'Visual Color of Grace' at the UST Museum

At the University of Santo Tomas Museum is a rare collection of paintings that spans decades of Philippine art history. In celebration of the 140th year of the museum's establishment and the Quadricentennial Anniversary of the University of Santo Tomas, the prestigious painting collection showcases several important artworks whose recent restorations were funded through the annual Christmas Concert Gala.

The exhibit entitled Visual Color of Grace begins with 18th century works which were generally unsigned and generally created for religious purposes, with the Church being the foremost art patron. Included in the exhibit is an exception to the rule - a portrait of Mary Magdalene signed by the artist Juan Arzeo. Next in the collection are works from the 19th century, when economic progress enabled the middle class to commission paintings and art schools and guilds came into existence. With formal art training in the country, artists like Juan Luna, Felix Resureccion Hidalgo and Miguel Zaragoza produced numerous paintings with socio-cultural themes, a few of which are featured in the exhibit. Many of Hidalgo and Luna's works can be found in the National Museum's Hall of Masters. Visual Color of Grace features five of Hidalgo's undated oil paintings, and three by Amorsolo, including a portrait of Fr. Silvestre Sancho O.P, a rector at the university from 1936-1944. During his term, he established the UST Museum's annual inter-school on-the-spot painting competition. To this day, the museum's collection grows with its acquisition of winning entries in the contest. The exhibit also features works by Rafael Enriquez, Fabian de la Rosa, Teodoro Buenaventura, and Pablo Amorsolo - all products of the Academia de Dibujo, the first formal fine arts school in the country opened in 1821 by Damian Domingo. Domingo is recognized to have made the first self-portrait in the country. Finally, the exhibit features works of early Modernists Victorio Edades, Vicente Manansala, Ricarte Puruganan, Galo Ocampo and Carlos "Botong" Francisco. While Visual Color of Grace is already well worth the trip, even with infamous Manila traffic, the UST Museum's permanent galleries are also notable. Located in the UST Main Building - the country's first earthquake-resistant structure, the museum houses several important and unique collections, the first being the Gabinete de Fisica. The Gabinete de Fisica was set up in order to receive permission to open a Faculty of Medicine, which was granted to UST through a Royal Decree from Charles II dated November 22, 1682. The collection of animal, mineral and vegetable specimens used by the Faculty of Pharmacy and the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery is evidently the most popular. Kids and grownups alike are fascinated if not creeped out by the extensive collection of stuffed specimens of Philippine fauna. Colorful feathered friends, slimy-looking creepers, furry four-footed animals and even a couple of marsupials all stare at visitors with their glassy eyes. If you begin to feel uncomfortable, like maybe one of the rats will suddenly come to life and bite your leg, all you have to do is turn around. Behind the stuffed animals is a huge collection of shells sure to impress any conchologist. Classified during the Japanese occupation by campus internees, the shells are displayed according to Gastropoda, Land Shells and Bivalves. The shells on display were gathered over years of fieldwork in different areas of the Philippines, which has been called the Paradise of Shell Collectors. Like the stuffed specimens, the shells are infinitely fascinating, and a lot less creepy. Though much smaller than the Central Bank's Money Museum, the UST Museum's coin and memorabilia collection is significant. Gathered over the years by Dominican professors with a sense of cultural value, the coin collection has participated in the Regional Exposition of the Philippines in 1895 as well as in Hanoi, Philadelphia, Amsterdam and Paris. On the other hand, the medal collection is not as extensive, but both are very informative and helpful in tracing historical events in Philippine history. The oriental art collection features pottery and ceramics from China, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam - a testament to pre-colonial trade between the Philippines and its neighbors. Song-Yuan ceramics, celadons and Ming ceramics stand out among many other pieces in the collection. The ethnography collection arranged by function is also quite interesting, especially the selection of unusual weapons. Though not very large, the collection is a substantial sampling of Philippine native culture. Apart from kitchen ware, decor, religious paraphernalia, there is a corner reserved for indigenous musical instruments. Like everything else in the museum, the instruments are for display only, and touching is not allowed. One tempting item on display is a plush papal chair, which was used by Pope John Paul II during his World Youth Day visit to UST in 1995. Just in case you forget you're standing in the country's oldest Catholic university, the last collection in the hall of religious images is sure to remind you. The chapel-like hall contains several pieces of anonymous Philippine art, containing a unique blend of Spanish, Chinese and Filipino characteristics. To be able to see all the collections, at least an afternoon is necessary. Hopefully, your visit will be on a slow day - when you can walk around freely sans the occasional large group of noisy students on a field trip. But looking at the collections can get very tiring, and some students can be found sitting in small circles on the floor. Though they're probably just enjoying the airconditioning, who knows? They might actually be soaking up all the historical goodness. - GMANews.TV The exhibit runs until January 29. Museum hours are from 8:30 a.m to 4:30 p.m, Tuesday to Saturday. Admission fee is 30 pesos.