Juan Luna's restored "La Muerte de Cleopatra" (The Death of Cleopatra, 1881), a 250 cm x 350 cm oil mural depicting the death of the Queen of the Kingdom of Egypt, is on view at the National Gallery of Singapore (NGS) from November 16, 2017 to March 11, 2018.
The mural is on loan from Spain's Museo Nacional del Prado for the "Between Two Worlds" exhibit on the life and works of 19th-century Southeast Asian artists Luna and Raden Saleh,.
Largely based by Luna on "Lives," Plutarch's account of the incident some 150 years after it happened, the "Cleopatra" narrates the lore that the beautiful royal had herself killed by the bite of a poisonous snake, the Egyptian cobra known as the asp, depicting the Egyptian queen's suicide upon discovery.
On her gold bed covered by opulent linens amidst the foot of two carved pillars as aromatic smoke waftes the air, Cleopatra dressed in royal regalia lies dead. A stone sphinx-like image with double cobras on the head and two giant basalt statues decorate her sleeping chamber.
An asp bites Charmion, a Nubian handmaiden with braided hair, on the verge of falling down after adjusting her crown, as Iras, a light-skinned maid, has collapsed on the floor. This depiction of fully clothed women differs from the bare-breasted females typical of the paintings in the period of execution.
On the carpeted floor, the tail of a snake slithering away is barely visible. This hints at the cause her death and that she induced an asp to bite her on the breast.
This is the first time the "Cleopatra" is put on public display and the nearest it has reached the artist's home country. Yet this important exhibit fails to credit Luna's "Cleopatra" as it misses its historical importance. Hidden for some 137 years as it was kept in storage at Madrid's Museo Nacional del Prado, it gets the credit as the world's best depiction of the subject only now.
There are a few important paintings related to the subject, among them Guido Cagnacci's "The Death of Cleopatra" (1658) that shows six somber maids milling about the lifeless royal still seated on her throne, a snaked curled around her right arm.
Then there is Alexandre Cabanel's "Cleopatra Testing Poisons on Condemned Prisoners"(1887). An Orientalist masterpiece, it shows her sitting at an outdoor banquet fanned by a maid while observing the effects of poisons on prisoners condemned to death and her awareness of its efficacy.
Yet Luna's the "Cleopatra" best celebrates her unique, seductive beauty and awesome power even in death, laying in the splendor of her kingdom in intense drama, conveying the vulnerability of the flesh.
Executed at age 24 after finishing his internship with Spanish painter Alejo Vera in Madrid and Rome, Luna mastered the academic style, its dictate for classical subjects and predominance for large-scale works.
As his "graduation piece," the mural won him the silver medal in his first art exposition, the 1881 National Exposition of Fine Arts in Madrid. Due to the display of "Cleopatra," Luna received exposure and a pension scholarship at the Ayuntamiento de Manila.
After the competition, Luna sold it for 5,000 Spanish pesetas, the highest paid for a painting of its milieu, to the Spanish government for 1,000 duros.
Three years after, the "Spoliarium" (1884) followed and earned him greater fame in Spain by winning the First Class Medal in the annual art exhibition in Madrid.
But while the "Spoliarium" was repatriated to the Philippines in 1958 and now holds premier place at the National Museum in Manila, the "Cleopatra" stayed at the Prado where it had never been exhibited except in the NGS show.
But written accounts vary, but they give credibility to Luna's visual interpretation of the tragic incident.
According to Wikipedia, Roman sources were in general agreement that Cleopatra, 39, killed herself, by inducing an asp to bite her.
The oldest source is Strabo, who was alive at the time of the event and might even have been in Alexandria. He says there are two stories - that she applied a toxic ointment or that she was bitten by an asp on her breast - but he said in his writings that he was not sure if Cleopatra poisoned herself or was murdered.
Several Roman poets writing within 10 years of the event mention bites by two asps. Velleius, 60 years after the event, also refers to an asp. Other authors have questioned these historical accounts, stating that it is possible that Augustus had her killed.
Plutarch reports that Octavian succeeded in capturing Cleopatra in her mausoleum after the death of Antony. He ordered his freedman Epaphroditus to guard her to prevent her from committing suicide, because he allegedly wanted to present her in his triumph. But Cleopatra was able to deceive Epaphroditus and kill herself nevertheless.
He then stated that an asp was concealed in a basket of figs that was brought to her by a rustic and, finding it after eating a few fruits, she held out her arm for it to bite. Other stories state that it was hidden in a vase and that she poked it with a spindle until it got angry enough to bite her on the arm. Finally, he indicates that, in Octavian's triumphal march back in Rome, an effigy of Cleopatra was part of the parade that had an asp clinging to it.
Selenium, writing about the same time as Plutarch, also says Cleopatra died from an asp bite.
Classical sources say that Cleopatra was bitten on the arm, but she is more usually depicted in medieval and Renaissance iconography with asps at her breast, a tradition followed by Shakespeare.
But a scientific opinion digressed. In 2010, German historian Christoph Schaefer challenged all other theories, declaring that the queen had actually been poisoned and died from drinking a mixture of poisons. After studying historical texts and consulting with toxicologists, the historian concluded that the asp could not have caused the quick and pain-free death claimed by most sources, since the asp venom paralyses parts of the body, starting with the eyes, before causing death.
Living when and where she did, Cleopatra would have known of the violent and painful effects of an asp's venomous bite, so it is unlikely that it was the cause of her death. Also, the asp's bite is not always fatal. Schaefer and toxicologist Dietrich Mebs have theorized that Cleopatra used a mixture of hemlock, wolfsbane and opium.
Snake/s or herbs, the "Cleopatra," the most faithful visualization of the tragic incident, can always visit home. #

When I was 14, heartily singing along to “When I’m Sixty-four” with the Beatles as if there was no tomorrow, I never pondered if I’d reach the same ripe old age and share the elderly sentiments it expresses. It is my faavorite song of my favored band, but it was composed and sang by Paul McCartney, who is not my real most wanted Beatle, after all – it is John Lennon.

When I was 14, heartily singing along to “When I’m Sixty-four” with the Beatles as if there was no tomorrow, I never pondered if I’d reach the same ripe old age and share the elderly sentiments it expresses. It is my favorite song of my favored band, but it was composed and sang by Paul McCartney, who is not my real most wanted Beatle, after all – it is John Lennon.
His song, however, sure echoes in my spirit.
Well, I turned 64 recently on January 25 and I assure you I monitored who greeted me, which I did not even care to do when I was 24, 34, 44 and 54. How our values about revelry, remembrance and romance change with the advance in biological years! Sad to share I had more greeters when I turned 61, three years before. I had five birthday cakes!
“When I’m Sixty-four” succinctly captures the gamut of sentiments of people turning senior citizens, their insecurities, simple sources of happiness, the dire need to be reassured they are loved. I spotted them because I have felt these sentiments, and that gives me the qualification to comment.
How did a pre-adult write it? Lifted from my book, The Beatles Extraordinary Plagiarists, as published by Amazon.com of New York for better understanding of my subject, the section on “When I’m Sixty-Four” reads:
“McCartney claimed he wrote the melody of 'When I’m Sixty-Four' (Lennon-McCartney) when he was 16 years old. He supposedly revived the composition in the new album as a tribute to his father, who turned 64 in 1966 when thet started recording the album. Lennon recalled, ‘Paul wrote it in the Cavern days. We just stuck a few more words on it like ‘grandchildren on your knee’ and ‘Vera, Chuck and Dave’.’ But close scrutiny reveals the song is a rewrite of the downbeat The Shirelles hit song ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow,’ the B-side of the hit single ‘Boys,’ which was interpreted by McCartney as a swing number.
“If one takes note of the similarity in the theme of insecurity about the future and how McCartney changed its melodic approach, the theme of ‘When I’m Sixty-Four’
is basically what ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’ asks: Will you still love me tomorrow? 'When I’m Sixty-Four' asks: 'Will you still love me when I’m sixty-four?' -- with 'tomorrow' simply converted into 'sixty-four.'
“McCartney constructed his song using the exposition technique and by ending each question like the Goffin-King song. The difference lies in McCartney’s expansion of Goffin-King’s two lines into five lines, retaining the phrasing while diffusing much of the source.
“‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’ reads ‘Tonight you’re mine completely / You give your love so sweetly / Tonight the light of love is in your eyes / Will you still love me tomorrow,’ which was distilled by McCartney as ‘When I get older losing my hair / Will you still be sending me a Valentine / Birthday greetings, bottle of wine / If I’d been out till quarter to three / Would you lock the door? /
Will you still need me? / Will you still feed me? / When I’m sixty-four.’
“The similarity in the question device is more evident in the second verse that asks three questions: ‘Is this a lasting treasure / Or just a moment of pleasure /
Can I believe the magic in your sighs? / Will you still love me tomorrow.’
“The distinct phrasing used by Goffin-King in the last line of the refrain (‘When the night (caesura) meets the mor---ing sun?’) with a melisma between the syllables of ‘morning’ was converted by McCartney as ‘I (caesura) could stay with (caesura) you.’) McCartney used the refrain twice and even quoted the repetition of the same line with vocal harmony in his second refrain: ‘Tonight with words
unspoken / You say that I’m the only one / But will my heart be broken / When the sun meets the morning sun’ to (Oooh-) / You’ll be older too. (aah-) / And if you say the word / I could stay with you.’
“Not contented with the above derivations, he copied from Goffin-King in the last refrain, a demand for an answer for the questions asked: ‘I’d like to know that your love Is love I can be sure of So tell me now, and I won’t ask again / Will you still love me tomorrow me?’ to “Send me a postcard, drop me a line / Stating point of view / Yours sincerely, wasting away / Give me an answer / Fill in a form / Mine forever more / Will you still need / Will you still feed me / When I’m sixty-four?’
“Lennon commented in the 1980 Playboy interview, ‘I would never even dream of writing a song like that.’”
Having used the title for a personal purpose and explained to you its origination and where Paul plagiarized it, now I can inform that I have retitled my book where I quoted it from into The Beatles The Love You Make. The original title had strong negative meaning that turned off many fans, who cannot accept the fact.
Great news is I am serializing in full in my new Facebook page, “ARTlead Books,” for two reasons: It is for free and easily accessible to read. I have sold enough copies in the US to think I’ve been compensated enough for all the hard work and I can give it away.
This act of sharing is largely part of the preparation we, old people, engage in when we’re 64. Life is no longer endless as we feel the coming end so we must leave a legacy, hopefully positively, to be remembered by when we’re gone. This is especially true with single persons like me. Having not passed my genes, we try our best leave something useful that will carry our name through time.

LEAD-INS! Cited by this column for her 2017 lead as Best New Actress in New Generation Hero, Joyce Penas Pilarsky was nominated by the Philippine Movie Press Club in the same category for the 2018 Star Awards for Movies!... Quantum Films rereleased All About You, a Derek Ramsay and Jennylyn Mercado starrer, for Valentine’s as a direct victim of the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival advertising war!... ABS-CBN is right in exercising a news embargo on the book of a newly outed gay entertainer, which is not new, after all, as every already knew about it including the executives of the entertainment conglomerate he came from!...

WELLNESS VALENTINE CELEBRATION AT MEDSONIX THERAPY. Having a tandem Medsonix Therapy with headsets on while listening to favored love songs is a perfect way to celebrate a hassle-free Hearts Day!
Every time I’d come across entertainment columnist Dolly Anne Carvajal, I’d ask her about actor son IC Mendoza. Occasionally referring to IC as “my dalaga,” she’d update me of his recent activities, professional and personal. This shows her full acceptance of his gender preference.
The same with IC. They answer just enough to get the impression. It comes clear that love, pride and respect power the relationship between mother and son. They live their lives as mature individuals, making them an ideal tandem brand ambassador.
IC recently discovered the revolutionary Medsonix Acoustic Resonating Therapy, undoubtedly a big help to soothe the lower back pain he has been experiencing after long hours of shoots, hosting, coverages and doing public relations work, regularly playing volleyball and going to the gym.
Similarly, Dolly Anne has also tried Medsonix after repeatedly complaining of shoulder pain. She attests the therapy has been a big help to ease her mobility, especially in carrying even her shoulder bag while walking.
IC and Dolly Anne were introduced to the Medsonix Therapy at Clinica Manila at SM Megamall. The machine was brought into the country by Ateneo Graduate School of Business professor Enrique M. Soriano nearly two years ago.
The Medsonix Therapy is a non-invasive, drug-free, pain-free, safe and effective method of reliving pain and discomfort. It integrates a medical device that uses low frequency sound waves to increase blood flow and mobility, reduce inflammation, pain and relieve symptoms of many diseases and disorders.
Medsonix was developed over 10 years ago in Las Vegas, Nevada by Alphonse Cassone, who experimented with sound waves for the past 15 years. The device is registered with the US Food and Drug Administration.
Among the many medical conditions that can be addressed by the Medsonix Therapy System are arthritis, bursitis, migraine, carpal tunnel syndrome, back and joint pain, multiple sclerosis, Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, sciatica, diabetic neuropathy, lupus and peripheral vascular disease.
Patients can simply sit, relax and absorb the low frequency acoustic pressure waves generated by the Medsonix Therapy System. The treatment is scheduled for only 30 minutes per session in the convenience of an accessible location.
No preparation time is necessary. Patients do not need to disrobe or take in anything. The therapeutic procedure is safe, completely non-invasive and non-pharmaceutical. The acoustic wave form generated by Medsonix does not interfere with a pacemaker, pain pump, other implanted or electrical device.
Last year, entertainment couple Richard and Roni Merk both did Medsonix Therapy, too, after their much-publicized physical ordeal and sickness. Richard’s right foot was nearly amputated, while Roni underwent colon surgery. Medsonix helped the couple in their recovery.
Medsonix Therapy is available at Clinica Manila, second floor SM Megamall Building A. For inquiries and appointments, please call 730-3237 or 0947-5951524 or e-mail info@medsonix.com.ph

LETTERS ARE NOT ALWAYS ABOUT LOVE. Historical letters are turning up as premium lots at Leon Gallery auctions. In the last auction, “domestic” letters by Jose Rizal hammered for a record price of P10 million.
And now three historical letters written by Andres Bonifacio to Emilio Jacinto about the controversial Tejeros convention will be auctioned off on March 3. Described by León Gallery director Jaime Ponce de León as “explosive,” said letters unseated the Katipunan founder in 1897 and led to his killing.
This will be for the benefit of the Asian Cultural Center (ACC) Manila, an annual fundraising event for its fellowship program for visual artists and scholars.
The letters are about political games revolutionaries play recounting the tumultuous Tejeros convention in Cavite. A “snap election” of General Emilio Aguinaldo affected Bonifacio who founded the secret society Katipunan which later mounted the war of independence against Spain.
What’s next on the block in upcoming auctions? Perhaps a controversial romantic letter by Josephine Bracken!

As a fisherman in his hometown in Sawang, Guindulman, Bohol, multi-media artist Sam Penaso knows the formations and enclosures of waterscapes, the shapes of coral reefs and the shades of daybright fishes under the mighty sea that he translates into abstract art with authority. The frame becomes part of the art piece, grids turn into motifs of the assemblage and shadows rumble in the radius.
As a kid, Penaso learned how to spearfish — pana in Cebuano. It was his first job before he went to Manila to study Fine Arts (Major in Advertising) at the Technological University of the Philippines. His fond memories of the sea, of diving and of spearfishing became an influence and flowed into his meditative, explosive art.
As in his Stripewalker performance action and photography series, each piece of  his "Linear" exhibit — held at the Art Cube Gallery, Makati until February 1, 2018 — was imbued with high energy, intense saturations of color and deliberate exploration of the limits of his art practice. The artist's creativity was stretched as he introduced new ways of seeing the mundane.
Stripewalker originated from Penaso's TextureLines series that used highlighter hues for lines and textures that made his art come alive. In Divisoria, Penaso searched for textiles with vibrant colors, made it into a costume, thus giving the swag of Stripewalker. He travels around the world for his on-going performance cum exhibit, posing for photos at landmarks in every stop.
As his opening solo exhibition for 2018, "Linear" featured a wide array of works from sculpture to abstract painting. The use of geometric lines and shapes, as well as vibrantly contrasting psychedelic colors, offer a view of the artist's creative process in his more than two decades' journey into art. His recent works incorporate numbers and letters as he expresses his sequential development in terms of technique and use of media.
In the habit of daily painting for long hours with National Artist Vicente Manasala and Auction Superstar Ronald Ventura as templates make him prolific and productive. His concepts, art style and techniques make his art dense, discriminate and distinctively his own.
Penaso is a past grantee of the Asian Cultural Council and the International Studio and Curatorial Program in New York. Before winning First Prize in the 2016 GSIS Art Competition for painting and Third Prize for sculpture, he has made his mark as First Prize winner in the 2012 AAP Art Competition and Metrobank Young Painters Annual Third Prize winner in 2001, among accolades from other art tilts.

He enumerates and numerates the 13 Questions:

1. What fascinates you the most about art and why?
I am fascinated by the lifestyle, mostly. As an artist, your only boss is yourself, you follow your own schedule, you employ yourself. You hold your own time, you have the power choose the subject of your art, and you can do everything you can imagine about your art. The possibilities become endless in creating art, and this makes the artist lifestyle very attractive as it gives you freedom to imagine, to create, and to show to people.

2. Who is the artist who inspires you the most and why?
Inspiration often comes to me from what I experience, so I have no definite artist. Although I like different artists, depending on their artwork. This is the reason I like various artists, and that they inspire me as well, from both local and foreign areas, in different forms of media.

3. Do you paint for money or pleasure?
For pleasure. And I always do my best in every piece I create. Money comes in second, mainly as a bonus for doing what I love the most - which is creating art. The practical side of art is always present, because without money an artist cannot create art pieces, cannot obtain materials especially for installation or performance art, and so on. I think creating art for pleasure is art's or the artist's soul, and money comes as its product and then the cycle makes the two important parts of both the creative and the practical life of an artist.

4. Under what condition do you prefer to do your work and why?   
I paint during the day. I often wake up early, usually I am up by 7 a.m., and I start working on my paintings, my sculptures, and creating sketches for future art projects. I stop at 5 p.m. At nights I attend the exhibits of different artists to see their art works as well as to expose myself to the current paces in the local art scene. I also enjoy admiring the work of others, especially that of my friends and of up-and-coming artists. At the same time, this gives me time to bond with my co-artists and friends, which I think is one of the simplest yet most rewarding pleasures in life.

5. Are your works Filipino in spirit and why?
Yes. I use subjects inspired by the environment and I often include these elements in my paintings and in my sculptures. The Filipino desire to be at one with nature, to become a part of it, is a symbol I often use subliminally in my art works. As a probinsyano growing up in the province surrounded by the bounty and beauty of nature, I have always been inspired by the environment. I think this is part of our natures as Filipinos, we are connected to our roots with the environment, and this gives my art works a strong connection to Filipino themes.           

6. What future projects do you have in mind?
One of my greatest dreams is to extend the thriving local art scene in Manila and in my hometown Bohol, which is where I came from. I plan to do this as future projects, to incorporate Boholano artists into the art scene, and to create a community of artists in Bohol to expose them with the modern techniques, and expose Boholano art to the public.                                                      

7. Does criticism help you become a better artist?
Yes. It's a challenge to the artist, because the comments can give constructive criticism. An artist knows whether the comment is true or not, so it's a win-win situation for both artist and the critic.                                    

8. How do you determine when an art work is done?
When all elements are complete - color and composition, for example. It is quite difficult to explain because it always depends on the subject and an untrained eye may not be able to see what is lacking or what should be added. Experience also makes the perception of whether an artwork is complete or not, especially if you paint every day.

9. Do you associate with other artists to stay competitive or to socialize?
Yes, because you also need to mingle with other artists to create a bond but it does not mean you have to compete with them. Creating a community, enjoying the people and enjoying art most importantly makes art very significant to the life of an artist.

10. Will you describe your work space as orderly or disorderly?
Very disorderly. I rent two apartments and both are in disorder. The first one acts as my showroom where I also paint and put my finished art works. The other is like a junkshop because that is where I my scrap materials and tools for my sculptures.

11. How do you keep your art fresh?
For me, exploring new concepts, techniques, materials, and ideas keeps art fresh. This is the reason why I always change my style and my subjects, depending on the concept.

12. What is the question you'd like to ask yourself and how will you answer it?
The question is: If I did not pursue art, what type of job would I be in? And my answer always is that in an advertising company. Simple as that and this makes me grateful for choosing art.

13. How do you want to be remembered as a visual artist?
That I am a Filipino artist who came from Guindulman, Bohol.

SYNCHRONICITY TAKES YASMIEN KURDI. How do you go on a Valentine’s date when you are the the lead actress of a drama series set to pilot during Love Month?
In the case of Yasmien Kurdi, lead actor of GMA 7’s new afternoon drama series Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka as helmed by Neil Del Rosario that pilots on February 26, she has no option but to do it by chance. It so happened that her husband, pilot Rey Soldevilla Jr., was flying to Japan on said day and she had a taping break so they took the opportunity to spend it in romantic Japan as his Valentine’s gift to his lovely wife.
“Sabi ng husband ko, hindi raw naman niya matitiis na malamig ang Hearts Day ko. Kahit super lamig ngayon sa Japan, no problem dahil kasama ko ang asawa ko. We will enjoy mag-loving-loving doon,” Yazmien coyly admits.
Aside from Yasmien, Mike Tan, Jackie Rice and Martin del Rosario make up the lead cast.  Ms Gina Alajar leads the supporting cast with Ina Feleo, Charee Pineda, Seth dela Cruz, Caprice Cayetano, Mike “Pekto” Nacua, Sharmaine Centera-Buencamino and and Catherine Rem.
A preview of the advocacy series clipped to “advocaserye” in the grand presscon of Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka revealed a clear and clean videography that assures viewers’ satisfaction. It is full of highlights that will engross followers with the narrative.

‘LOST BOYS’ FIND HOME. It’s official! Tale of the Lost Boys director Joselito Altarejos’ new Taiwan-shot feature headlined by millennials Oliver Aquino and Taiwanese actor Ta Su will have its Philippine premiere in competition at the Sinag Maynila 2018 from March 7 to 13.
His first Asian film, Tale of the Lost Boys traces the gay gender preference as based in the separation from their mothers regardless of nationality and how they can find their identity in reconcialation.
Featured at the 4th & Proud Yangon Film Festival in Myanmar from February 1 to 4, Tale of Lost Boys is director Jay’s reboot to gender films that expose the LGBT experiences and culture for the desired acceptance in society. He got his wish to have a theatrical run in the Philippines.

FRANCIS M AND THE SMITHS IN UKELELE. Over 150 fuchsia-topped Ukulele Underground Philippines musicians from three generations of different levels (beginners/ intermediate/ advanced) performed together some of Original Pilipino Music’s best-loved hits in Pasinaya 2018 on February 4, 2018 at the CCP open grounds.
The all-Pinoy repertoire listed the rousing mashup of Heber Bartolome/Francis M’s “Tayo’y Mga Pinoy”/“Mga Kababayan” and covers of Sugarfree’s “Hari ng Sablay,” Aegis’ “Halik” and VST & Company’s “Tayo’y Magsayawan.”
Kawayan 7 rendered two original compositions, “Ewan Ko Ba” and “Ako’y Pinoy Ika’y Pinoy” plus two covers. “Himig ng Pag-ibig” in reggae version & “Kaleidoscope World.” Para sa Sining (Alpas/Adinkra Lumads Djembe Community/Pintig) also presented Spoken Word with original World Music songs with the audience joining in the sing and dance along.
This was organized and they were tutored by Filipino culture forward Lawyer Dulce Punzalan of Kawayan 7 band.
A sub-genre of the acoustic idiom that evolved in Hawaii, the ukulele sound is now the acclaimed music trend of millennials in the metro. Millennials feel cool and cerebral playing the handy nylon-stringed, easy-on-the-fingers guitar.
With Moira Dela Torre’s “Titibo-tibo,” the ukulele-driven fun track as plucked by Lolito Go about a young lesbian behaving like a lady upon falling in love with a guy, bagged First Prize at “Himig Handog 2017.” It is now the music motif of the Jodi Sta. Maria, Robin Padilla and Richard Yap starrer, “Sana Dalawa Ang Puso.”
Perennials attribute the craze to the fascination of two Beatles for the downsized instrument. Paul McCartney crossfades with ukulele notes in the solo-recorded track of “Ram On.” George Harrison fades out with ukulele chords in the “Beatles’” digital rework of the John Lennon composition, “Free As A Bird.” In the George tribute, Paul introduced the Quiet Beatle’s best song, “Something,” with a ukulele.
Eugene Domingo gets to express cinematic heartbreaks strumming the ukulele while dubsmashing Jona’s “Forever if Not Enough” in “Ang Babae sa Septic Tank 2.” She is spotted strumming and/or holding that she had claimed as her own by giving it the pet mane of “ugelele” every chance in her GMA 7 shows. This revival is really up with us.
Perhaps a reaction against loud music, “Pagod na ang tenga ng tao sa booming music – pagod na ang soul natin kaya we seek for an alternative form,” theorizes acknowledged jazz guitarist Bobby Fider.
No doubt death metal guitarist Rio Bertillo Mata of Neverending band, a regular source of music details for this writer, has no input on this issue.
But not Bobby. “Music, as in all art, is a matter of action and reaction. Good art transcends spacetime. The uke has been around since... forever. And its revival attests to the rightful place in world music history,” he shares.
In his case, its soothing sound serves as “a great stress reliever” especially when played by his daughter, the self-efficient singer/musician Christi Fider who just released a ukulele adaptation of LANY’s “Yea, Baby No Way.”
We’ll find out soon enough if Cristi picks dad’s offer to coach her in uke-playing.

DESIRING TO GROPE COCO MARTIN? Apo Whang-Od, traditional tattooist of Buscalan, Kalinga, Mountain Province, so badly wanted to practice her art of batok on Coco Martin, the lead actor of FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano and the new Ang Panday. They finally met in a posh hotel in Quezon City when she was airlifted to the metro by helicopter to join a traditional art showcase.
But she failed to mark him as he had no time. For sure, it’s that or Coco does not want to frustrate the old artist who has this habit of groping male clients. Dakma? Yes, this freebie of feeling about with certainly, not uncertainty, his crotch with the hand.
The reported 100-year-old mambabatok attracts locals and foreigners who want to get inked by her as she can get extinct anytime soon, taking with her the bragging rights to witness or experience how she executes her rare art.
Most famous for her tattooing art, she is also said to be notorious for her habit of grabbing the crotches of her male guests. I thought the old lady who loves wearing flower-print pant with her Igorot accessories is a groper. I took this asempty buzz until Nhoie Gurrobat posted on Facebook an unapologetic album doing her “art,” a naughty grin on her heavily wrinkled face, her dentures showing.
It is the kind of lurid tale shared by her unwitting victims. In this age of mobile phones, their companions keep evidence of Apo Whang-Od caught in the act, shared on Facebook without hesitation.
Nhoie collected all the ‘dakma’ photos floating on social media to show the naughty side of the self-claimed, 100-year-old tattoo artist, who has not claimed her century-old benefits as she has not presented her birth certificate.
Although it looks like it is not entirely against the will of her mostly half-naked male clients as shown in the 10 or so photos in the file, they appear surprised and letting out tremendous nervousness with a polite smile, some with a wild scream.
Does she derive pleasure from it? She gets away with the shocking act as play, no doubt, because of her advanced age. But the frequency in which she does it strongly suggests it is part of her ritual — or it is already an addiction?

"Abstinence. Use protection. Be God-centered," lead actor Mike Tan authoritatively shares in a mild voice in the role of Marco Angeles.
The character talks about how to avoid the dreaded social disease HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), the subject of the GMA 7's new advocaserye on Afternoon Prime, Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka, to pilot on February 26, after The Stepsisters. The new series is directed by Neal del Rosario with Roy Iglesias as creative director.
Although wearing a wedding band during the grand press conference, Mike stays super secretive that he had married longtime, non-showbiz girlfriend Cris on January 22, 2018, in Rodriguez, Rizal. She requested him not to talk about it during the media huddle.
The grand presscon went on like clockwork, without the usual rush and push associated with such an event. Cast members entered the venue distributing red wristbands to invitees before taking their assigned seats at the presidential table. Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka was previewed showing the clean videography and clear narrative with their exciting dramatic moments. The open forum opened and ended with me wishing for it to go on some more.

Stars and their stripes
Mike, Yasmien Kurdi as Thea Balagtas, Jackie Rice as Ava Imperial and mentor Ms. Gina Alajar as Donya Adelaida "Adele" Angeles as headliners make it appear like an alumni reunion of StarStruck, GMA 7's lauded star reality search.
"No, we weren't conscious of designing the series as a reunion of sorts of StarStruck alumni," clarifies Roy, a classmate of mine at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.
"I guess with the passage of time, they have already lost the Starstruck label so that their origin no longer matters in our casting decision and that what is already our prime consideration is their thespic skills and experience that they can bring to the table," adds Roy.
Yasmien plays a simple provincial girl with a promising career as a public accountant. She falls in love with Marco and marries him. Eventually, they are blessed with fraternal twins whom they love very much.
"Tutok po ako dito sa first-ever advocaserye ng GMA Network tungkol sa HIV na nakakalungkot malaman na ang Filipinas ang number one na may kasong ganito. Part na ako ng advocacy na ito dahil gusto kong i-impart sa mga manonood kung ano talaga ang HIV. Hindi po dapat ipagwalang-bahala ng bawat pamilya ang kasong ito dahil sa findings ngayon ang babata pa — 13 to14 years old, may HIV na," Yasmien explains her commitment to the show.
"Ito ‘yung nakikipag-sex without protection at too late na para malaman nilang nasalinan sila ng HIV virus. Ten years ago pa, tinawagan na ako para sumali sa advocacy na ito. Tinanggap ko agad ito lalo ngayon na may asawa at anak na ako at gusto kong malaman kung paano ko ii-explain ito sa mag-ama ko at sa family ko, lalo na ang daddy ko na napaka-conservative na akala niya kung ano ang nakikita niya sa TV na role ko, naniniwala siya," she adds.
Mike, a handsome and charming lad who falls in love with Thea and marries her despite his mother's refusal, remains independent and grounded even though he was born rich.
Jackie is Ava Imperial, Marco's beautiful and socialite ex-girlfriend. She shuffles to and from the United States for pleasure and business. Even though she flirts around, she is still bent on settling with Marco.
For sure, Martin del Rosario as Lawrence de Leon is a network shifter who found his well-deserved stardom in the Kapuso network. He had to lose weight to couple his acting mettle with the appropriate look of a covert HIV sufferer.
Martin is Thea's college friend from a well-off family. Secretly, he is in love with her even though he dates a lot of women and develops HIV from this.
Gina is happy to be able to act again and not be helming a series. She misses bonding with her co-actors including daughter Ina Feleo, who is Sofia Angeles in the series. Her responsibility is bigger as a director. As an actor, she just follows what the director asks her to do .
The series aims to raise HIV awareness and educate viewers on its effects upon a person's life through an intriguing drama--that even in our weaknesses, strength can be found if we only rise and have the courage to fight for our loved ones and ourselves.
Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka follows the life of Thea, whose blissful life after marrying Marco and raising their fraternal twins together, shatters when she tests positive for HIV, Because she does not know who she got it from, Marco is led to believe that she cheated on him and files for legal separation, taking their kids with him. Her disease worsens and she loses her will to live. When she unexpectedly meets her daughter a few years later, she finds it in herself to fight more than just HIV — her greatest opponent, herself.
The supporting cast brings to life this revealing drama are made up Charee Pineda as Rosanna "Anna" Balagtas, Seth dela Cruz as Maurice B. Angeles, Caprice Cayetano as Angela B. Angeles, Mike "Pekto" Nacua as Tantoy Cruz, Sharmaine Buencamino as Magdalena "Magda" Balagtas, and Catherine Rem as Olga Cruz.

Shattering myths
"We consciously did not use gays as lead characters because we wanted to shatter the myth that HIV/AIDS is an exclusively gay disease," explained Roy.
Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka brings to light the struggles of a woman who is HIV positive and how she battles her own frailties and demons in life.
An old buzz leaked that Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka was inspired by the story of Ma. Dolzura Cortez, the first Filipino AIDS victim who came out in the open to tell about her life and how she acquired the AIDS virus. She died in 1992. Her story made it into the big screen, The Dolzura Cortez Story, megged by Laurice Guillen.
This first movie on AIDS provided "a name and a face" for the 50 recorded lives that were lost to AIDS in 1992. It was used as a focus of discussion by some health care personnel to express their thoughts, opinions and recommendations regarding the use of cinema as a powerful tool for AIDS information dissemination.
Roy also explained they did not use the story of a real HIV sufferer because that would be tantamount to invasion of privacy plus the need to go through the difficult process of getting the consent of other people who may be closely related to the person's story.
"Also, by not using an individual person's life story, we're free to include other issues related to the HIV condition that may not be found in just one case or subject," the creative director adds. "By fictionalizing the character, we come up with a composite of other cases, something that we cannot do when we are boxed in by a single case."

Honoring direk Maryo
delos Reyes
Roy's official position at the Kapuso network is creative director for Drama. Part of his duties is to help develop and appraise all drama shows — soap opera and anthology. It is different from creative consultant as there are a lot of creative consultants in the Drama Group.
"Each show is under a consultant," points out Roy.
Director Maryo delos Reyes, who passed away this year due to a heart attack was the original director of Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka. His suggestions for the revisions on the first draft script were followed, which found their way to the pilot show.
Many have contributed to the success of GMA Network today, but Direk Maryo's contribution has a lasting impact. "He was instrumental in the development of our talents. He handled shows that brought honor to the Network, such as Magdusa Ka and Someone to Watch Over Me, both of which were cited abroad in international TV competitions," Roy explains.
His name lent prestige to the Network. Not many know that he was the only senior veteran director of the network.
"As I said in my eulogy, his death — following those of Gil Portes, Soxie Topacio and lately followed by Argel Joseph — seemed to signal the beginning of the end of an era in Philippine TV and film history," Roy pays tribute.
GMA Network proudly unveils its first-ever advocaserye in Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka on Afternoon Prime on Monday, February 26.

Gonzales, 45, who signs as “Paul Gonzales,” had to go through erasing his 8-by-15-foot mural entitled Eternal Love with only the face of Jesus Christ, his nailed palms spread, one bloodied, across the eternity of the stunning sunrise from the shoreline of his beloved Baler, Aurora, that served as background of the Adventist church pulpit.
A rare artist who boldly tackles Bible themes in the time of demonic subjects and sexual motifs, Gonzales has had a series of one-man shows that include “Saints and Martyrs” at Adamson University Museum in February 2015; “Verbo” at Art Asia, SM Megamall, in October 2016 and “Pasyong Mahal” at the San Beda Museum in March 2017.
Painted two years ago, the artwork was made for church board members who wanted a plain background for their upcoming anniversary.
When the time came, Gonzales hoped to hold back his tears when he obliterated his painting. He knows about shedding tears too well, after all.
Suffering from a risky psychological condition of chronic depression with suicidal tendencies, this condition is the biggest cross of his life. Although pathological, it is hardest to conquer.
He considers it a blessing that he can cry like a child, a blessing from some loosely remembered experience in a controlled condition. Born premature at the high risk of eight months, Gonzales spent the first few weeks of his fledgling life away from his mother in an incubator.
Smiling, but his heart in tears, the erasing pushed through. He shares, “It was the closest thing to suicide. I didn’t want to show them that I was crying...only when I got home and in the privacy of our room.”
With the work now a conceptual abstract with the new title, Secularism, the Spirit of Iconoclasm, Gonzales preaches against the iconoclastic mindset in their church.
“Still they refused to understand,” he confesses.
“I never thought for the longest time they were thinking of my painting as something that would confuse the youth and were looking for break to erase the image and change it into a Garden of Eden,” he expresses the frustration.
“The actual erasing was not that painful compared to the fact my brothers and sisters in Christ talked against my artwork behind my back. It started when someone commented on why there was an image on our pulpit,” he explains.
The real reason is the iconoclastic mindset of most Adventists. They base it on the third commandment of not making any graven image and worshipping it.
During the Reformation, its father, Martin Luther, was not against paintings at the pulpits. He even commissioned artists to grace his church.
“It was the fanatic Andreas Bodenstein von Karlstadt that started that iconoclastic mindset of burning images and paintings in the 16th century,” clarifies Gonzales. “Sadly this mindset stayed among some fanatical and conservative members. It is not even a part of our doctrines.
“Now they will be kneeling before the lord of secularism. One thing good about iconoclasm is it leads us to today’s culture of secularism. That’s the reason the more demonic and secular an art is, the more epic it is,” he sums up.
This extraordinary heart and mind and soul show in Gonzales’ answers to the 13 questions he picked:

1. As a visual artist, what is the one thing the public does not know about you?
Other people don’t know that I was legally blind. I got this condition when I went to an optometrist and had my eyes examined. After, she went towards the door and looked outside and asked who accompanied me. I told her no companion and asked why. She asked how I got to her clinic as I’m legally blind with 1,500 OS and 1,300 OD. What? She’s right! When I wore eyeglasses, I found out that the world is wider in high definition.

2. What fascinates you the most about art and why?
Its power to communicate, to express, to influence, to fascinate, to control, to motivate, to instill ideology, nationalism and emotion. The delicate power of art in a wrong hand gave us the holocaust as Hitler who used the symbol of the swastika to inspire and instill the superiority of the Aryan race.

3.Who is the artist who inspires you the most and how?
Peter Paul Rubens. I love his point of view on his role as an artist. He believes that as an artist he was the channel of heavens blessing of beauty to the world. If he stopped or became lazy, he would be depriving the world of God’s blessings channeled through him.

4. What training did you get as an artist?
I was trained informally in my skills in art but I believe in training the mind more is much greater than training the hands so I ate art books and any books like cookie monster.

5. Do you paint for money or pleasure?
For pleasure. For me, art is very much like making love. That needs no elaboration. He he.

6. Who do you think is the best Filipino visual artist and why?
None other than the great Juan Luna. Why? Simply because he is the true Indio Bravo beating the greatest artists of the world during his time. With this, he gained the respect of the King of Spain and even Picasso stated that he was the greatest of all painters evident by his constant visits to the Royal Museum of Spain with only one reason “to visit the ‘Spoliarium.’”

7. Under what condition do you prefer to do your work and why?
I prefer to do my works in the most extreme of condition, like under the scourging sun, noisy places where lots of people can disturb me. I don’t know why but I work well under stressful conditions.

8. Are your works Filipino in spirit and why?
Yes. Like every Filipino, it reflects fusion of culture and colonial mentality. I think nothing is more Filipino.

9. What future projects do you have in mind?
To write and publish a coffee-table book and do some graffiti in Baler. Shh.

10. Does criticism help you become a better artist?
A lot. I believe all artists have some blindness as what they are doing is already the best only to find out after some years how raw and immature their old works were. Criticism can hasten the growth and development of an artist. So, I love it when someone criticizes my works it opens my blind side.

11. How do you determine when an art work is done?
I know when I’m done making love, don’t I?

12. Do you associate with other artists to stay competitive or to socialize?
To socialize. I love interacting with other artists to exchange ideas. I just love the feeling that I’m still normal since there are other people who think and perceive things like me. I don’t feel weird when with fellow artists.

13. Will you describe your work space as orderly or disorderly?
My workplace is a total mess to any ordinary human being, but as an artist I work well in this situation. I find order in chaos. Every time someone fixes my workplace I always get mad since my mind will be at a loss. I cannot not find my brush. Where’s the thali green shit? What a day! I can’t work like this. Hell!

Nominated for Best New Actress of the Year at the 2018 Star Awards for Movies held recently at the Newport Performing Arts Theater in Resorts World Manila, Joyce Penas-Pilarsky felt sad for herself when the trophy went to Joanna Ampil of Ang Larawan in a tie with Pia Wurtzbach of Revengers Squad. “Maybe next time,” the positive thinker Joyce shares. “I will have to be better.”
Then, Joyce heard her name called out as Star of the Night in a tie with Kim Chiu. Wearing a lemon yellow, self-designed cocktail dress accentuated by precious stones in a floral design, she went up the stage gracefully, overjoyed. She praised, “God is so good. To God be the glory!”
According to the former president Fernan de Guzman of the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC), which gave the awards, the delayed edited telecast will air on ABS-CBN on March 18, 2018 from 10:15 to 11:45 p.m. The new PMPC president is Joe Barrameda.

NAR CABICO ALSO RISES. GMA Artist Center star Nar Cabico, who wrote and performed “Natapos Tayo,” the official theme song for the film All Of You, won the Star Award for Movie Original Theme Song of the Year. Its message of longing and regret were gratified through his strong vocals, serving the finishing touch to the bittersweet narrative. “Natapos Tayo” and “Gaga” (the theme song of The One That Got Away) that Nar also composed can be streamed and downloaded on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon and various digital stores nationwide.

WHERE’S ‘CRISTY FERMINUTE?’ When Aksyon TV shifts to ESPN at 4 p.m. on weekdays, it stops to air Cristy Fermin’s Cristy Ferminute after Raffy Tulfo’s Wanted. This has been taking place even before the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics. I thought this was an operational issue of the ABS-CBN TV Plus digital box that I use for my television unit.
But I found out it is an internal issue of TV5. 2nd Ave. disappeared from the box and had resumed airing, now with intermittent signal. The case of Aksyon TV is not the same as it broadcasts regularly as ESPN with no problem at all.
TV5 must assure regular broadcasts of Cristy Ferminute if it is serious in building viewership. This is minimum. And Cristy can help deliver this as she has a big following that none of their anchors can deliver. It includes this columnist who has had no access to Nay Cristy for the longest time, forcing me to report the trouble so TV5 can correct and/or troubleshoot. I am sure TV5 needs viewership badly and to program an on-and-off is not the way to do it.

12 NOMIMATIONS FOR GMA NETWORK. In the history of Philippine broadcast, GMA Network received an unprecedented three New York Fest gold medals for GMA Public Affairs programs Reporter’s Notebook, Front Row and Reel Time in 2017.
It looks like the Kapuso Network is headed for another global excellence swift in the “2018 World’s Best TV and Films” Competition. Twelve of its entries out of the 17 contenders from the Philippines are shortlisted this year including a nomination for Jessica Soho, the only Filipino broadcast journalist who made it to the list, and “Alaala: A Martial Law Special” for the Docudrama category.
A Peabody-awardee, Jessica has been nominated for the Best News Anchor category. Her program, GMA News TV’s flagship newscast State of the Nation with Jessica Soho was shortlisted for Best Newscast for its “Marawi Liberation: War is Over” coverage. The newscast documented the liberation of Marawi City after a months-long siege of the city by pro-Islamic State group militants.
Aired in commemoration of the 45th anniversary of President Ferdinand Marcos’ declaration of Martial Law, “Alaala” featured the journey of activist and award-winning screenwriter Bonifacio Ilagan as portrayed by Alden Richards.
Other nominations are Kara David’s “Sundalong Aso” for the Human Concerns category; Atom Araullo’s “Silang Kinalimutan” for the International Affairs category; “Batang Bomba” in the Best Public Affairs Program category; Reporter’s Notebook’s “Yapak sa Pusod ng Dagat” in the Community Portraits category; Reel Time’s “Gutom” in the Human Concerns category and “Hawla” in the Health/Medical Information category;
“Brigada” for “Combat Camera Team” in the Current Affairs category; and the Network’s Program Support Department for “Kulayan Natin ang Summer” in the Art Direction and “EDSA 31st Anniversary Spot” in the Promotion/Open and IDs category and in the Graphic Design in Promotion/Open and IDs category.

VALENTINE’S DAY WELL-SPENT FOR DR. VICKI BELO AND ALDEN RICHARDS. Doctor-of-the-stars Vicki Belo and matinee idol Alden Richards were also touched after talking to a number of kids who shared with them their dreams and ambitions. Adrien, 9, diagnosed with leukemia, told them he wanted to be a singer when he grows up. He even sang a few lines for Dr. Vicki and Alden. Zamzam, a shy 10-year old who is also diagnosed with leukemia, said he wants to become a doctor to help cure the sick.
Instead of doing what every other person does on Valentine’s Day, Dr. Belo and Alden tweaked their Day of Hearts celebration a bit by deciding to spend time with children afflicted with cancer and their families to spread cheer, joy and love to them.
The celebrity doctor, accompanied by Alden, surprised at least 70 children at the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) in Quezon City with food, toys, hygiene kits, coloring books, pillows and other learning materials. The duo visited the Children’s Cancer Ward, then went room to room checking up on the kids and their parents.
The Children’s Cancer Ward was actually donated by Dr. Vicki in the name of her parents, Ike and Nena Belo. During the occasion, Dr. Belo also gifted the patients, their families and the health workers at the Hematology Ward with a 40-inch TV and DigiBox for their enjoyment. The surprise was received with much delight.
Dr. Belo understands that every bit of entertainment the patients and their families can have is much valued as they battle life and death situations daily in this hospital. At one point, Dr. Vicki and Alden became emotional after talking to Andre, a boy in very critical condition. The two offered prayers for Andre and his parents.
Dr. Vicki shared on her Instagram account how she felt after visiting the kids. “It was indeed, a Valentine’s Day well-spent. I always believed that time is the greatest gift a person can give and I ‘m so honored that these kids gave me a few hours of their precious time. Thank you, thank you. You‘ve really touched my heart. Thank you as well to Alden for cheering the kids at the PCMC. It meant a lot to them.“

NO COUNTER DIVORCE BILL. For a bill to be passed into law, both the Senate and Congress must sign. A committee of the House of Representatives submitted a divorce bill for deliberations at the plenary level. But “No counterpart bill,” says Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto.
“I’m not aware of any senator interested. Unless I’m wrong. An amendment to the grounds for annulment might stand a better chance of passage,” he adds.
Like Sotto, Senators Joel Villanueva, Panfilo Lacson and Francis Escudero also expressed apprehensions on legalizing divorce. Even the Senate website states no lawmaker has filed a divorce bill in the chamber.

TVCs THAT LEAD. Nido — The still nameless Nido boy, cute as usual with his ultra sweet smile, is back! This time mom picks him up from dad’s place. He plays reconciliator, aware of his parents’ status, by making them say “thank you” and hold hands. Nothing earth-shaking there, but it manages to create warm feelings in the Heart Month. Nido is not only a health giver, but can keep a family together. Nothing funny or attention-grabbing about this either, just an honest portrayal of life as we idealize it.
Nestle Creamy White — Now the actors are well-known, real son Daniel Padilla, who is doing all the talking, and real mom Karla Estrada, the emoting. She does nothing but smile and shed tears. The Nestle Creamy White has been added Nestle Milk to remove its bitterness. Daniel in a very kind way recalls how mother and son managed to deal with a hard life with love. This TVC works well with the high degree of realism and direct approach. The Daniel we see in it is how he carries himself in real life – a kind, mom-loving man.

“When we first met,” speech-language therapist Rosanna Henares Angeles recalls, “I could sense David [not his real name] wanted to say so much, but all he could produce was ‘dadada.’”

Rosanna  left her lucrative advertising career and began studying speech pathology because her own son, Vigo, couldn’t find a good speech therapist living in the Philippines. She graduated Cum Laude in B.S. Speech Pathology and now helps other children with speech and behavioral issues.

Rosanna provides s professional, friendly and interactive environment at the TalkActive Therapy Center Philippines, which is largely due to her own experience as a parent, therapist and professional. She has since turned into a full-time mom to her children, one of whom needed intensive physical, occupational and speech therapy. Her personal experience led her to be an advocate of early intervention. 
Some children may experience difficulties paying attention when their sensory needs are not met. Some crave hard work such as climbing ropes, doing the wheelbarrow, jumping on trampolines before they can calm down and provide adequate focus to the task of learning.
This does not mean, however, that these children aren’t intelligent. It only means that the information fed to their brains from their senses are not properly organized or processed.
Now David and her son can talk up a storm — they have turned talkative. She once asked David where he went to school and he answered, “TalkActive!” This puts a smile on her face. Rossana’s changing the world, and now has a place for her patients to call home.
 
ORGANIZATIONAL SETUP. Offering speech-language therapy, TalkActive Therapy Center opened in May 2017. It also offers occupational therapy for children who need help achieving independence doing their life’s occupations like eating, bathing, dressing, going to the toilet and writing.
TalkActive Therapy Center can help with these basic concerns. Offering speech-language therapy and occupational therapy, it has 14 therapists, 13 females and one male, all called “Teacher,” followed by his/her nickname.
They are all speech-language therapists (SLPs) and occupational therapists (OTs) with solid credentials. They are either graduates of the grueling courses of B.S. Speech Pathology or B.S. Occupational Therapy at either the University of the Philippines College of Allied Medical Professions (CAMP), UP-CAMP at the UP-Manila campus or University of Sto. Tomas.
For the second year, Team TalkActive tackled Team Building/Eating/Outing where they screamed, laughed and dared at the Tree Top Adventure at Camp John Hay in Baguio City.
The children undergo special trainings such as when Acroyoga expert and co-founder of Shambhala Barcelona yogawear Amanda Quiambao visited Manila and held a short yoga session at TalkActive Therapy Center.
And the center is growing exponentially.  In the 2016 Christmas party, they were four in staff. In 2017, they were 12.  That means the 2017 Christmas party was thrice as fun. Talk about being all TalkActive!
TalkActive Therapy Center opens to a non-complicated reception area with just talk balloons made of wood and with some items required by a TalkActive person. If lucky, Rosanna will over the counter meeting a prospective student and companion with a sweet and warm smile, ready to answer any concern. Nothing could be more welcoming.
Parents, whether the mother or the father, or the guardians, have a role to do in the therapy. The direct source of love and caring for the student, their involvement is required indirectly like providing positive motivation and reinforcement specially in the home setting.  
Although the mother usually accompanies the student, fathers are encouraged active participation. As George Elliot thinks, “It’s a father’s duty to give his sons a fine chance.”
“I see mothers and sons often. But once in a while, a father and son will make their presence felt. This father’s commitment inspires and seeing his eyes light up when the teacher gives feedback is wonderful to witness,” according to Red Wisdom.
 
INSIDE OUT. TalkActive Therapy Center is a child-friendly play learning area that has slip-proof foamed floors, no sharp edges and all-rounded corners. The climbing wall has lively colored steps, and a safety-proofed slide ends in a cream-colored tub lined with light green upholstery half-filled with multi-colored plastic balls.
To deliver results, teachers use a mix of science and art to make the student understand and learn. A typical interaction goes like this:
 
Teacher Nana: David, when you say L, where do you put your tongue?
David: Put it up.
Teacher Nana: Good. Don’t forget to practice your L, okay?
David: Yes Teacher. Look...LANGAW.
 
Teacher Ana tried to increase a student’s sitting span. She brushed his body to satisfy sensory needs.
Student recites the alphabet then blurts out “L is for LAGOT!”
 
Instant rapport between the student and teacher is aimed at and created. Students are allowed privacy so their names and photos are not public stuff. If there is a need to post for an important reason, permission of a parent or guardian is required. They are conscientious to protect identities.
Therapy session is weekly as agreed upon with the student’s parent/s or guardian. And it does not go on forever. When the student’s objective is achieved such as a repertoire of 7-word sentences, asking and answering questions and telling stories, therapy ends unless extended mutually.
A parent’s main concern such as stuttering is evaluated. Teacher Eya and a male student quickly found a point of shared interest: drawing. His father reports that he worked on his gift during the whole Christmas break and was so excited to start his session last January. He is making wonderful progress now.
Gadgets such as iPads are not allowed at TalkActive Therapy Center as they have the ability to unfocus a student’s ability to the learning task on hand. If a student arrives early and has to wait for his session to start, he has to make do with what is allowed such as clay.
 
SUPPORT SYSTEM. Scarlet Snow, daughter of Dr. Hayden Kho and Dr. Vicki Belo, Rosanna’s aunt, recently gifted the TalkActive Therapy Center with a table/easel with a yellow top and red legs. Teacher Kaye wants to turn it into a Sensory Table. They will show it to precocious Scarlet when she visits. “When will that be?” Aunt Rosanna inquires. She tempts, “The sand table and swings await you, dear Scarlet!”
Rosanna gets full support for her life-defining endeavor from the Henares and Angeles families. Even Renaissance Man Larry Henares gets involved in motivating the teachers. He made their day by treating the Wednesday therapists to candies last Halloween, but ended up eating all the chocomallows!
Rosanna and her teachers’ attitude towards what she calls her vocation is summed up in the words she shares with her teachers: “Give them your gift! Make sure that each time they walk out your door, they should be a little more ready to face the world.”
Rosanna shares, “Usually we have mixed feelings about saying goodbye. Mostly they are happy thoughts because once you couldn’t communicate and now you can. We will always love you, David!”
And Vigo, who is 17, now has gained a workable degree of independence of action and self-assurance. He’s on his way to adulthood.
 
For inquiries, the TalkActive Therapy Center is at 903A Timog St. Barangka Drive, Mandaluyong City (just over the bridge from Rockwell Makati). Contact them through landline 6350133 and mobile 09556894686.

BREAKING NEWS! Jose Joya's Space Transfiguration (1959) was sold for an eye-popping buyer's premium of P112.28 million in a 20-minute bidding contest at Leon Gallery's The Asian Cultural Council Philippines Art Auction 2018, undeniably making history as the highest ever paid for Philippine Modern Art!
"We are hoping so," positively projected Leon Gallery director Jaime Ponce de Leon when asked by this writer if he thought Jose Joya's "most important work," the iconic Space Transfiguration, would breach the current record on the night of the preview of the auction as curated by Lizza Guerrero Nakpil.
With a starting bid of P22 million, it was the highest priced among the 150 lots.
Anita Magsaysay-Ho's 48-by-60-inch, oil-on-canvas Fish Harvest at Dawn (1979), with a starting bid of P6 million, held the previous record at P54 million in 2015 until May 2017 as hammered at Leon Gallery.
When Ang Kuikok's 40-by-80-inch, oil-on-canvas Fishermen (1961) was put under the hammer with a minimum bid of P12 million in June 2017, also at Leon Gallery, it grabbed the record at P65 million.
Now this is the record to beat. Space Transfiguration is a much bigger painting and had a minimum bid of P22 million.

AN ASTONISHING SHOWCASE OF PHILIPPINE MODERN ART. Brimming with classic, modern and contemporary masterpieces, the lots certified for authenticity list Anita Magsaysay-Ho's Tahip (1960), Bencab's only portrait of ex-wife Caroline Kennedy, Andres Bonifacio's historically important letters, an anatomically correct nude in molave of a Colonial crucifix of Jesus Christ, and exquisite furniture from the Ramon Villegas and Don Isauro Gabaldon estates. It had the power to make any serious collector overspend.
"When you see one, you've seen them all," comments art aficionado Rommel Earl Digo when I observed that previewers were mostly eating and chatting instead of viewing the lots. Painter Sherwin Paul Gonzales raved over the pancit from the sumptuous buffet table as "delicious" and the roast beef as "tender."
Ponce de Leon met me at the entrance and guided me through the halls. He introduced me to antiquarian Martin Imperial Tinio. The crowd included A-lister millennial and perennial previewers. Global fashion designer Josie Natori, Ayala Corp chair and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala and wife Lizzie, art and culture activist Maribel Ongpin, designer Rajo Laurel, fashion icon Tingting Cojuangco, glass sculptor Ramon Orlina, actor Diether Ocampo, artist Sam Penaso, historian Xiao Chua, artist Mav Rufino, Lifestyle Channel exec Ces Drilon, Lopez Museum's Mercedes Lopez and Maritess Pineda were among the well-heeled and best-dressed.

AWARD WINNER. Prize winner at the 1959 Art Association of the Philippines' Annual Exhibition and Competition, the magnificent 60-by-70-inch, oil-on-canvas Space Transfiguration has been more defined and deliberated, harked and hailed, than other museum pieces both here and abroad.
Joya faced off with Abstract Expressionism in a two-year study grant in the United States, painting Space Transfiguration upon his return.
Inspired by NASA's initial crack to reach the moon, art critic Alice Guillermo once suggested Space Transfiguration marks a vital period in the evolution of Joya's career when he started experimentations toward larger scale works. He eventually pursued it as his best works were large formats.
The most grandiose is the five-meter-by-eight-meter Ang Pagdiriwang mural, known as the "largest abstract painting in the Philippines," at the main lobby of the Philippine International Convention Center where Benedicto "Bencab" Cabrera assisted.
It is a remarkable work as far as the ACC is concerned as Joya was its first grantee. The former Ford Foundation, ACC has been aiding Filipino artists and scholars through grants since 1963. Over 6,000 grants have been given to individuals and organizations.

POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE. Joya is a multimedia artist who distinguished himself by creating an authentic Filipino abstract idiom that transcended foreign influences. Espousing the value of kinetic energy, spontaneity in painting, which became significant artistic values in Philippine art, his paintings clearly show his mastery of "gestural painting" where paint is applied intuitively and spontaneously, in broad brush strokes, using brushes or spatula or directly squeezed from the tube and splashed across the canvas.
He was conferred the National Artist for visual arts in 2003, eight years after passing on, for his pioneering efforts in developing Filipino abstract art.
Space Transfiguration is always mentioned in his legacy of a large body of work of consistent excellence.
Space Transfiguration had the best chance to breach the Philippine record in this auction as it is artistically Joya's most important work, the largest in size with the highest minimum bid among the strong but distant contenders.
And it delivered. But buyer information is strictly confidenrial at Leon Gallery.
The National Gallery of Singapore and Ateneo Gallery are Joya's eager and important collectors. If Space Transfiguration is acquired by a foreign buyer, this means the Philippines loses ownership of an important Filipino painting that is declared a National Treasure.
Testifying that Philippine modern srt is what powers the current boom in the Philippine auction industry, it also undeniably validated Leon Gallery's bragging rights as the source of certified record holders.
It was never Juan Luna's A Do… Va La Nave? which was twice wrongly reported in the media by the auction house that sold it as record holder.
If Leon Gallery is making headway in the auction industry, it is due to high credibility, excellent public relations and the innovative push and pull of Philippine art and Filipino artists.

XANDER FORD PH'S MOST GOOGLED. Xander Ford's major physical transformation courtesy of the amazing hands of plastic surgeon Dr. Eric Yapjuangco of The Icon Clinic lands him on the top spot of Google Philippines' most searched personalities in its male category.
As a result of his much talked about and impressive transformation which aired on national television on ABS-CBN's top-rating weekly magazine show, Korina Sanchez-Roxas' Rated K, Xander instantly became a worldwide trending topic in almost every social media platform.
Dr. Yapjuangco, who is also known as Doc Yappy to the countless patients of The Icon Clinic whose lives he changed for the better because of the breathtaking transformations that he created, performed chin augmentation and rhinoplasty, as well as ongoing skincare treatments such as Fractional Laser, Revlight, Gluthathione and Vitamin C injections to create Xander's total transformation.
Xander bested the following personalities on the number one spot of Google Philippines' most searched male personalities: Park Bo Gum, Park Hyung Sik, Gong Yoo, Linkin Park, Rowan Atkinson, Gilas Pilipinas, Jake Zyrus, Nam Joo Hyuk, and Kim Joo Hyuk.
"I am very happy for Xander and I am very proud of what he has achieved with his career so far," says Doc Yappy. "I hope and pray that he continue to aspire for his dreams because I know that his main motivation in life is to give his family a better life. I am honored that The Icon Clinic is instrumental in giving the confidence that drives him to work harder and be a better and happier person."
For more information on Xander's transformation, visit www.TheIconClinic.com, email Doc Yappy at theiconclinic.com, or contact 0920-9084266.

Taking largely from Paul Gauguin for his lively use of color, Diego de Rivera for perspective, and Juan “Tandang Juancho” Senson, Angono’s painter of religious icon in the 19th century, for tradition, Carlos “Botong” Francisco proceeded with his refinement of the mural to make it his own art form.
During his time, Angono native Botong was modern art’s most prolific practitioner as Claude Monet was to Impressionism or Fernando Amorsolo to Traditional Realism, producing the most number of murals in the country.
Visual arts flourished in the rustic towns of Angono and Binangonan in Rizal when Botong, with the advice of then Education Secretary Alejandro Roces, established a haven for artists, with the uniqueness of his sun-drenched color palette and wind-swept folk tradition and later the country’s history.
Commissioned by then newly-elected Manila mayor Antonio Villegas, who started contemporizing the old kingdom of Lakandula while returning to its roots, such as by using Tagalog (for instance, gatpuno, often clipped into Gat. for the Spanish alcalde), Filipino Struggles Through History, also known as History of Manila, is the epic 10-panel mural painted in 1964 to festoon the upper panels of Mayor Villegas’ cavernous office at the Manila City Hall, renamed Bulwagang Katipunan, now Bulwagang Gat Antonio Villegas. It is arguably Botong’s greatest extant work of art and among his last, finished only months before his death due to tuberculosis on March 31, 1969.
Depicting the history of Manila, from the pre-colonial reign of the rajahs to the American period, as well as the heroism of Dr. Jose Rizal and Andres Bonifacio, the magnum opus perfectly captures the ordeals and feats of the Filipino people in his distinct style. With three panels depicting historical scenes from the first rajahs of Tondo all the way to the American colonial period, Botong’s timeless painting remains one of the most iconic murals about Philippine history.
The fourth painting, consisting of three panels, shows Mayor Villegas’ progressive vision for the city of Manila, grounded on a proud past of Filipino leadership and fervent nationalism.
In recognition of his superlative artistic achievement, the city of Manila awarded Botong the Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinangan in 1964. Botong was also honored as a National Artist in Painting in 1973 and with the Republic Heritage Award in 1976.
The mural was declared a National Cultural Treasure, the highest official designation given to a cultural property, by director Gabriel Casal of the National Museum in 1996. The paintings, which had deteriorated and suffered damage from water leaks from the ceiling through the decades, were removed from Manila City Hall in January 2013 at the urgent request of mayor Alfredo Lim upon the recommendation of his adviser on culture, former Tourism Secretary and National Museum director Gemma Cruz Araneta, to undergo painstaking restoration under the supervision of the National Museum of Fine Arts (NMFA), with funding by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority as facilitated by then chairman, Secretary Ramon Jimenez, Jr., of the Department of Tourism.
In a 2015 report, the Commission on Audit (CoA) claimed that the restoration work appeared to have been “abandoned by painting conservators hired by Laurel Design and Construction and left unattended by the assigned National Museum art conservators.” It observed the firm was a general construction contractor with no known expertise in art conservation. It also claimed that the contractor employed five of the NMFA’s own art restorers to do the work.
“Due to the award of the contract of restoration to a seemingly inadequate art restorer and the suspension of the restoration works, the purpose of preserving the art work… was not achieved,” it added.
CoA took the NMFA to task for “consent(ing) to the hiring of Laurel despite the latter’s apparent inadequacy to handle the work.” CoA also ordered museum officials to “initiate appropriate proceedings” against those involved in the mural restoration project “for possible double compensation and conflict of interest.”
It noted that in its formal reply, the NMFA management admitted that its own art conservators did not restore the painting while denying that the restoration work had been suspended.
Museum officials counter-claimed that “the main phase of the work of art was completed in 2015.” All that remained was the mural’s “transfer to and installation in a permanent location to be approved by all concerned parties,” they added.
Estimated by Manila councilor Ali Atienza in 2013 as worth P400 million, the epic mural figured in a botched conservation project worth P19.9 million. The NMFA removed the mural from the City Hall for conservation in its premises. The industry standard for the conservation of a work by a National Artist and master is 10 percent of work’s estimated price for materials and labor.
Allegedly, Fine Arts “graduates” of the University of Santo Tomas as claimed by National Museum assistant director Anna Labrador and not “students” as claimed by a former conservator who were paid P500 daily did the restoration project. Why the NMFA hired an external contractor is unknown as it has the country’s top 13 conservators who did excellent restoration of Juan Luna’s Una Bulaquena. Perhaps this was due to the many conservation projects on hand.
Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada and the Manila City Council approved a landmark agreement in 2017 to allow the original paintings to remain at the NMFA for enhanced public access, appreciation and continued preservation.
As a major highlight of the commemoration of National Arts Month 2018, the NMFA reopened the Old Senate Session Hall at the Old Legislative Building, which has been closed for two months to allow the installation of the mural’s major parts, three of the four paintings.
The fourth painting will soon be accessible for public viewing in the adjacent Vicente and Carmen Fabella Hall (Gallery XIII) of the NMFA.
Museum-quality reproductions will be installed by the NMFA for display in their original location at the Office of the Mayor in Manila City Hall.

Persons afflicted with bipolar disorder usually try to balance themselves with alcohol and marijuana to prevent shifting to a depressive mood. Although incurable, it is manageable, according to a psychiatrist.
Afflicting creative types from John Lennon to Lady Gaga, the disorder explains why actor Baron Geisler, who is manic depressive, has to guzzle beer repeatedly although unexposed to smoke weed.
Depressed for the longest time after the death of mom Gracia, who he swears was his only true supporter, the intoxicated Baron came to believe family members were ganging up on him. His brother-in-law Michael Robinstone Morales accused him of trespassing on the privacy of wife and daughter while dressing and hurling a “nasty, hurtful word” to his daughter.
He went amok with a kitchen knife and threatened to kill Morales, who retaliated by knocking his face. Baron ended up in the slammer, mashed and bloodied. This is the worst suffering he self-inflicted from the neuro chemical imbalance. Will his recidivism get worst?
Baron recognizes nobody when in the bipolar episode and he has to try to stop the shift to depression by drinking alcohol. Michael claims to attend to Baron usually when in trouble with the disorder.
As to be expected, Baron pleaded support from his family attackers. Michael is willing to do just that as long as he agrees to undergo rehabilitation. Will Baron agree? He has no other choice as his freedom – and likely safety ? depends on it.

BIG BUSINESS WILL BLOCK BORACAY CLOSURE. The Duterte government, which now faces some very weird developments such as freeing Kerwin Espinosa and Peter Lim from their drug cases, is likely not to continue with its decision the close Boracay for a period to allow the island to regenerate. This could be due to big business interests.
“Look at Boracay, it [earns] P20 billion yearly. But I was told the original settlers of Boracay - they're called kulots – are somewhere there in the mountains," said the former Environment head Gina Lopez during her speech at the launch of nationwide search “Quest for Love.”
To be featured on her travel show G Diaries, Gina referred to the Ati people of Aklan. "I don't like Boracay. But the people who live in Boracay, where are they? They're somewhere there in the mountain,” Gina stated in a business conference last year.
"That's their home, that's their island, and they're somewhere there in the mountains. You can never bring on economic growth like this," she added.
Gina noted how there is a lack of "genuine" economic growth in Boracay. The long-time environment advocate said she is "very much in favor of what the president is doing.”
“It can't be business at a cost of taking care of the environment. You know, you'll ruin everything, so it's good you come down strong and everybody else gets on their feet," Gina opined.
The Senate committee on environment conducted a probe into the tourist destination opposed total closure Boracay. Some committee members have business interest there recommended only to close establishments that did not comply with environmental standards. 
Gina said the island can have genuine economic growth through area development, which her foundation "I Love" wishes to accomplish.

FASTFOOD GOURMET AT TOKYO TOKYO RESTAURANT. I lunched at Tokyo Tokyo restaurant at Robinson Otis on March 12, ordering its Unagi-Style Bangus bento plain, meaning no sauce and the unlimited rice plain (without black sesame seeds) at P175 per serving. I did not mind vegetable misono and the Red Ice Tea as I can opt not to consume them.
I ordered it this way as I have a vascular disease and eating spicy food will cause the disorder to act up. I emphasized this health to the cashier. And it was served as I wanted it. I like it much as a thick fillet of fresh-tasting bangus was served grilled.
The second time I ordered it plain was problematic. Specifying the same to the cashier, my order was served regular. I returned it, informing them if it is served not as I specified, again informing the food server I have a dietary necessity, telling them I will not compromise my health so I am cancelling my order if they couldn’t.
The shift supervisor approached me to explain they could not serve as I specified “on orders of head office” as the bangus fillet would disintegrate if grilled without the sauce. I don’t know how this is possible as the sauce is added after being grilled. He insisted, but I stood firm as I know my health needs.
He backed out and after some time, my order was served as I specified, but with the black sesame seeds sprinkled on top of the white rice. I had to return it again, but when the female food server returned it, she placed the order on the table padabog.
This Fastfood Gourmet is writing about this experience to let the Tokyo Tokyo upper management know what happens in a branch. It is clear to me training is involved here. There is the well-accepted practice that “a customer is always right.”
It is also no joke if a sick customer suffers an attack because restaurant personnel insisted on serving food bad for his health. Do they know the poor goodwill repercussion and the very probable financial loss? More importantly, the loss of a customer is this period of stiff competition.
I will not eat at Tokyo Tokyo restaurant again, not only at the Robinsons Otis branch, but wherever it is available. Their prices are not actually value for money and turnover is not necessarily fast. Why waste a customer who has a dietary need with an unfriendly employee?
That’s my Tokyo Tokyo experience.

ICE QUITS GOVERNMENT POST. Aiza Seguerra, who had changed her first name to Ice, has resigned as the chairperson of the National Youth Commission, Malacañang announced. Presidential spokesperson Roque did not elaborate on the reasons for Seguerra’s resignation effective April 15.
Just before the resignation, Ice expressed her disagreement to the postponement of the May 2018 barangay elections, which has been officially reset to October 2018. It is unknown if his decision is linked to this shift as he officially stated that the cause is due to “personal reasons.”
In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Ice said he personally tendered his resignation to President Rodrigo Duterte last March 5. He said he wanted to personally explain his reasons directly to the President, “knowing how social media can exaggerate or twist the truth.”
“I wanted to make sure that he’s going to hear it from me. He was very understanding and supportive of my decision,” he wrote. “Para siyang tatay. Nakinig, inintindi at pinalakas ang loob ko. I told him how much I valued his trust and how this experience made me appreciate public service and our public servants,” he added. He did not elaborate further.
It is not immediately known if wife, Film Development Council of the Philippines chief Liza Diño-Seguerra, will be affected by her husband’s decision.

So it was impossible for a wife or a father to be at the imagined spoliarium.

Spanish colonizers called Filipinos indios, a derogatory term that painted them as "indolent savages" who had to be tamed and ruled. When Juan Luna, with his brother Manuel, traveled to Europe to study at the mecca of the humanities, they were gawked at like exotic mammals.
Enrolling at the School of Fine Arts of San Fernando, Luna studied under painter Don Alejo Vera. Dissatisfied with traditional school, Luna opted for alternative education by apprenticing with Vera, who brought him to Rome to assist in commissioned works.
Winning a silver medal at the first art exposition in Madrid, the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes (National Exposition of Fine Arts), Luna entered La Muerte de Cleopatra (The Death of Cleopatra, 1881), which led to an annual scholarship of 600 pesos from the Ayuntamiento of Manila.
It required him to create a painting that captured the essence of Philippine history. As a condition, it would then become the Ayuntamiento's property.
In September 1883, Luna started The Spoliarium as demanded by the contract. As a graduation piece out to prove he had turned into the consummate academic painter, Luna painted in oil (the only painting medium available during that time) on lifesize, 4.22-by-7.675-meter, on poplar, and spent an uncompromising eight months on the vigorous and dramatic painting.
In early 1884 in Barcelona, Jose Rizal proposed the writing of a novel about the Philippines to a group of Filipinos. The proposal was unanimously approved. However, the project did not push through as the people who agreed to contribute remised on the content: all turned chauvinistic by picking women as subject! Rizal pulled out of the plan and decided to draft the novel alone.
Once finished and allowed to dry, Luna signed The Spoliarium as signed "LVNA ROMA CCLXXXIV" (LUNA ROME '84), the largest painting by a Filipino artist of its epoch.
In intricate brushstrokes, it is brooding and dark even as it breathes life to a highly charged scene at the crematory after gladiators battled each other or against ferocious beasts in a panis et circensis (bread and circuses, roughly translated as entertainment) to which the Roman rulers had to accede to avoid the population's anger.
Four injured and dying gladiators who entertained their oppressors in the arena with their lives are being dragged in by Roman soldiers in the dark and dingy crematory. Cheering spectators and greedy: faces below eagerly await to strip off the fallen combatants of their armor. The barbarism sharply contrasts with the humanity of a woman sprawled on the floor as an old man with a torch locates a son.
He entered he jaw-dropping obra maestra in the Madrid Art Exposition while Felix Resurrection Hidalgo submitted Las Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas Al Populacho (1884). Luna clinched the gold medal, while Hidalgo won the silver. They proved to the world that indios could paint better than their colonizers.
An epic depiction of a dreadful scene at the morgue of the Colosseum after a gladiators' duel to death, Luna's intention in painting The Spoliarium was to win a prize in a European art exposition. When the imaginative depiction did just that, his massive masterpiece took an entirely different purpose.
Luna painted The Spoliarium 1,400 years after the last gladiatorial fights so his source of information is likely oral history, written references, visual depictions of gladiatorial scenes, and no doubt his own imagination.
Not only did then medical student Rizal give The Spoliarium (1884) an entirely different meaning not intended by the artist, but the artist himself misrepresented its gladiatorial theme.
In Latin, spoliarium means "den." As such, Luna likely used it as the title of his painting to mean den of thieves in Rome's Colosseum, which is assumed as its location might have a morgue, but definitely not a den of thieves.
The hypogeum is the two-level underground of Rome's Colosseum was referred to, is the assumed location of The Spoliarium. Problem is it did not have a part called a spoliarium. YouTube documentaries on the Colosseum do not identify a spoliarium.
He likely used the Latin word as a metaphor than to refer to a specific part of the Colosseum where it is assumed fallen gladiators were deprived of fight implements or uniform, thus the reference as a den of thieves.
Gladiators were slaves from other countries, mostly spoils of war. They were valuable properties who came from facilities where they were lived, trained and recuperate in case of non-mortal wounds. This discounted the possibility that their implements were up for grabs or even the presence of covetous spectators in the "spoliarium."
Roman soldiers were not involved in these fights. Slaves were assigned to perform non-combatant roles such as doing menial work such as bringing gladiators out of the arena. As such, killed gladiators were not incinerated but as archeology had revealed, some prized fighters were accorded proper burials as indicated by tombstones; others were dumped in common graves.
So, it was impossible for a wife or a father to be at the imagined spoliarium.
At a banquet at the Restaurant Ingles on the night of June 25, 1884, about 60 people — among them members of the Reform Movement, Spanish liberals and members of the Masonry — gathered to celebrate Luna's and Hidalgo's triumphs. Rizal subbed for Maximo Paterno as toast speaker at the last minute.
Largely speaking in poetic Spanish, Rizal originated from a position of equality with the Spanish, talking about his program, hopes, complaints for Filipinos. Its rhetoric was equality between the Filipinos and the oppressive Spanish colonizers. Rizal expounded on his diatribe: "…Upon reflecting with their palettes the splendor of the Tropical sunlight, transform it into rays of eternal glory with which they wreath their country — humanity subjected to severe tests; unredeemed humanity; reason and aspiration in open struggle against personal troubles, fanaticism and injustice, because sentiment and opinion will break open a path through even the thickest wall…"
At this event, Rizal put a broader political context to The Spoliarium in terms of the Philippine-Spanish relations, an allegory of the agony of Filipinos under Spanish colonial rule. Graciano Lopez Jaena bolstered Rizal's fragile but absorbed logic in the toast immediately after the event. That was not the point, however — to parlay their political agenda was. But first they had to say it loud and proud.
If The Spoliarium has historical importance, it is that it inspired Rizal's political direction. The painting irrevocably led him to pursue his political ideals that altered his life, dedicating it to the achievement of reforms for the homeland. He soon turned student activist and began to pen his botched anti-colonial novel, his solo authorship called Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not) and its sequel, El Filibusterismo (The Filibustering).
Despite the defective depiction of subject that proved the Filipinos' parity with any nationality and having catalyzed Dr. Rizal's political purpose that led to his martyrdom but crumbled and abolished the oppressive Spanish rule leading to the liberation of the Philippines.
The Spoliarium is indisputably the country's most important National Cultural Treasure.

When there are many windows of reality and surreality, how are National Artists created now that the new picks are up for proclamation assuming there's no scam?
The artist previously known as Jerry (from Jeremias) Elizalde Navarro abandoned the moniker in exchange for the modish J Elizalde Navarro (1924-1999) to turn as the bellwether of pop art here.
The mall-mounted sculpture entitled "Is He The Man?" (dated as "circa 1960" by Salcedo Auctions) was the major stunner of Navarro's one-man show of pop assemblages that fused found object with shaped and pure-color painted canvas at Solidaridad Galleries. Exhibit date is under question as I viewed it in early 1970s, most likely in 1971.
A mod interpretation questioning the reality of identity and what it signifies, "Is He The Man?" shows the grieving Veronica who wiped off Christ's bloody face when he fell from weakness and the weight of the cross on his shoulder on the way to Calvary and left an image of his face on the cloth.
Navarro mounted her naked, termite-ridden and weather-beaten antique wood figure on a varnished wood background, her halo traced out in nails. She holds a rectangular board where Christ's face is represented by flat discs of monochromatic red over a red background.
A heart-shaped niche curved on the chest area is embedded with two "santo" heads each with a halo in rainbow formation. Embossed below their figures: YAW A.
It retains the santo's original silver patina shoulder padding, including a carved cloud over a sunburst symbol that gives an authentic look.
Above the assemblage, and curved in bold letters are the words "IS HE THE MAN?" Open-ended, the biblical story as summed up in the question is contemporized, allowing possible extensions to: Is he the true messiah? Is he the hot rock sensation? Is he the new President? Is he the next National Artist? Such a dramatic presentation with a pop sensibility, for sure, makes it an authentic Filipino masterpiece!
Navarro regarded himself as an abstractionist influenced by European pioneers Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian. He was enraptured by the sight of Kandinsky's works at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) on his first visit to New York City. Navarro found spiritual affinity with the Russian artist's use of circle, which he would later turn into various adaptations of the sphere and modify as his own design element.
Navarro moved from figurative to abstraction and pop in the mid-'50s to became a proponent of the post-war modernists, the Neo-Realists. Producing works in varied range of styles, Navarro always flourish in no-regret opulence of colors and strokes that produced vigor all his own.
Producing a remarkably large body of contemporary art, representing the Philippines in various artistic events abroad, Navarro was posthumously declared National Artist for the Visual Arts in 1999.
To backtrack, the novelist F. Sionil Jose opened and managed Solidaridad Galleries in 1967 where Navarro exhibited "Is He The Man?"
A street-level gallery with clear glass frontage, it saw the bustle of South-bound jeepneys on one-way M.H. Del Pilar St., Ermita, Manila. It also housed Gilda Cordero Fernando's hole-in-the-wall display of exquisite folk art finds.
When it closed down in the '80s, a collateral damage of the economic instability brought about by Sen. Ninoy Aquino's assassination, Solidaridad Galleries was incorporated with Solidaridad Bookstore on Padre Faura St., also in Manila. It used to hold exhibits at the mezzanine level until it ceased operations as the art scene shifted westward of Manila -- to the new culture hubs of Makati, Quezon City, San Juan, Mandaluyong, and Pasig.
By then declared as National Artist for Literature, Jose condemned Mideo Cruz's controversial room-size instillation entitled "Poleteismo" at the jarring collective show of Dominican-educated artists at CCP's Main Gallery in August 2011. Among the multi-media artist's freewheeling expressions of freedom is putting a wooden penis on Christ's image and other images festooned with sexual objects and devices.
I saw this particular exhibit held at the same time as the 2011 Cinemalaya Film Festival and I found it an artistic extreme. I thought it was icon-bashing time at the CCP as a hallway exhibit took on Jose Rizal as a global womanizer. But I noted the mobile phone generation's new way of seeing when selfie was not yet a term. They wanted photo opportunities with the artworks, to the extent of posing to be slotted in the visual.
Jose lambasted Mideo Cruz's instillation as "an immature and juvenile attempt at caricature" lacking of "imagination, craftsmanship, and most important -- originality."
He must have forgotten that Solidaridad Galleries exhibited Navarro's sawed off antique Santo in "Is He the Man?" one of several using religious figures. Although "Is He the Man?" could be viewed as defacement of a religious image, it is more playful than puerile creativity with a stirring message.
But let's dredge up that in the early '70s, Filipinos were more Catholic than Christian, a period when not going to Sunday mass was mortal sin and religious images were sacred that they were covered in violet cloth on Holy Week.
"Is He the Man?" popped out as exhibit of Salcedo Auctions in Art Fair Philippines 2013 on Feb. 7 to 10 2013. It sold for a whopping P1 million, high-end by metropolis standards, making it the highest seller of the lots.
To be a National Artist is about breaking old icons and creating new insights.
Disqualified are visual artists who opted to change citizenship such as David Medalla to British and Anita Magsaysay-Ho. Filipino citizenship is a requirement to qualify which is an outdated requisite in the period of globalization.
Nobody knows why Juan M. Arellano who designed some to the Manila's iconic buildings and indigenized Art Noveau have not been declared a National Artist for Architecture,
Described as a "Filipino international artist," Medalla whose body of works ranges from sculpture and kinetic art to painting, installation and performance art that have been exhibited globally in art capitals London, New York City and Paris had to change his citizenship as a requirement of residency in a foreign country.
As the only female member of the Thirteen Moderns, a pioneering group of Filipino modernist artists, Magsaysay-Ho's contribution to Philippine visual art is solid and immense. She took the citizenship of husband Robert Ho from Hong Kong.
The buzz is Mauro Malang Santos, who was acknowledged for his unequalled depiction of the heart of Filipino zest for life does not qualify for the laughable reason he had a product endorsement.
History has also taught us that today's controversial artwork is tomorrow's great art. Users of the future variants or innovative proxy of Google will probably smile or smirk when they read that Cruz has been elevated a National Artist for Visual Arts, sharing the immortality with Navarro and Jose.

This is what Kapuso creative genius Michael V. answered when asked at the media launch what the audiovisual fest Lip Sync Battle Philippine Season 3 will bring to national entertainment. The series premieres on Easter Sunday, April 1, after Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho.

“(It will be) grander in a sense that we won’t be only having two-way battles; we will, in fact, be having three-way battles and four-way battles as they do in the US,” explained multi-talented TV host-actress Iya Villania-Arellano as the color commentator.
More battles are underway for the grand return of Lip Sync Battle Philippines. The hosts revealed what makes this season a lot more striking than the first two seasons.
“Pilipino tayo. Ang galing kaya natin manggaya,” Michael V. quipped.
Beethoven del Valle Bunagan in real life, Michael V. spotted the trend from Dubsmash Queen Maine Mendoza. An adaptation of the hit American TV series, Lip Sync Battle Philippines debuted on GMA Network on February 27, 2016. The game pits two Kapuso celebrities against each other in a lip sync battle for two rounds: Round 1 is the ‘Strip Down’ and Round 2 is the ‘Full Blown Concert.’
The celebrities can lip sync the song/s of their choice. Then the crowd determines the winner of the battle after the two rounds have been completed. A very entertaining show featuring GMA’s well-loved actors, it is a high-rating show explaining the new season.
Michael V, lovingly called by admirers as Bitoy, is known for his comedy genius. The creative director/lead actor of Bubble Gang and Pepito Manoloto is a graduate of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod Ng Maynila where I also studied.
Iya is now wife to Kapuso footloose-cum-gourmet host Drew Arellano with a son and on the family way for their second offspring. She is also doing the entertainment news and lifestyle content with public information icons Mel Tiangco and Mike Enriquez.
The winner gets the bragging rights to be the Lip Sync Champion and gets the much-coveted Lip Sync Champion Belt, which is announced at the end of each episode. Matinee idol Dennis Trillo holds the distinction as the first battler to receive the championship belt.
Iya attests that battlers take their performances to heart seriously. A sampler is the love tandem of Bianca Umali and Miguel Tan Felix, who were teammates in last season’s show. They will return to season 3, this time around as rivals.
Joiners can present themselves with pitches, while they also invite others over to to rock the stage with their lip sync skills. “Actually halo halo ang approach nila, may mga iba na nagpe-present na gusto nila,” he shared.
Ex-joiners, on the other hand, can re-apply in the new seasons. But they have to be paired with someone and come up with something new. While almost all Kapuso stars have participated, they still have a wish list of names of celebrities that they’d be happy to have on their stage.

BIG STARTLE. “McCoy Fundales, the singer?” I inquired from GMA Entertainment Group senior vice president Lilibeth Rasonable, who joined me at the reserve table. Surprised by his introduction when the conference proceeded as the host introduced the GMA executives and the cast and crew, who graced the lunch event, she proudly added, “Yes, McCoy has been with us since Season 1.”
McCoy has been missing from the band scene except occasional gigs with Area One doing Beatles tributes. Kenyo no longer performs since his former band, Orange and Lemons, reformed.
The beaming McCoy raised both arms when introduced as writer of Lip Sync Battles Philippines, which he has been doing, it turns out, for three years already. Starting with Pepito Manoloto, he has diversified with Lip Sync Battles Philippines.
“He now also acts occasionally,” volunteered his mentor Michael V. He acts as a security guard in Pepito Manoloto, the lead character’s nameless vexer. “Kaya laging may ‘SG’ sa script niya,” Michael V. joked. He also has bit roles in Dear Uge.
McCoy is clearly happy with his new creative direction as he is perpetually in smiling mode. His work brings him back to his first love, songwriting. He composed the theme song of the Eat Bulaga! pre-program of the same title, “Ang Forever Ko’y Ikaw,” as interpreted by Ralf King.

SEASON 3. Beginning April 1, viewers can get ready for crazy yet delightful Sundays for the musical-reality competition that offers a whole new level of entertainment as it treats its viewers with outrageous, amusing and even more exciting performances every week.
Making the third season more special are new things to look forward to such as the three-way battle and thematic episodes that will pave the way to a more intense head-to-head challenge of your favorite celebrities and  personalities. Kapuso viewers can also expect guest color commentators who will participate in the show as they add more fun in the program.
Michael V excitedly presented the changes that will happen in this season. ‘Excited ako kasi sinala talaga namin ‘yung mga battlers ngayon and magkakaroon ng bagong battles. So ang masasabi ko talaga, mas aabangan ito kasi yung mga napiling battler, ready talaga sila,’  he shared.
Iya expressed her gratitude to be working with Michael V. again because of his warm personality.  ‘I am just happy to be working with Kuya Bitoy because, you know, he is very approachable and friendly and lahat ng galaw ko sa set, he is there to help and assist me so hindi talaga ako nahihirapan,’ she explained.
Under the helm of  Rico Gutierrez, catch the return of Lip Sync Battle Philippines every Sunday night beginning April 1 on GMA7.
Get the latest updates about Lip Sync Battle Philippines from the GMA Network website 
Kapuso viewers from across the globe can also catch their favorite Kapuso shows via GMA’s international channels GMA Pinoy TV, GMA Life TV, and GMA News TV International. For the program guide, visit www.gmapinoytv.com.

ELMER DUMLAO’S WORK NOW MOUNTED AT SM ART CENTER. Graced by the best visual artists from the University of Sto. Tomas, returning graduate Elmer Dumlao mounts a retrospective at the SM Art Center from March 31 to April 10 that formally opened on Easter Sunday.
For the benefit of the UST Atelier Alumni Association Inc. (USTAAAI), the UST Fine Arts graduate, multi-awarded creative director for advertising and 2011 Bagong Bayani awardee, Dumlao returned to the Philippines after 39 years of being based in the Middle East particularly Jordan as art consultant to its monarch. Do not miss this once-in-a-lifetime exhibit.
Marissa Pe Yang of Corona Supply is President of USTAAAI.

FEMALE CINEMA LAUNCHED. Since its inception and when the brainy and beautiful Liza Dino took over chairmanship, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has become more effective.
Chair Liza took it closer to FDCP’s mandate to lead in the development of Philippine cinema. No wonder she is regarded as the lead appointment of President Rodrigo Duterte from the entertainment industry.
In synergy with ASEC Marjorie Jalosjos of the Department of Interior and Local Government, Chief of Corporate Affairs and Information Resource Management Honey Castro of the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW)  and the  Girl Scouts of the Philippines, the FDCP launched CineMarya at FDCP Cinematheque Manila in celebration of National Women’s Month and the tandem event 100 years of Philippine cinema with the centenary Sandaaan Event – Pinay sa Pelikula.
“The festival aims to tell stories of Filipino women, more than their beauty, but their strength and passion, rising above the prejudices and struggles about society,” Chair Liza shared at the launch of the festival with a seed money of P1 million to be distributed equally to the 10 finalists.
CineMarya is a subsidized short film (10 to 20 minutes) festival competition about specific women issues like Women Empowerment, Marawi Women and Rehabilitation and Magna Carta pf Women specifically for young Filipino filmmakers 18 years up to 30 years who have not made a full-length feature.
The festival has an educational component for the ten (10) finalists of CineMarya by providing the director and another representative with the FDCP Filmmaking Workshop Series - Planting Seeds and Film Industry Conference during the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino 2018.
The finalists will also have the privilege to undergo the CineMarya film camp – a 2-day intensive filmmaking workshop in a secluded area in Rizal featuring multiple filmmakers, PCW representatives, and others.
Each production team’s director shall serve as a fellow for this intensive program that will help develop her/his skills in story development, editing and other elements of filmmaking to better advocate women empowerment.
Applicants may submit their entries to FDCP from April 1 to June 30, 2018.
Let us all support and continue to empower women through film!
Thank you to FDCP media relation officer JC Bagio for the assistance during the invite.

CHEER LADY WITH A HEART. “Can I sit here?” I asked a kindly lady who I recognized as Ms. Lilibeth Rasonable as I took a reserved table for GMA Network executives at the media launch of Lip Sync Battle Philippine Season 3 as hosted by the hot tandem of  Michael V.  and  Iya Villania-Arellano that piloted Easter Sunday after Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho.
“Can I ask a waiter to serve you lunch?” Ms. Lilibeth replied instead upon noticing I had no food. I thanked the hospitality and informed that I only eat home-cooked food. “I have a vascular disorder that prevents me to consume fried foods. I only take wheat bread, rice with vegies and steamed fish, chicken and beef.”
That was the first time I am asked the personal question that I was glad to explain she proceeded to take her frugal lunch from the sumptuous buffet table. Colleague Nora Calderon approached her, showing something from her mobile phone as Walden Belen engaged her in a chummy conversation.
This gave me a closeup view how Ms. Lilibeth clapped and cheered every time Michael V, and Iya finished talking so that when the media launch wrapped up I showed my appreciation by heartily clapping despite the numb hands of a PWD. How’s that living up the heartfelt ambition?

ED SHERAN’S ‘÷’ WORLD TOUR AT THE MOA CONCERT GROUNDS. Expect to be mesmerized the 27-year-old’s impossibly powerful show where Ed Sheeran, 2017 best male performer, will passionately deliver completely live his chart-toppers “Castle on the Hill,”  “Dive,”  “Bloodstream,”  “I’m a Mess,”  “Happier” and other well-loved titles.
Assuming he will encounter any accident, Manila will finally hear Ed on a summer night sounds “Perfect” for the singer’s legions of fans when Smart Music Live presents Ed Sheeran’s Manila concert at the Mall of Asia Concert Grounds on April 8. Prepare to camp out while celebrating the hits that made Ed a household name
Recently, Ed rewarded fans who had standing tickets in Brisbane, Australia by having pizza delivered to them. Fans lined up a day before the concert at Sunport Stadium for closest possible position to the stage. Expect the unexpected when the “Shape Of You” hit-maker arrives in Manila, a leg in his current  ÷  World Tour.
The 27-year-old British musician started his career around 2011 when he released the album + (read as plus) that churned out the hit “The A Team” that went on to be nominated for Song of the Year in the 2013 Grammy Awards.
Sheeran went on to release X (read as multiply) that scored the monster hit “Thinking Out Loud.” The song went on to win Grammy Song of The Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.
Last year, Sheeran served his third CD,  ÷  (read as divide) and along with it charted hits like “Shape Of You,” “Castle On The Hill” and “Perfect.”
Hundreds of Smart subscribers won tickets to the concert. More perks, activities and freebies await these winners when they reach the venue on Sunday, April 8.
Smart Music Live presents Ed Sheeran is just the part of the network’s summer lineup, Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic in Manila is up next and scheduled on May 3 at the Mall of Asia Arena. To qualify for perks and free tickets, simply track #SmartEdSheeran, #SmartBrunoMars and #SmartMusicLive on Smart’s official Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts.

Dreamscaping a seminal life of textures, colors, memories and reveries by taking us to realms amd domains never imagined or bothered, the Filipino University of Santo Tomas-trained visual artist Elmer Dumlao is back full cargo with a massive retrospective show deliberating his studied journey through time, space and media. The show, entitled "Ground Zero: An Artist Comes Home," on view at the Art Center of SM Megamall from April 1 to 11, symbolizes rebirth — quite timely on Easter week.
UST is also the alma mater of hero Dr. Jose Rizal, National Artists for literature Nick Joaquin, F. Sionil Jose, Bienvenido Lumbera and Cirilo Bautista, National Artist for visual arts Ang Kiukok, National Artists for architecture Leandro Locsin and National Artist For theater Rolando Tinio — auction superstars and the country's most prominent visual, advertising and industrial artists.
Attesting to Dumlao's reverse ascension from global to Filipino artist are UST's brilliant fine arts masters Raul Isidro, Al Perez, Cid Reyes, Mulawin Abueva, Johnny Hubilla, Butch Payawal and Marissa Pe Yang, who were among the unheard-of 33 openers of the gallery curtain. The list included fiscal Leynard Dumlao, dean Cristy Que, Evelyn Songco, Nivelle Dumlao, Rhoda Recto, Celeste Posadas, Carina Parial, Ida Robles, Rosky de Guzman, Lily Ong, Cez Chong, Gina Datu, Evelyn Adarme Uy, Wilma Lee, Steven Cua, Fely Pe Law, Mayor Geri Calderon, Fr. Sony Ramirez, Cindy Tan, Bel Tiutan, Flora Urquico, Linda Limpe, Wilma Lee, Edgar O. Cruz, Regent Father Edgardo Alaurin and Paulina Luz Sotto, as hosted by Perjohn Gomez with Mark Verheul of the Netherlands as guest speaker.

BAGONG BAYANI. From Batch 1981, Dumlao arose as the multi-awarded creative director for advertising, who held groundbreaking exhibits in exotic and esoteric Jordan. He was honored as Bagong Bayani awardee for 2011 and declared as UST Outstanding Atelier Alumni in 2016. He held this first-ever exhibit in his home country for the benefit of the UST Atelier Alumni Association Inc. (USTAAAI) with Marissa Pe Yang as president.
Despite his nationality-themed artworks, featured in the UST publication Vision magazine, Dumlao opted for overseas employment in 1994 as creative department head of the newly opened McCann Ericksson Jordan and went on to do solo shows in the Middle East in 2010 and joining group shows in Europe.
While many artists have sought to depict the nature of nature, he is the man who has deracinated art for the past 29 years, capturing the fine details of its differences and differentials with manic meticulousness.
Dumlao adumbrated stunning fresh and provocative takes about life, love and lust, as gathered from his leading-edge one-man shows "Jordan in the Eyes of Elmer Dumlao" (2010), Zara Gallery, Jordan; "Eye to Eye Series" (2011), Zara Gallery, Jordan; "Animan Series" (2012) Zara Gallery, Jordan; "Paper Play Series" (2013), Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, Jordan; "Golden Dream Series" (2013), Intercontinental, Jordan; "Animangels Series" (2014), Zara Gallery, Jordan; "Generation Series" (2016), UNESCO, France; "Puzzles of Life Series" (2017), Nabad Gallery, Jordan; and "Skin Series" (2018), Art Center, Philippines.
H practiced greater democracy, showing what contemporaneous art is all about, mulling over the significance of idiosyncratic expressionism.
Although Dumlao only evolved the style in the latter years of his terrific artistic career, it profoundly shaped his art and heart that led to many of his greatest masterpieces. These works offer fascinating insights into his artistic vision, while allowing viewers a rare chance to see and savor the Middle Eastern aesthetics that so inspired and influenced him.

SALT FROM THE RED SEA. “Jordan in the Eyes of Elmer Dumlao” engages the senses in intimate and linked, journal-like postcards of the Arab kingdom anchored on history, culture and tourism.
The idea is to stir images in the mind, turning out a personal perception from the artist as received by the viewer. Unfinished art as much as it is informal, its synergy of static vision and perception makes it an exciting input/output.
The kind, unassuming and highly creative Dumlao, 56, is fundamentally a mixed media artist, the experimental type that reminds one of Roberto Chabet, working on acrylic, oil, graphite, found objects and recycled materials. His Oak Tree borrows Keith Haring's iconic angry dog. As art consultant of the King of Jordan, it is no wonder his uncongenial artworks updates the royal collection.
Dumlao shifts to advanced art in Eye to Eye, which macro pegs views as his pivotal art form in design manner. Depicting giant spheres with a view, they are his wild take of pop art with a pseudo-scientific edge. Although a form of artistic decoration based on rhythmic linear patterns often combined with floral elements, arabesque is Arabic in origin. As Islam prohibits human and animal forms in its arts, arabesque serves as substitute.
Dumlao uses arabesque by contemporizing it as optical art that uses illusions that give the viewer the imagined movements and hidden messages. He turns it into visual allegories that convey concealed or complex meanings through symbolic figures and imagery which when put together create metaphorical message the artist sends.
Especially remarkable is the inclusion of Eye to Eye Series 2, which, until now, is the sway of this powerful retrospective. Its appearance suggests the extent to which he viewed Arabic art as part of his very identity. Elsewhere in the exhibition, he incorporates a riotous, colorful array of motifs offering re-interpretations that the painter returned to in his works.
In the unreal world, Dumlao theorizes, our eyes are constantly subject to some level of dynamic vision in monochrome. Thus, technological leap is the important takeaway. His most original body of work to date, this is the one Dumlao will be anthologized for the longest time.
He started the surreal animal and man series interestingly coined as "Animan Series" in 2012 (that he expanded into "animan" as angels, the "Animangels Series," in 2014). Subtle hints of joyful music and rhythmic movements in the collection bring him closer to Henri Matisse and Alex Cadler in intent and international inkling. With it he shows the strength of the Filipino artist put on the world showcase.
Introspection and playfulness are inseparable from Dumlao's visual narratives of pleasures. Association is required to fully savor this sense. In considering the nature of certain content, separation is a must. A necessary stop-gap measure, Dumlao's art brings us closer to universality of beauty and away from politics, protest and propaganda.
This makes Dumlao's depictions great art, through time, without guises. Despite being increasingly globalized and media-driven, the art world brings us closer to many people's struggles. Although made to question reality and to express alternative points of view, Dumlao's art soothes instead of disturbs.
When Dumlao unhinges himself from the universal ambition and opts to indigenize his art to reflect his own identity and nationality, he will gain native narrative importance and be laureled for the boldness and bravery.
Philippine art needs rerouting to distribute and forward, which Dumlao's originality can very well provide. There has got to be an evident and clear difference. His Alma Mater needs a figurehead, and it appears for now he is the strongest candidate. It's about time!

The Fine Arts graduates of the University of Sto. Tomas, Asia’s oldest existing university with a European-style higher education institution that enjoyed all the rights and privileges of similar universities in Spain and Europe, are reuniting in “Balik USTe  UST Atelier Alumni Grand Homecoming” this Saturday, April 14, 2018 from 5 to 10 p.m. at the  Dr. Robert C. Sy Grand Ballroom, 2nd floor Buenaventura Garcia Paredes O.P. Building (Thomasian Alumni Center)  UST, Espana, Manila.

UST alumni visual artist Elmer Dumlao’s “Full Cargo” retrospective at the Art Center of Megamall is a major component of this homecoming, which was spearheaded by Marissa Pe Yang as president. Marissa and Elmer both belong in batch 1981 of the Fine Arts in Advertising course of the College of Fine Arts and Design. Elmer was a UST Outstanding Atelier Alumni in 2016. His first-ever solo exhibit in the Philippines is for the benefit of the UST Atelier Alumni Association Inc. (USTAAAI).
Since UST has so many accomplished artists, the USTAAAI officers and the homecoming committee members have decided to postpone the awarding ceremony to give more time for the Jubilarians. A separate awarding ceremony will be scheduled to give sufficient time to gather and select awardees. UST alumni are encouraged to continue nominations.
Ticket price is P800 with raffles offering artworks by Raul Isidro and Elmer Dumlao, stamps designed by Al Perez with his signature, Sugbu brand slippers by Islander Footwear Manufacturing Company as prizes and dinner. Corona Supply gift packs will be given to all attendees.

GMA NETWORK’S NEW SHOW AMAZES. Having attended the opening of Elmer Dumlao’s “Full Cargo” retrospective on Sunday at the Art Center of Megamall, I failed to watch the new show of GMA Network, Lip Sync Battle Philippines, as hosted by Michael V. and Iya Villania-Arellano, which piloted that night.
Fast-paced, an audio-visual feast and thrilling, the much-publicized Lip Sync Battle Philippines featured a four-way competition with a cross-dressing Andre Paras the giant, punky twins Mavy and Cassy Legaspi as a tandem and young, sexy and gorgeous Sanya Lopez in a Madonna-theme event to bring home the much-coveted championship belt!
Eagerly viewed by their parents Carmina Villaroel and Zoren Legaspi, the showbiz royal twins Cassy and Mavy engaged in a lipsych battle while in a dance fight routine. They were the clear winners as they were raved at by the audience. Lip Sync Battle Philippines is clearly the best show intro of the season!

JERICHO’S WALL. The name “Jericho” brings to mind Israelites marching, trumpets sounding and walls crumbling down.  It is a wonderful story of faith and victory, but did it really happen?  The skeptic would say no, it is merely a folk tale to explain the ruins at Jericho.
Jericho Villarico, fourth from left, proved he is as formidable as the legendary Jericho’s wall. From Baguio City High School of Region CAR, Jericho is champion for the 8th ASEAN Quiz (National Level) as broadcasted by PTV4. Fifteen regions competed and Jericho clinched the top slot. Marina Tabangcura is Schools Division Araling Panlipunan Supervisor, while Eva Layagan was his coach. Jericho bagged a trophy, certificate and the prize money for the champion of P20,000.
The 8th ASEAN Quiz National Level Competition, Philippines  was conducted by the People’s Television Network, in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Foreign Affairs, the Presidential Communication Operations Office, the Philippine Information Agency, and the Philippine Broadcasting Service from April 3 to 6, 2018 at the PTV Broadcast Center, Visayas Avenue, Quezon City. 
The competition, which is a continuing project of the ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information, aims to foster a spirit of healthy competition among the ASEAN youth in a friendly quiz game that exposes them to ASEAN cultural, political, economic and social information.
The triumphant Jericho is shown with his happy family. From left is Eddielea Villarico, Jericho’s mother; Jermaine Villarico who is ASEAN Quiz Bee Champion is Jericho’s sister; Eugene Villarico is Jericho’s father; Jericho; Perjohn Gomez, Jericho’s uncle; and Rachel Verns, Perjohn’s ladylove.

YOU ROCK, BPO QUEEN. The much-awaited screening of BPO Queen, the first-ever pageant for queens in the national Business Processing Outsourcing industry, will be held at The Crew Room on Makati Avenue on April 14 from 1 to 4 p.m. Coronation Night will be on May 29, 6 p.m. at the Mall of Asia Arena
“The BPO Queen will definitely rock the Arena because of the overwhelming response. All the  ‘queens’ from the  BPO industry are talking about it and they’re preppin’ up for the screening. I just can’t imagine the fun and excitement that will happen come Coronation Night,” said the pageant’s fashion and stage director Calvin Murphy Neria. He will make sure to highlight the beauty and wit of the candidates, while promoting diversity, inclusion and equality. He hopes this will be one of the most talked-about LGBTQ events this year.

IKEA COMES FOUR DECADES LATE TO MANILA. The IKEA showroom in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia was my favorite destination every no-work day when I worked there from 1983 to 1994. I missed this pastime when assigned as country representative in Lebanon of the Saudi company I worked for.
The Philippines will build its first store of Swedish furniture company IKEA of simple but sturdy designs and self-assembly products as built in the Philippines by largest shopping mall operator in the country, SM Prime the Holdings.
The IKEA store will be built in SM’s Mall of Asia (MOA) Complex, home to one of its largest malls, an events arena, and a Conrad hotel branch, SM Prime vice president Alex Pomento. Josefin Thorell, spokesperson of Inter IKEA Systems, first confirmed to IKEA’s planned Philippine foray in February.
Familiar in homes around the globe, the retailer is aiming to generate 50 billion euros ($62 billion) in annual revenues by 2020.

LEAD-OUTS. When an unknown sender of an SMS offering the identity of the local entertainment executives involved in a #MeToo scheme as published in a local broadsheet refused to identify his/her person, I just blocked the number and the libel ended!... Dean of Filipino Entertainment Writers Manay Ethel Ramos revealed at the launch of CineMarya at the FDCP Cinematheque Manila that, according to Mother Lily Monteverde, most Filipino-produced films this year are not turning profitable!... About 85 percent of the objects offered in actor Russel Crowe’s auction, from his films such as Gladiator and Cinderella Man, dubbed as “The Art of Divorce,” were sold!...

Tourism Secretary Wanda Tulfo Teo smashed in a simple baby pink dress when she graced the grand media launch of “Buhay Carinderia... Redefined” at the grand ballroom of the Rizal Park Hotel on Wednesday.
So did Linda Legaspi, the ever active and friendly president and CEO of event organizer Marylindbert International, who wore a light-colored pantsuit with a diaphanous, lightly embroidered jusi overcoat that matched her slimness.
Not to be outdone was Cesar Montano, chief operating officer of the Tourism Promotions Board Philippines. He was smartly dressed in an open-neck white shirt, black coat and dark blue jeans that suited his ultra hip ninja ‘do.
So did celebrity chef Erwan Heusaff, Content Creator of the event and its ambassador, in a no-nonsense, daytime dark suit with an open-neck gray shirt.
In their contemporary appeal, they were like the carinderia food — great-tasting and appetite-satisfying home-cooked delicacies and dishes that is the precursor of fast food — that they were promoting.
The generous native merienda was strictly carinderia: an assortment of rice cakes in small servings like sapin-sapin and kutsinta, arroz caldo, Pancit Malabon and guinatan.
Simple under the brightly lighted chandeliers had never been more elegant!

UNITED ARTISTS OF BOHOL OPENING. Bohol-Buhol is a group of visual artists and their family members from Bohol and other Visayan provinces, who depict their life, passions and interpretations of current social conditions as expressed through art.
Perhaps best translated in English as United Artists of Bohol, Bohol-Buhol holds an annual group show, now on its sixth edition, from April 12 to 30 at the Got Heart Gallery located Lot 10 Block Headed by award-winning mixed-media artist Sam Penaso, the group exhibit features the works of Anafe Nemenzo, Arsenio Lagura Jr., Audie Estrellada, Benedict Axell Macario, Daisydaqs Manluza, Rhanths Anunciado, Elvin Vitor, Glen bpat15 is a group of visual artists and their family members from Bohol and other Visayan provinces, who depict their life, passions and interpretations of current social conditions as expressed through art.
Perhaps best translated in English as United Artists of Bohol, Bohol-Buhol holds an annual group show, now on its sixth edition, from April 12 to 30 at the Got Heart Gallery located Lot 10 Block 10 Katipunan Ave., White Plains, Quezon City.
Headed by award-winning mixed-media artist Sam Penaso, the group exhibit features the works of Anafe Nemenzo, Arsenio Lagura Jr., Audie Estrellada, Benedict Axell Macario, Daisydaqs Manluza, Rhanths Anunciado, Elvin Vitor, Glen Lumantao, Jeffrey Sisican, Joey Labrador, Joseph Ingking, Janseen Bantugan, Froilan Galpo, Rica Duenas, Rico Tompong, Nicole Asares, Gay Ido Bernaldez, Gabriel Café, Roy Ferre, Joeven Polo, Lucell Larawan, Henri Cainglet, Lloyd Lusica, Boggs Castro, Geovanni Abing, Liza Broce Oppus, Omar Dagdayan, Keith Ancog, Paul Inting, Glems Barte, Victor Bulala, Mark Anthony Cartilla, Rica Duenas, Victor Bulala, Arsenio Lagura Jr., Darwin Alingig, Betsy Alterado, Cesar Montano, Rommel Manhilot, Joselito Manhilot, Julius Tongco, Mark Anthony Cartilla, Rolando Paloso, Joselito Alipala, Guy Custudio, Oliver Davidas, Jhacky Curambao, Jumjum Ouano, F Jordan Carnice, Sylvia Gonser, Melbourne Aquino, Irish Glori Galoon, Edgar Corneto, Joselito Jandayan, Felix Amoncio, Dyza Bianca Saco, Dea Tsyna Saco, Dby Kastel Saco and Vida May Tirol de Juan.
Guest artists are Fidel Sarmiento, president of the Art Association of the Philippines (AAP), who conducted an art workshop, and Jane Ebarle.
Set up in 2012 at the Renaissance Gallery, the group aims to provide artists from Bohol and other Visayan provinces with exhibit opportunities in Metro Manila. Among its supporters were Cesar Montano, Nene Lungay, Ric Ramasola, Guy Costudio and Maryo delos Reyes.
Last month, the Philippine Arts Month, they finished Bohol-Buhol 5 at ICM Mall held at Talimbaw Gallery in Albur, Bohol. Penaso also brought the AAP president, Froilan Galpo and Anafe Nemenzo to Bohol to conduct an art workshop and showed them the Baclayon Church, the tarsiers, Chocolate Hills, Panglao Beach, Loboc River and other scenic spots.

GOING FULLY DIGITAL. Due to a dwindling circulation and higher publication costs, magazine stands will have fewer titles to display.
Summit Media has announced it is closing the remaining print editions of its brands Cosmopolitan Philippines, Preview, Pep, Top Gear, FHM and Town and Country. After 23 years in the publishing industry, it is going fully digital.
“As we embark on our new journey towards a wholly digital future, we look back at the values that made us successful, and one thing that stands out is our respect for our audiences,” Summit Media president Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng said in a statement.

DECORATE YOUR MAN CAVE WITH DINO SKELETONS. “Dinosaurs have become cool, trendy — real objects of decoration, like paintings,” the Italian expert citing Hollywood actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Nicolas Cage, fans of such outsize prehistoric ornaments.
Cage, however, did hand back the rare skull of a tyrannosaurus bataar, a close cousin of T. Rex, that he bought in 2007 after it was found to have been stolen and illegally taken out of Mongolia.
In 1997, McDonald’s and Walt Disney were among donors stumping up $8.36 million to buy Sue — the most complete and best preserved Tyrannosaurus rex ever found — for the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.
“For the last two or three years, the Chinese have become interested in paleontology and have been looking for big specimens of dinosaurs found on their soil, for their museums or even for individuals,” said Iacopo Briano of Binoche et Giquellon, the auction house that is putting the two dinosaurs under the hammer.
The new buyers are now bidding against multinational corporations as well as ultra-rich Europeans and Americans, the “traditional” buyers of dinosaur skeletons, Briano added. 
The skeletons of an allosaurus and a diplodocus are up for auction in Paris, marketed as hip interior design objects — for those with big enough living rooms. “The fossil market is no longer just for scientists,” added Briano.
Dinosaur bones are increasingly gracing collectors’ cabinets, with another huge skeleton, that of a theropod, expected to fetch up to 1.5 million euros ($1.84 million) when it goes up for auction in June.
“Millions of people come to see it, it’s incredible publicity for companies,” said Eric Mickeler, a natural history expert for the Aguttes auction house.

It was right on egress when TV5’s natural medicine advocate Edinell Calvario fell in love with the stunning Oak Tree (2013) and purchased it outright from the artist, Elmer Dumlao.
The work was part of his “Paper Series” from his “Full Cargo: An Artist Comes Home” retrospective that had just wrapped up at the Art Center of Megamall. Soon after, the artist delivered by rented truck the massive green sculpture to Calvario’s rest house under construction in Tagaytay City.
It was the trunk of a formerly live ancient oak tree that University of Sto. Tomas-trained and Jordan-based visual artist Dumlao had been passing by daily from his apartment to his office since he started working in Amman, Jordan in 1994. One day, in 2013, he passed by the trunk with natives gathering the dead wood to turn into coal to heat the
Shisha, a water-pipe popular in many Arab countries, in which fruit-scented tobacco passed through an ornate water vessel and is inhaled through a hose.
Dumlao thought of paying them money to buy coal instead to save the ancient beauty from extinction. He then converted it into a sculpture by keeping the topmost part with a horn-like protuberance and scream-like opening, painting it mustard yellow and mounting it on a stand with scattered stones with the metal cutout of a barking dog painted white. He shipped it to Manila in a container full of other works that made up his “Full Cargo” exhibit.
Along with other celebrities, Paulina Luz Sotto-Llanes, granddaughter of National Artist for visual arts Arturo Luz and daughter of entertainer Vic Sotto, helped open the exhibit. Julius and Tintin Babao sent their best wishes. Heber Bartolome dropped by. “Vice Ganda” hiding as “Inborn” was there during its duration.

HOPE SPRINGS FOREVER. The national dream to hold the Miss Universe in the Philippines this year is as wishful thinking as having a back-to-back win at the planet’s most prestigious beauty contest. The talk is it will be held when Boracay reopens after its compulsory closure. That’s the mind of a master meister working overtime!
There was even this funny news item that the government’s decision to shorten the closure of Boracay to four months has nothing to do with the possible conduct of the Miss Universe pageant in the island resort. Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo clarified that the primary reason the Department of Tourism is aiming for a shorter period is to alleviate the closure’s effects on the workers and residents.
This idea was supposed to have come from President Rodrigo Duterte. Does this mean his government is now amenable to financing the ultra expensive event? Lead’s reading is he has talked without thinking through the complex issue so that’s not really an option.
To be able to even consider doing that, a financier is required as Pres. Duterte is definite about not spending the people’s money for the frivolity. Investor Luis “Chavit” Singson cannot be counted on as he and his co-financiers were badly burned the last time that a repeat is impossible. It was all cashout, no ROI!
In the same way Singson invested in the 2016 Miss Universe, Filipinos are hankering again for a repeat. Hope springs forever especially for beauty pageant-crazy Filipinos hooked on the pomp and circumstance as a matter of national pride. Only China has the kind of money to stage Miss Universe and it has even brought home the crown. As you can see, there is no relation between hosting and winning.

FRONT ROW AT THE NEW YORK FESTIVALS. GMA Network leads the New York Festivals again, this time bringing home eight medals and four finalist certificates at the 2018 New York Festivals “World’s Best TV and Films” Competition held in Las Vegas on April 10.
Showing the global excellence of the Kapamilya Network’s news and public affairs programs, at front row from left: Mark Norella, executive producer for Reel Time: “Hawla” and “Gutom;” Neil Gumban, SAVP for Public Affairs; Regie Bautista, FVP for GMA Program Support Department and Corporate Strategic Planning; Ian Simbulan, executive producer for Reporter’s Notebook; Maki Pulido, host, Reporter’s Notebook; Jessica Soho; Alden Richards; Joy Madrigal, program manager, ‘Alaala and Brigada;’ Raffy Tima, reporter, Brigada; Justin Baluyot, researcher for Reel Time: “Gutom.”
Documentary program Reel Time won the gold medal in the Health/Medical Information category for its “Hawla (The Untold Story of the Village Monster)” episode. “Hawla” featured the story of Nene, a woman kept in a cage because of her psychological condition.
Another Reel Time documentary, meanwhile, earned the country one of its two silver medals this year. The episode “Gutom (Starved)” about two-year-old Roel—who, because of extreme malnourishment, could not walk, much less crawl at his age, won in the Human Concerns category. Both winning Reel Time documentaries were executive produced by Mark Anthony Norella.
Lead actor Alden Richards received the Silver World Medal for Alaala: A Martial Law Special. The special, which was recognized in the docu-drama category, featured the journey of Martial Law activist and award-winning screenwriter Bonifacio Ilagan. Aired in commemoration of the 45th anniversary of President Ferdinand Marcos’ declaration of Martial Law, the special was bannered by actor Alden Richards who played the role of Boni.
Jessica Soho won the bronze medal in the Best News Anchor category. Soho was the first and only Filipino broadcast journalist to date, who made it to the list.
GMA Public Affairs earned three more bronze medals for the country. Documentary program Front Row won a bronze medal in the Best Public Affairs Program category. Its winning episode “Batang Bomba (Bomb Pickers)” told the story of Aeta children who pick up detonated bombs to earn money.
Reporter’s Notebook received a bronze medal in the Community Portraits category for Maki Pulido’s “Yapak sa Pusod ng Dagat (Footsteps on the Bed).” It featured the story of Filipinos who risk their lives diving into the ocean without proper equipment in the hope of mining gold that they could sell.
GMA News TV program Brigada also took home a bronze medal in the Current Affairs category for its report on “Combat Camera Team”. The episode detailed the operation of Philippine Army’s Scout Ranger Batallion in Marawi City using combat cameras.
The Network’s Program Support Department also won a bronze medal for “EDSA 31st Anniversary Spot”. The project won in the Graphic Design: Promotion/Open and IDs category.