OCAMPO and

ZOBEL

Laririt. Lee. Madamba. Poblete. Rivera4 IND-1

Hernando Ruiz Ocampo

National Artist for the Visual Arts

Humble Beginnings Hernando Ruiz Ocampo- or H.R. Ocampo, as

widely-known by art enthusiasts, was born on April 18, 1911in Manila.

He was a son of Delfina Ruiz and Emilio Ocampo, a section chief in the Department of Public Works and to help his family earn money, he started to engage in various jobs when he was 12 years old until he was 17.

Although he attended and finished high school, he never went to college.

Man of Literature From 1930s to 60s, he became a poet and a short story

writer of consequence, associate editor of the Herald Mid-Week Magazine, editor of This Week (the Manila Chronicle magazine), director of a government media organization and vice president of a large advertising firm (Philprom).

He was a founding member of a pre-war group of writers called the Veronicans, before he became a painter.

Hernando Ruiz Ocampo (1911-1978)EXAMPLE WORKS AS A WRITER:

SCENES AND SPACES – during the post-war period

about the imperialism of the United States.

RICE AND BULLETS (1937) – story about the

protagonist “Tura”, joining his fellow peasants in a protest

against rice hoarders but eventually shot and killed during

the clash with the police.

Self-taught Painter It has been said that he made the most original Filipino

paintings because he was self taught and he never went

abroad due to his fear that his art would be unduly

influenced by foreign art figures and partly, because of a

fortune-teller’s prediction that he would die from a plane

crash.

He quoted that “the strongest influence on my paintings

are the things that I see around me everyday”.

The Ocampo Style “Unity, coherence and

emphasis in dynamic equilibrium.. To me these three are the basic principles of a good design, a good painting.”

“More than my paintings, I think those principles are my main contributions to Philippine Art. Every time I attend a symposium or conference, I hear people saying, ‘O, eto na si Mr. Unity-Coherence-and-Emphasis!’” -Ocampo

“If Edades opened the door to art, he opened it a “little”. But it was Ocampo who kicked the door wide open for other artists to walk through.” -Manansala

Traumatic Years- 1940s

His artworks were greatly influenced by the traumas he experienced.

His earlier works showed bitter social protests wherein images were marked by severe reductionism and distortion. The subjects he chose to depict reflected his own gut experience of poverty and moral degradation.

As A Nationalist In the 50s, he started to produce

masterpieces of still lifes exalting simple domestic objects such as earthen pot and stove, fish and mango, in an abstract style which was controlled, sensuous and rational.

It can be seen in his works a familiar Philippine theme which was seen in the form and strong choice of colors (such as the strong, vibrant yellows, purples and greens- a Muslim chromatic triad).

Philippine Baroque was created, with Ocampo as its leading exponent in abstract art.

As An Abstractionist

During the 60s and 70s, Ocampo’s works showcases a paradoxical order.

His works are in subtlety gradating in colors and the shapes are irregular.

Genesis

As An Abstractionist

CCP Curtain

Human Nature

Ocampo remained fixated to human figures from from 50s, until the 70s.

Ocampo’s art can be described as humanist and oftentimes, Christian elements such as nativities, crucifixions and pentecosts are present in it.

H. R. OCAMPO’s WORKS

He was the painter of Imelda Marcos’ monument in the Cultural

Center of the Philippines.

H. R. OCAMPO’s WORKS

PLANTSADORA

-presents the hardwork of a

Filipina ironing men’s top clothing and

how hard it was considering the material

of the clothing and the type of iron she

was using.

H. R. OCAMPO’s WORKS

TATLONG LARAWAN

-presents Jesus Christ

dying on the cross in between the

two sinners, and also the piece

where Fernando Amorsolo told

Ocampo that he is already a

Painter.

CommentariesHe had a basic grasp of the principles of modernist color theories, and

intuitively derived techniques based on a unique personal sensibility.

He used color not as a static compositional element; by skilfully

exploiting completion and juxtaposition, he directed the viewer’s eye

movement. He meticulously wielded the fine end of a palette knife

and a small blunt brush to create tone and texture. He also favoured

dynamic shapes and forms that motivated his color values. He

produced paintings that pulsate.

Survey of WorkAbstract is usually associated with the word chaos and in Ocampo’s case,

his works are “chaotic in an orderly manner”. If you look at his paintings

closely, you would notice the neatness and accuracy of every line and curve.

Every stroke is done carefully; there is a flow and rhythm to every stroke.

Every color was planned to the precise gradation and complements each

other perfectly; there is subtleness in the gradation of colors. His works also

possessed textures which are either smooth or seemingly rough. He has a

persuasive sense of design. Above all, what immediately grabs one’s

attention is the harmony and balance of the whole.

His nationalistic character can be recognized in the color schemes that he

used which was typically in vibrant hues such as red, green yellow. He

shows nationalism indirectly by his use of colors and form.

Fernando ZobelPainter of the Most Expensive Philippine

Artwork

Earlier Years

Born in August 27, 1924 (Manila) from Enrique Zobel de Ayala and Fermina Montojo Torrontegui

Pursued: o Bachelor of Arts degree in the Philippineso Medicine at University of Santo Tomas during Japanese

occupationo Entered Harvard University (Philosophy and Letters)

and graduated as magna cum laude.

Famous Acquaintances Boston artists: i.e. Reed Champion, Jack Pfeufer and

Hyman Bloom. Discovered the new wave of young Spanish artists and

established friendships with Gerardo Rueda, Luis Feito, Guillermo Delgado and Antonio Lorenzo.

In Madrid, he established a studio which he shared with the Spanish artist Gerardo Rueda and established friendships with Saura, Sempere, Chirino and Antonio Magaz.

Musuem of Abstract Spanish Art in Cuenca: established with Gustavo Torner, Gerardo Rueda, Eusebio Sempere and Antonio Lorenzo

He established friendships with Carmen Laffon, Gerardo Delgado, Joaquin Saenz, the family of Antonio Bonet Correa and Juana de Aizpuru.

Art Scene BeginningsBoston Artist

Zobel started painting in the year 1942 when he acquired a spinal ailment. For a while, his paintings were highly influenced by Boston artists. Filipino

ArtistHe employed Philippine themes and motifs in his painting, using vivid coloration and planes that manifested the influence of Matisse. His work was characterized by strong lines and simple compositions.

Entering the Abstract Scene: Saeta SeriesMark Rothko’s works convinced Zobel that it was possible to paint in abstract which led to tho the Saeta series. It fell under the category of Abstract Expressionism which was also called action painting. His works were always painted within more intimate formats.

The Black PeriodThe effects of light and its capacity to suggest volume or its illusion of depth now became primal qualities in Zobel’s works. They were mostly intimate in scale, contemplative. There was passion structured into a fugue. It was movement culled from the flight of birds perhaps or the vibration of foliage in the breeze.

Escalona (1961)

The Return of Hues

In his Dialogues and Conversations, Zobel attained his artistic composure. The said painting manifested the context of dynamic symmetry.

Jucar SeriesZobel began painting landscapes inspired by the river Júcar. Fernando Zobel took inspiration from Cuenca, the Spanish town where he lived until his death in, and it is apparent in many of his paintings. He uses the palette of neutral browns and greys.

JUCAR XII

La Serie Blanca

His White paintings were actually exercises in the abstracting capacity of vision. He eliminated in succession not only the features that gave the landscape its sense of particularity but also its color. Only greys were used to indicate the ultimate basic form.

La Piedra del Caballo (1971)

The OC ArtistEven the physical appearance of Zobel’s studio was a monument to careful planning:

o Very neato Nothing out of placeo Concepts for paintings were done with the rigor of a

seminar papero and the actual execution prepared for like a musical

recital.His paintings were organized within dynamic symmetry where Zobel often selected the degree of spatial activation necessary. The sectioning of space was always very subtle, but could be discerned, and not always mechanically perfect.

The OC Artist“When a picture looks fresh, people tend to think that it was improvised. I’m pretty sure that exactly the opposite took place. In the widest sense of the word, order is one of the secrets of what I recognize as beauty. Years ago, someone told me that in Japanese, the same word can mean clean and beautiful. I have given that a lot of thought.”

“Order, and a certain simplicity of composition, probably account for a good deal of tranquility you seem to find in my pictures. Incidentally, that may explain why I can’t seem to work directly from a model. There is too much going on. I prefer to trust the abbreviated sense of order imposed by memory. Memory selects and organizes. It seems to whisper, ‘This is worthwhile’, and I try to listen. It isn’t all as easy as it sounds. But when I recognize the results in my work, I feel very pleased.”

Most Expensive Philippine Artwork

On May 24, 2008, Zobel's work titled Noche Clara was sold at Christie’s in Hong Kong was sold for PHP 6,000,000, making it the most expensive Philippine artwork.

Survey of Work

Despite the fact that abstract is Zobel’s style of painting, he had obviously different styles as mentioned before hand. He was very tedious and more into the perfection and order of the paintings by using his strokes and colors and hues all in his recent paintings. His works show much like a Japanese’s work: clean and beautiful. Simple yet with class. Despite the fact that some of his paintings seem like there is too much going on, much against what was stated just before, it also intrigues the viewers as an order of memory. An order that organized despite so much going on. Having influences from landscapes and such, he also dedicates his works to the movement and quickness of the surroundings, as if trying to capture the flight and speed of them. In his works, he shows how the organized can become, and how mess can become as neat as possible with using colors and strokes to his benefits.

END.