| Article Index |
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| UST MUSEUM HOLDS 2011 ON-THE-SPOT PAINTING COMPETITION |
| Religious Category |
| Historical Category |
| Filipiniana Category |
| All Pages |
In 1936, then University of Santo Tomas Rector Magnificus Rev. Fr. Silvestre Sancho, O.P., ordered the transfer of the UST Museum from one corridor and two big salles of the University’s original building in the old Intramuros campus to the present location in the Main Building of the Sampaloc campus. This new location was originally conceived as the “paraninfo”, a large, multi-purpose area meant for important gatherings like academic functions, graduations and concerts.
What may have motivated Fr. Sancho to begin the Museum’s art collection was, amazingly, an earthquake. In 1937, an earthquake threatened the University’s old main building in Intramuros with major damage. Part of it was condemned and demolished, and the entire building underwent renovation. Subsequently, a number of black and dusty paintings had to be removed from the walls. Fr. Sancho’s interest and curiosity were piqued, and he had the paintings restored, commissioning UST School of Fine Arts Prof. Rafael Enriquez, Jr. to resurrect the pigment behind the dirt and soot that nearly obliterated the work of art underneath.
Painstakingly, Prof. Enriquez stripped away the blanket of grime to reveal, first, a dog. Then, a horse and another dog were revealed. The painting turned out to be a work by a student of Murillo. When this painting was done, there were more to snatch from the ravages of time and neglect. Fr. Sancho decided that something more needed to be done.
Hence, on July 25, 1940, the UST Museum’s Art Gallery was inaugurated and in 1941 Fr. Sancho organized the first Annual National Painting Contest and began to acquire a quantity of masterpieces of Filipino artists for the Museum and the University. Following this event, the University was able to acquire works by such masters as Fernando Amorsolo, Vicente Manansala, Carlos “Botong” Francisco and GaloOcampo. This signaled the UST Museum’s new phase; it was no longer a museum only for the sciences, but arts as well.
The First National Art Competition Exhibit was opened to the public March 12, 1941 at the University Gymnasium, under the keen and watchful eye of Prof. Galo B. Ocampo, of the UST School of Fine Arts. The first of its kind to be held in an educational institution in the Philippines, the exhibition was another landmark in the history of the University and a prelude to the announcement of the contest winners.
On March 25, 1941, Fr. Sancho awarded the prizes to the winners during solemn ceremonies also held in the University Gymnasium. The judges truly had a difficult time deciding among the 93 entries, but Arch. Juan Arellano, Arch. Andres Luna de San Pedro, UP School of Fine Arts Dean Fernando Amorsolo, UST School of Fine Arts faculty members Victorio C. Edades and Rafael Enriquez, Jr. made worthy decisions across the three contest categories. “Pater Noster” by Jose de los Reyes won the Religious category, “PandayPira” by Fermin Sanchez took first place In the Historical category, and “Pounding Rice” by Vicente Manansala was the winner for the Filipiniana category.
As the University of Santo Tomas turns 400 this 2011, the UST Museum is set to continue long-standing tradition with this year’s Annual Inter-School On-The-Spot Painting Competition (OTSPC). The prestigious contest acknowledges the talents of students in the field of visual arts and fosters camaraderie as well as encourages them to hone their talents through friendly and creative competition. It is an affirmation of the Museum’s role not only as guardian of our nation’s heritage but also as herald of its cultural transformations that some of the students who have won the competition have gone on to become acclaimed artists in their own right and whose works are desired by collectors today.
The 2011 UST OTSPC is an outstanding showcase of fresh, bright young talent: in recognition of the University’s Quadricentennial as well as the Museum’s 140th anniversary of its formal establishment, and to reconnect with the legacy of Fr. Sancho’s contest begun 70 years ago, students competed in three categories that were originally used for the very first contest: Religious, Historical, and Filipiniana. The longest-running student art competition in the country offered a First Prize of PhP40,000.00, a Second Prize of PhP25,000.00 and a Third Prize of PhP20,000.00, for each category, for a total of nine winners.
Each contestant joined only one of the three categories, with the overall theme “FRAMES OF PHILIPPINE ART: FAITH, HISTORY AND CULTURE” using only oil or acrylic paint on a 30 x 40 inch primed (white) non-textured canvas. The OTSPC was held last February 01, 2011 at the UST Benavides Garden with registration started at 7:30 a.m. The competition proper begun at 8:30 a.m. and ended at 3:30 p.m. The awarding ceremony was held at 6:00 p.m., also marking the start of the exhibition of the nine winning entries along with paintings from previous years. The works will be on view at the UST Museum Main Gallery until February 19, 2011.
This winners of this year are as follows:
Religious Category
1st Place: Ronson Culibrina
School: Technological University of the Philippines
Title of Work: "Novena"
2nd Place: Ruzzle Abella
School: Eulogio “Amang” Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology
Title of Work: "Ika'yNasaPusoKo"
3rd Place: Mark Lim Arcenal
School: Technological University of the Philippines
Title of Work: "Deboto"
Historical Category
1st Place: Marilou Santos
School: Feati University
Title of Work: "Mentor"
2nd Place: John Marin
School: Technological University of the Philippines
Title of Work: "My Words are my Double-Edge Sword"
3rd Place: Janelle Tan
School: Technological University of the Philippines
Title of Work: "PagsumamosaHulingMambabatok"
Filipiniana Category
1st Place: Don Bryan Michael Bunag
School: Bulacan State University
Title of Work: "Kundiman"
2nd Place: BethjovenVelitario
School: University of the East
Title of Work: "Tribe"
3rd Place: Arnold Lalongisip
School: Polytechnical University of the Phillippines
Title of Work: "Kay Nanay"
