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Formative years
Fernando Amorsolo was born on May 30, 1892 in the Paco neighborhood, when Manila was still
under Spanish sovereignty, to Pedro Amorsolo, a book keeper, and Bonifacia Cueto. Amorsolo
spent his childhood in Daet, Camarines Norte, where he studied in a public school and was
tutored at home in Spanish language reading and writing. After his father's death, Amorsolo and
his family moved to Manila to live with Don Fabin de la Rosa, his mother's cousin and a
Philippine painter. At the age of 13, Amorsolo became an apprentice to De la Rosa, who would
eventually become the advocate and guide to Amorsolo's painting career. During this time,
Amorsolo's mother embroidered to earn money, while Amorsolo helped by selling water color
postcards to a local bookstore for tencentavos each. Amorsolo's brother, Pablo Amorsolo, was
also a painter. Amorsolo's first success as a young painter came in 1908, when his
painting Leyendo el peridico took second place at the Bazar Escolta, a contest organized by
the Asociacion Internacional de Artistas. Between 1909 and 1914, Amorsolo enrolled at the Art
School of the Liceo de Manila, where he earned honors for his paintings and drawings.
masters Joaqun Sorolla Bastida and Ignacio Zuloaga. Amorsolo's most notable work as a student
at the Liceo was his painting of a young man and a young woman in a garden, which won him
the first prize in the art school exhibition during his graduation year.To make money during
school, Amorsolo joined competitions and did illustrations for various Philippine publications,
including Severino Reyes first novel in Tagalog language, Parusa ng Diyos ("Punishment of
God"), Iigo Ed. Regalado's Madaling Araw ("Dawn"), as well as illustrations for editions of
the Pasion. Amorsolo graduated with medals from the University of the Philippines in 1914.
After graduating from the University of the Philippines, Amorsolo worked as a draftsman for the
Bureau of Public Works, as a chief artist at the Pacific Commercial Company, and as a part-time
instructor at the University of the Philippines (where he would work for 38 years). After three
years as an instructor and commercial artist, Amorsolo was given a grant to study at
the Academia de San Fernando in Madrid, Spain by Filipino businessman Enrique Zobel de
Ayala. During his seven months in Spain, Amorsolo sketched at museums and along the streets
of Madrid, experimenting with the use of light and color.Through De Ayala's grant, Amorsolo
was also able to visit New York City, where he encountered postwar impressionism and cubism,
which would be major 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 catalogue 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. Two months
after being confined at the St. Luke's Hospital in Manila, Amorsolo died of heart failure at the
age of 79 on April 24, 1972 .
Four days after his death, Amorsolo was honoured as the first National Artist in Painting at
the Cultural Center of the Philippines by then President Ferdinand Marcos.
Amorsolo was a close friend of the Philippine sculptor Guillermo Tolentino, the creator of
the Caloocan City monument to the patriot Andrs Bonifacio.
Marriage and Family[edit]
During his lifetime, Amorsolo was married twice and had 20 children. In 1916, he married Salud
Tolentino Jorge, with whom he had six children. Amorsolos first wife passed away in 1931
leaving him with six children. He had six more children by a common-law wife, named Virginia
Guevarra Santos. Amorsolo have three children with her namely Manuel (followed in his father's
footstep, with a degree in Fine Arts from the University of the Philippines), Jorge and Norma
when he met his second wife. Subsequently, Virginia found an engagement ring in one of
Amorsolo's drawers; she knew about Maria,that prompted her to leave his house with her three
children. In 1935, he married Maria del Carmen who gave him eight more children. Among her
daughters are Sylvia Amorsolo Lazo and Luz. But as Maria was giving birth with his children,
Virginia had three more children with Amorsolo. Fortunately, his reputation was growing as fast
as his brood and his work was more than enough to provide for his rather large family. Six of
Amorsolo's children became artists themselves.
and visual sources He consulted with the Philippine scholars of the time, H. Pardo de Tavera
and Epifanio de los Santos.
Amorsolo also painted oil portraits of Presidents like General Emilio Aguinaldo, and other
prominent individuals such as Don Alfredo Jacb and Doa Pura Garchitorena Toral of
Camarines Sur. He also painted the wedding picture of Don Mariano Garchitorena and Doa
Caridad Pamintuan of Pampanga.
He also did a portrait of American Senator Warren Grant Magnuson (19051989), of
the Democratic Party from Washington, whom the Warren G. Magnuson Health Sciences
Building at the University of Washington, and the Warren G. Magnuson Clinical Center at
the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland are named after.
Afternoon Meal of the Workers (Noonday Meal of the Rice Workers) (1939)
Assassination of Governor Bustamante
Bataan
The Bombing of the Intendencia (1942)
The Building of Intramuros
Burning of the Idol
The Burning of Manila (1946)
El Ciego (1928)
The Conversion of the Filipinos (1931)
Corner of Hell
Dalagang Bukid (1936)
Defense of a Filipina Woman's Honor (1945)
La destruccion de Manila por los salvajes japoneses (The Destruction of Manila by the
Savage Japanese)
Early Filipino State Wedding
Early Sulu Wedding
The Explosion (1944)
The First Baptism in the Philippines
The First Mass in the Philippines
Fruit Gatherer (1950)
Fruit Pickers Harvesting Under The Mango Tree (1939)
Maiden in a Stream (1921)
Making of the Philippine Flag
The Mestiza (1943)
My Wife, Salud (1920)
One Casualty
Our Lady of Light (1950)
Planting Rice (1946)
Princess Urduja
The Rape of Manila (1942)
Rice Planting (1922)
Sale of Panay
Sikatuna
Sunday Morning Going To Town (1958)
US Senator Warren Magnuson Oil Portrait (1958)
Traders
El Violinista (The Violinist)