El Poeta del Color: Amorsolo in the Vargas Collection
18 June – 7 October 2007
Kawilihan Gallery
Jorge B. Vargas Museum & Filipiniana Research Center
The UP Jorge B. Vargas Museum and Filipiniana Research Center (UPVM) opened El Poeta del Color:
Amorsolo in the Vargas Collection at the Kawilihan Gallery (2/F) on 18 June 2007, in time for the official
celebration of the University of the Philippines’ 2008 Centenary, and will run until 7 October 2007. It will
feature the works of Fernando C. Amorsolo, the University and the country’s best-known artist, from the
collection donated by Commonwealth Executive Secretary Jorge B. Vargas to the UP. It will tell the story
of Amorsolo’s art and its social production during periods of historical transitions, and how his
relationship with Vargas, an esteemed government official and civic benefactor, paved the way in
pictorially representing the ideals of Philippine art and society. Moreover, the project will present
preliminary results of a collaborative research project on color and conservation, having at its core the
Amorsolos in the Vargas Collection. Titled Art Beyond Appearances: Physics looks into art, the project is
the first collaboration among the UPVM, the UP National Institute of Physics and the UP Department of
Electronics and Electrical Engineering.
Amorsolo is represented by 57 artworks in the Vargas Collection, most of which were commissioned by
Vargas, and covers about four decades of his artistic creativity. This gives the UPVM the distinction of
being the only public collection with the most number of his works. The Vargas Archive also holds proof
of these commissions and reveals aspects of other works done by Amorsolo.
For inquiries and pictures please call (63 2) 9818500 loc. 4024 or (63 2) 9281927 or email [email protected] or [email protected]
