for bidding were Anita Magsaysay-Ho’s terracotta sculpture “Mother and Child,” Juan Luna’s oil on canvas “Portrait of Irene della Roca,” Ang Kiukok’s “Android” and Elmer Borlongan’s “Pahinga,”
Leon Gallery is located on the ground floor of Eurovilla 1, VA Rufino Corner Legaspi Street, Makati
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