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Lot Essay
Anita Magsaysay-Ho earned the distinction of being the only woman to be admitted to the patheon of the hirteen Moderns. After attending the University of the Philippines School of Fine Arts, she studied at the School of Design under Victorio C. Edades, the highly acclaimed artist who is commonly regarded as the core leader of neo-realist group.
For a brief period, Anita was labelled the "Female Amorsolo" as both share the same passion for women and genre subjects. The affiliation however, is not more than this sharing of the common subjects. Anita essentially works in a different epoch and her works are influenced by the modernist movement in the Philippines of the 50s when the various Western 'isms' were introduced to the Filipino artists in quick successions and almost simultaneously.
It was commented that "...subjects included women harvesting fruit, gathering sheaves of grain, or selling fish in the market, the artist emphasized movement and bustling interaction by means of bold, vigorous brushstrokes and strong tonal contrasts of light and dark. Brisk, decisive lines become a marked tendency to simplify forms into basic geometric shapes: triangles for the bananas and rectangle for the skirts, thereby creating a lively counterpoint of sharp, angular forms. ... ... Here, the women briefly exchanging words and glances shifts positions and carry out the stages of a process within a closed space that is entirely occupied by their figures, with some cropping along the four sides." (Alice Guerrero Guillermo, 'A Woman's Journey to Selfhood in Art', Anita Magsaysay-Ho: A Retrospective, Manila, 1989, p. 18.)
The illustrated work In the Market Place and the present work date 55 and 54 respectively and both understandably, share a common stylistic tendency. The works are infused with a concentrated energy that reinforces the circular movement of the compositions. The women in both works are generalized instead of unique individuals, they are a represantational group with stylized features which are devoid of the sweetness and charm that are synonymous of Amorsolo's signature style. These tempera works are results of a short period in the artist's career hence contributing to the rarity of the present work.
For a brief period, Anita was labelled the "Female Amorsolo" as both share the same passion for women and genre subjects. The affiliation however, is not more than this sharing of the common subjects. Anita essentially works in a different epoch and her works are influenced by the modernist movement in the Philippines of the 50s when the various Western 'isms' were introduced to the Filipino artists in quick successions and almost simultaneously.
It was commented that "...subjects included women harvesting fruit, gathering sheaves of grain, or selling fish in the market, the artist emphasized movement and bustling interaction by means of bold, vigorous brushstrokes and strong tonal contrasts of light and dark. Brisk, decisive lines become a marked tendency to simplify forms into basic geometric shapes: triangles for the bananas and rectangle for the skirts, thereby creating a lively counterpoint of sharp, angular forms. ... ... Here, the women briefly exchanging words and glances shifts positions and carry out the stages of a process within a closed space that is entirely occupied by their figures, with some cropping along the four sides." (Alice Guerrero Guillermo, 'A Woman's Journey to Selfhood in Art', Anita Magsaysay-Ho: A Retrospective, Manila, 1989, p. 18.)
The illustrated work In the Market Place and the present work date 55 and 54 respectively and both understandably, share a common stylistic tendency. The works are infused with a concentrated energy that reinforces the circular movement of the compositions. The women in both works are generalized instead of unique individuals, they are a represantational group with stylized features which are devoid of the sweetness and charm that are synonymous of Amorsolo's signature style. These tempera works are results of a short period in the artist's career hence contributing to the rarity of the present work.