The Philippine artist Fernando Amorsolo (1892-1972) was a portraitist

and painter of rural landscapes. He is best known for his craftsmanship

and mastery in the use of light.
Fernando Amorsolo was born May 30, 1892, in the Paco district of
Manila. At 13 he was apprenticed to the noted Philippine artist Fabian
de la Rosa, his mother's first cousin. In 1909 Amorsolo enrolled at the
Liceo de Manila and then attended the fine-arts school at the
University of the Philippines, graduating in 1914. After working three
years as a commercial artist and part-time instructor at the university,
he studied at the Escuela de San Fernando in Madrid. For seven
months he sketched at the museums and on the streets of Madrid,
experimenting with the use of light and color. That winter he went to
New York and discovered the works of the postwar impressionists and
cubists, who became the major influence on his works. On his return to
Manila, he set up his own studio.
During this period, Amorsolo developed the use of light--actually,
backlight--which is his greatest contribution to Philippine painting.
Characteristically, an Amorsolo painting contains a glow against which
the figures are outlined, and at one point of the canvas there is
generally a burst of light that highlights the smallest detail.
During the 1920s and 1930s Amorsolo's output of paintings was
prodigious. In 1939 his oil Afternoon Meal of the Workers won first
prize at the New York World's Fair. During World War II Amorsolo
continued to paint. The Philippine collector Don Alfonso Ongpin
commissioned him to execute a portrait in absentia of Gen. Douglas
MacArthur, which he did at great personal risk. He also painted
Japanese occupation soldiers and self-portraits. His wartime paintings
were exhibited at the Malacanang presidential palace in 1948. After the
war Amorsolo served as director of the college of fine arts of the
University of the Philippines, retiring in 1950. Married twice, he had 13
children, five of whom became painters.
Amorsolo was noted for his portraits. He made oils of all the Philippine
presidents, including the revolutionary leader Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo,
and other noted Philippine figures. He also painted many wartime
scenes, including Bataan, Corner of Hell, and One Casualty.
Amorsolo, who died in 1972, is said to have painted more than 10,000
pieces. He continued to paint even in his late 70s, despite arthritis in
his hands. Even his late works feature the classic Amorsolo tropical
sunlight. He said he hated "sad and gloomy" paintings, and he
executed only one painting in which rain appears.
FERNANDO AMORSOLO

DALAGANG BUKID