Ang Silot kang Pandaguan

Ang Silot kang Pandaguan (acrylic on canvas, 24"x30")

Pandaguan is the son of Sicalac and Sicavay, who were the first man and woman, according to the stories of the Pintados (in Miguel Lorca's Relacion de las Yslas Felipinas, 1580s). He was punished by the gods Captan and Maguayen for the death of the shark that he captured using a net and brought to land. This resulted in him being sent to the netherworld, where he roamed for a while until the gods took pity on him, and brought him back to life. When he came back, he went to his home only to find that his wife had left with another man. Even when he ordered his son to get her, the woman still did not come since she thought that no man could come back to life. This enraged Pandaguan and he went back to the netherworld. In this painting, the artist attempts to present a scene when Pandaguan was punished by Captan and Maguayen with lightning bolts. 

Since my reading of Loarca's Relacion de las Yslas Felipinas, I wanted to paint scenes about the belief system of the Pintados, who are the ancestors of my people (Visayans). I decided to paint this one. It took me a week to complete.

Pagpanulô

Pagpanulô (acrylic on canvas, 24"x30")

Pagpanulô (or pangilaw) is the gathering of shellfish, crabs, shrimps, and other marine organisms during low tides at night. It is usually done with flashlights and headlamps for the person to see the organisms in the water and sand. I attempted to paint this said activity by depicting two women who have already collected a lot of shellfish and are preparing them to be consumed later on. The inspiration for making the painting was when I went to the homeplace of my fiancee. One of the activities we did while there was to gather shellfish (panulô) with her sisters. It was my first experience of panulô. After the gathering, we immediately ate the ones we had taken by cooking them in vinegar (kilaw). The experience was so satisfying and rewarding that I decided to make a painting about it. It took me a week to complete the painting.

This painting will be a part of the "Arte Centinaryo" (art exhibit) during the VSU Centennial Anniversary in April 2024.