INSIGHT! Although prices hardly breached the P20.0 million mark at Leon.jpg)
Gallery’s The Asian Cultural Council Philippines Art Auction 2016 on Feb. 20, 2016, Arturo Luz’s Magbabanig sold at P21.02 million including premium, grabbing the top rank. The auctions superstars hogged the top eight slots, but a newcomer Jose John Santos III’s Untitled ranked second at P10.51 million.
Hernando R. Ocampo’s Untitled and Anita Magsaysay-Ho’s Mother and Child tied at third at P9.93 million. Ronald Ventura’s Lost Race took fourth rank at P8.18 million. Then Lee Aguinaldo’ Linear Explosion No.2 got fifth rank at P9.81 million Fernando Zobel’s Selene III (Fases) and new entrant Elmer Borlongan’s Vulcanizing Shop tied at sixth rank for P6.42 million. Fernando Amorsolo’s classic theme, Under the Mango Tree, took seventh for P5.840 million. Onib Olmedo’s prize winner, The Apartment, snapped eighth, sold for P5.61 million.
Perhaps due to the availability of more important lots and/or a tell-tale sign that the auction market is leveling off, we will have definitive indications in the Leon Gallery’s Spectacular Mid-Year Auction 2016.
Family connections strengthened. The Sottos, Oyo Sotto and Kristine Hermosa Sotto, paint the picture of a happy and connected family with loving parents raising three growing kids. With the celebrity power couple driving the foundation of brood Kiel, 7 Ondrea, 4, and Kaleb, 1, it is important for them to find ways to maintain strong connections with their kids.
“Our days are full of errands that usually revolve around our kids’ schedules, especially now that Kiel and Ondrea have school,” Tin shared. “We all wake up early and have breakfast together, and then Oyo and I separate to take them to their schools if there’s no driver. While the kids are in school, we do our errands and work out. Then after school, we make sure that they get their homework done before we have our family bonding time.”
Like any other family, their best days are spent watching movies and eating. Other than the annual trips abroad and sporadic trips to the cinema, the Sottos love to stay at home, where they say find everything they need. “Aside from streaming movies from iflix and Fox, we also watch a lot of cartoons as preferred by the kids,” Oyo said. “We’re so happy to have easy access to our favorite movies and shows whenever we want, on top of strong Internet and the PLDT TVolution Stick that lets us enjoy them in the big screen.”
Backed by the discipline and mode-ration imposed by the parents, the Internet plays a huge role in the Sottos’ lives. Aside from entertainment and connectivity, the Internet lets Oyo and Tin look up recipes and read the news. “Ondrea loves it when we read stories to her, while Kiel, being more visual, prefers to watch TV to be educated,” Tin added. “It’s really all in the Internet.”
The Internet now strengthens family connections even beyond the home. Thanks to the country’s first data sharing feature by the newest PLDT HOME DSL broadband plan, the Sottos stay in touch even outside the house. It is now easy share the connection of their HOME DSL to their mobile phones — whether it’s to get updates on Kiel’s most recent commercial shoot, plan their next travel getaway or simply share different experiences to make those experiences more meaningful.
The PLDT HOME DSL Speedster Fam Plan 1299 offers speeds of up to 10 Mbps and a monthly data allocation of 50 GB. Families who upgrade their Speedster Plan with a Smart Mobile Plan 399 or Plan 600 can share 6 GB of the 50 GB monthly data allocation to their smart phones. They may get up to four Smart mobile phone lines bundled with their Speedster Fam Plan, all conveniently billed under one subscription.
“As we always say, Internet today is not just about high-speed connectivity” PLDT VP and Marketing Director Gary Dujali said. “It is about the Internet helping build strong connections among family members within and beyond the home. We are more than happy to hear that families like the Sottos make the most out of technology in nurturing their bonds to each other wherever they may be.
Powered by the PLDT Group’s robust and resilient fixed and wireless networks, the Speedster Fam Plan will also allow families to access and enjoy exclusive offers from PLDT HOME and Smart’s other digital lifestyle partners such as Zalora, foodpanda and Airbnb, whether at home or on mobile.
For more information, log on to pldthome.com.
HeART (Kalayaan sa Sining ) opening swarmed! Not only was the National Arts Month celebration well-organized, it was also well-attended by artists, collectors and art enthusiasts. Photo shows the crowd present at the opening ceremony. (First row, from left) Ethel Dimacuha, Lino Acasio, Rolly Dalupan, Noni Alipio, Joel Tabuena, Godfrey Torres, Kim Jisu, Mayor Benhur Abalos, Ral Arrogante, Maestro Orobia, Mary Rose Gisbert, Joyce Ann Maristela, Coneth Amido, and Daniel Libor (Second row) Emman Acasio, Abe Orobia, Rowel Vicencio, Judeo Herrera, Camille de la Rosa, Councilor Charisse Marie Abalos and Joey Cobcobo.
Like father, like son. If Maestro Rogelio Orobia, who founded Kapisanan ng mga Pintor ng Pilipinas in 1995, is like his son, Abe Orobia, who is both a visual artist and organizers of artists and art exhibits, so are Lino Acasio and his son Emman Acasio. Abe organized HeART (Kalayaan sa Sining) with Ral Arrogante held at the Atrium building of the Mandaluyong City Hall from Feb. 23 to 26,
Lino exhibited his acrylic on canvas Maayang Umaga that emphasizes the love within the family by depicting simple life in the province in which every member of the family helps each other and loves one another.
Emman showed his diptych Long-Distance Relationship aka #LDR that reflected his situation when he was based in Singapore. Their styles reflect meticulous attentions for details and restrained use of colors that the father must have passed on to the son.
Amazing evenings at HRC. Hard Rock Café (HRC) closes the month of February with a series of great performances from the country’s top artists and show bands.
Singer Paula Bianca performs back-to-back with show band Part 3 on Feb. 27 (Saturday), while Part 3 is set to power the house on Feb. 28 (Sunday), and Kudos Loves 80s will have the ultimate throwback musical party on Feb. 29 (Monday).
Hard rockers can look forward to amazing evenings of beautiful music as these artists dish out live a sampling of today’s hottest chart-toppers, homegrown favorites, standard classics, and energy-packed party anthems.
HRC recently celebrated its 20th anniversary in the business and it continues it advocacy to provide Filipino music lovers an alternative entertainment venue that provides quality and topnotch entertainment from the country’s biggest and most respected bands and artists. All shows start at 9 p.m.