remembrance of things awry

Long ago in mid-1987, Malolos patrician, historian, and nationwide heritage advocate Basilidez “Dez” Bautista led our group through a memorable tour of his hometown Malolos, Bulacan and environs.

He brought us to the famous prewar Art Deco mansion of the famous ophthalmologist LS.  Apart from the stunning ceiling painting by the young Fernando Amorsolo, and the goldfishes in the guest bathroom walls also by Amorsolo, what riveted my attention was the charming painting “Kundiman” by Fabian de la Rosa, an elegant scene of an afternoon musicale at home where the doctor himself, dressed in a light suit, was depicted seated in the corner.  For me, it was the soul of that house, more than the Amorsolo ceiling opus.

Several years later, in a crazy turn of events, I was admiring, albeit sadly, the very same “Kundiman” by Fabian de la Rosa in the entrance hall, hung with wallfuls of beautiful prewar Fernando Amorsolos, of an ubercollector friend’s Forbes Park house, where it hung by itself on a small section of wall beside the entrance to the dining room.  I wanted to weep at seeing an old friend displaced from one’s original home.  For me, it was totally forlorn and out of context there — a masterpiece among hundreds of other masterpieces in the Chinoy Croesus’ palace —  nowhere as beautiful, shining like a star, as it had been in its original and intended location —  the airy and commodious “sala” of the Art Deco doctor’s mansion in Pariancillo, Malolos, Bulacan.

Over dinner, close friends related, in hush-hush tones, the story of the painting’s acquisition.  I knew the doctor’s family was rich and didn’t need the money the painting had generated [ the broker’s margin notwithstanding ].  My friends related that the Fernando Amorsolo ceiling was badly deteriorated and required immediate restoration.  The doctor’s family, based in Ayala Alabang, was financially solid and could well afford it.  The well-known art restorer from Santa Ana, Manila was summoned and he declared that he could save it.  However, apart from the enormous restoration fee, he required something else from the family:  he would only restore it if the family agreed to sell the “Kundiman” painting by Fabian de la Rosa to him.  It was their Scylla and Charybdis:  it was one or the other.  The doctor’s family, desperate to save what they thought was their greatest treasure — the Amorsolo ceiling — agreed.  The restorer forthwith sold it to the Chinoy Croesus.  Well, we all know what happened to the art restorer after that.  End of story.

A few years ago, I came across another superb Fabian de la Rosa, a large painting of “Planting Rice” which traced its provenance to the estate of the Spanish mestizo patriarch of a rich shipping family.  Magnificent and mesmerizing.  I could not get enough of it the whole evening.  Because the heirs are still affluent and very discreet, the painting and the rest of the distinguished collection — including a large Fernando Amorsolo, a large Jorge Pineda, a unique pair of exquisite oil landscapes on “madre perla” shells by the national hero Jose Rizal, among other splendors — have not been seen by art scholars and connoisseurs for decades and will likely remain so.  That is the reason why it has not landed in the Chinoy Croesus’ palace.