339. FACES OF CHRIST

FACE OF CHRIST, Small painting on canvas. (PC)

As imagined by man, and created by hands both trained, unschooled and self-taught. Here are His Holy Images, captured in Western classical paintings, Mexican tin retablos, Philippine icons, and various portraits on wood, canvas, cloth and glass.

**********

SAGRADO CORAZON, by unknown Filipino painter. (PC)

HOLY FACE, vintage painting, after the Shroud of Turin. (PC)

ECCE HOMO, 19th C.pastel on board, U.S. (PC)

CHRIST BEARING HIS CROSS, Oil on canvas, 19thc, (PC)

BEHOLD THE MAN! 1940s U.S.painting, (PC)

ECCE HOMO, Undated and anonymous Phil. painting
sighted at a Tiendesitas antique shop.

SACRED HEART, American vintage painting on ebay.

ECCE HOMO, Reverse painting on glass, 19th c. (PC)

STO. ENTIERRO, painting on tin, Philippines (PC)

AGONY IN THE GARDEN, '50S painting (PC)

ORACION, by Domingo Celis, 1950s, (PC)

VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS,
Station of the Cross, painting on tin, 1900s. (PC)

*PC = Personal Collection, all others, from private collections and shops.

338. ARTE MEXICANO: A Sampling of Mexican Religious Art

18TH C. POLYCHROMED AND GILDED WOODEN BAS RELIEF MINIATURE

Traditional belief has it that, at the time of San Agustin's death, two angels plucked out his heart and placed it on a vessel. 

The Philippines and Mexico are linked by the common thread of history: both are part of the New Spanish Empire—Nueva España—that involved vast areas in North, Central and South America, and which expanded to the Philippines.  

In its quest to foster trade between the East Indies and the America across the Pacific, Spain sent Miguel López de Legazpi to the Philippines in 1565, but it was Andrés de Urdaneta, who found an easier sailing route from the Philippines  to Mexico,  facilitating the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade. Products such as silk fabrics, gold, silver, porcelain ware,  spices and gold were shipped to the Americas from Asia leading to vibrant,  commercial exchanges.

Bernard of Offida (b. 7 Nov. 1604/d. 22 Aug. 1694), born Domenico Peroni , was an Italian religious from the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. He lived  in servitude to his fellow friars in various capacities and he was noted for his strong Eucharistic dedication and for his holiness.

ICON PAINTING ON WOOD.

The Virgen del Carmen and Ntra. Sr. de Soledaad de Porta Vaga are important Philippine devotions in Manila and Cavite.

The Spanish conquest also introduced both Filipinos and Mexicans to a new religion—Christianity—which spawned new religious art. Casting away their ancient idols, Filipinos and Mexicans began creating new images of their new faith copied from ancient templates brought by Spanish missionaries—carving in wood, painting in native pigments and then oils,  engraving and printing on paper.

As such, there are striking similarities in the artistic output of both Spanish Philippines and Mexico, and these fine examples of obra sagrada Mexicana—santos, relieves, laminas—clearly show that; some can even pass for Philippine folk art, and vice versa,

POLYCHROMED CARVING IN RELIEF

FOKSY PAINTING ON CANVAS, 18th c.

ST. MICHAEL, oil painting, 19thc,

ST. CATHERINE, oil painting, 19th c.

SOURCES:

ALL PHOTOS: ARTE MEXICANA MAGAZINE, 1961

294. VIRGEN DE GUADALUPE: From an Image on a Tilma to a Sculpted Santa

VIRGEN DE GUADALUPE, from the workshop of renown
Kapampangan carver, Nick Lugue, 2002

The apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe to a Catholic convert, Juan Diego, an Aztec Indian of Mexico, began in Tepeyac Hill in 1531. There, the 57-year old Juan was told by the Lady to inform the Bishop what he has seen.  Juan Diego succeeded only in talking to the Bishop on his second visit; in turn, the Bishop advised the native to ask the Lady for a sign to prove that she was indeed Mary. In Her next apparition.the Lady asked him to gather roses growing on top of Tepeyac Hill, which Juan Diego collected and wrapped in his tilma, a cape made of cactus fiber.

After the Lady arranged the roses, she sent back Juan Diego to the Bishop. Appearing before the religious leader, Juan Diego let fall of the roses wrapped with the tilma. But it was not the blooms that stunned the Bishop, for there,impressed on the tilma, was the picture of the Blessed Mother—just as the native described Her.

Upon his return to the village, Juan Diego was surprised to find a sick uncle cured, who told him of his meeting with a young woman bathed in soft light. This Lady told him She had sent his nephew to see the Bishop with a picture of herself.  She then told Juan Diego’s uncle that she and the image be called “Sta. Maria de Guadalupe”. It was clear that She was one and the same woman--the Blessed Virgin--seen by both Juan and his uncle, the same one whose likeness was now on the tilma.

Thus began the spread of the worldwide devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe. The devotion is centered on the tilma with the miraculous imprint of the Virgin’s image that shows no sign of being painted or sketched. It is enshrined in the basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which has become the most popular religious pilgrimage site in the Western Hemisphere.

For centuries, attempts have been made to replicate the image sculpturally—and it has always been a challenge to represent the image tri-dimensionally, as it has quite a complex iconography.

The Lady stands upon a crescent moon, in reference to the woman of Rev. 12:1 who has symbolically the "moon under her feet",  a symbol of her perpetual purity. An angel supports her,  a testament to her royalty. The Lady’s mantle is blue-green or turquoise, the color of eternity and immortality. The limbus or gold border of her mantle is another sign of nobility. The stars on her mantle are indicative of her supernatural character and her personage as  the Queen of Heaven. They are the pre-dawn stars of the winter solstice that appeared on the morning of 12 December 1531.

The bow, tied high around her waist, is a  symbol of new life. Its  position and the slight swelling of the abdomen indicates that the the Lady is infanticipating,  almost ready to give birth, which would further confirm her identification with the woman of Rev. 12 who is about to deliver her child. The whole figure is surrounded by a strange light, a mandorla, with scalloped edges.This representation, crafted by award-winning religious sculptor Nick Lugue of San Vicente Apalit, was commissioned by a patron from Batangas, who donated the 4-foot image to a local church where She now reposes.

SOURCES/REFERENCES:

Picture of the Guadalupe Virgin:http://www.patheos.com/blogs/holyrover/2017/05/03/with-the-virgin-of-guadalupe-in-mexico-city/

Pictures from Don Sevilla III, Nick Lugue

280. A NATIONHOOD OF NAZARENOS

JESUS NAZARENO OLD ESTAMPITA,

Every year, in January, Quiapo becomes the center of fervent religious attention during its fiesta. The devotion revolves around a dark, life-size, cross-bearing image of Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno (Poóng Itím na Nazareno) that is enshrined in the district’s minor basilica.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

The image comes out thrice in a year—on New Year’s Day, on January 9, and on Good Friday. The Januaray 9 “prusisyon” is the largest of the three, when the re-enactment of the image’s solemn transfer (Traslacion) to the basilica from its original location in what is now Rizal Park.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Religious veneration of the Nazareno—so-called because Jesus is identified as having come from Nazareth, in Galilee is profoundly  rooted among Filipinos who identify with Christ’s sufferings as represented by the statue.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Alex R. Castro Photo

The black Nazareno image was brought here in a Mexican galleon which sailed from Acapulco. It was carved by an unknown Mexican sculptor  in the mid-1600s. Its dark color is not due to the black fumes of votive candles, or to being scorched by fire that occurred in the galleon  as widely believed,--but because of the dark mesquite wood used.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Because the Nazareno had attained national popularity as early as the 18^th century, it has inspired replicas all over the country. The older and more popular copy belonged to the Recoletos, but this was destroyed during the last War.

Photo courtesy of Froilan Guanzon

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Today, practically every church in every Philippine town has a Nazareno image, many of which are also antiques. Outside of Quiapo, there are similar “Traslacion” processions  being carried out, using official replica images—like the one in Cagayan de Oro.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

Overseas, copies of the Nazareno could be found in Australia and in parishes in the United States, where Filipinos gather to process their images around the church grounds.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Raymund Feliciano

While Quiapo has become the focal point of homage to Christ, the Nazarene, its fiesta has also become a season for all men, for all Filipinos, a nation of worshippers still coming to grips with the conflict of God-inspired rituals and human chaos. 

34. RETRO-SANTO: Nstra. Sñra. De la Paz y Buen Viaje

One of the most popular and ancient images of the Blessed Virgin venerated in the Philippines resides in Antipolo and is known as Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage. For some, the image is simply called Birhen ng Antipolo or Buenviaje.


The santo is of Mexican origin, brought to the Philippines on 25 March 1625 (another date is 29 June 1626) by the then newly-appointed Governor General Juan Nino de Tabora to insure the safe voyage of the galleons against pirates and typhoons. Hence, the Virgin’s title.


The carved image itself is of dark hard wood and was a creation of unidentified Mexican artists. Crowned and haloed, the dark-skinned Virgin holds a scepter and with hands on her chest, the tips of her middle fingers almost touching. Her long, black wavy hair fall loosely on her back.


With Juan Nino’s demise in 1632, the image was turned over to the Jesuits for their church in Antipolo, once an isolated village accessible only by cascos or boats via the Pasig River. Seven years later, the Chinese rebelled against Spain and stormed the church, seized the image and threw it into a fire. The image remained unscathed and thus acquired its dark color. Noticeable is a shallow gash on her cheek, caused by the desecration.


The Buenviaje Virgin stayed in Cavite for 14 years and in the years between 1648 to 1748, the Virgin made a total of ten successful Pacific crossings, thus remaining true to her name. Pilgrimages to the Virgin of Antipolo became very popular as devotion increased.


In those days, the journeys to Antipolo were very hazardous--pilgrims had to hike the slippery trails of the region or cross the difficult terrain in man-borne hammocks. In the years to come, the pilgrimages were made more festive by the bright parasols, colorful balintawaks and camisas de chino worn by the pilgrims.


Today, the practice has all but disappeared; Antipolo is easy to reach via paved highways and modern-day pilgrims make the Maytime trek in buses or drive down the 28 km. road to Antipolo in snazzy cars.


In 1926, she was canonically crowned and the honored at the 1937 International Eucharistic Congress held in Manila.


At the height of World War II, when the Japanese took over the old Antipolo Church to be used as their garrison, devotees spirited the image away (local lore says that it was concealed in a drum, but the image was actually too large to fit) and, with 500 people accompanying her, began a journey through perilous mountain trails. In Pasig, she was kept in the home of the Ocampo family, and then transported to the Quiapo Church where it was enshrined.


When the country was liberated, the Virgin was returned to Antipolo on 15 October 1945. A national drive was begun in 1948 to construct a church which was successfully completed and which has since become her home .


Every May 1st, by tradition, the Virgin is borne in a solemn procession to an improvised altar atop Pinagmisahan where a Mass is said to commemorate the 1st Mass celebrated by the early Spanish missionaries on the same hill.


Devotees also mark the feast of the Antipolo Virgin every 1st Tuesday of May. Today, Antipolo is easy to reach via paved highways and modern-day pilgrims make the Maytime trek in buses or drive down the 28 km. road to Antipolo in their SUVs and fast cars.