Piglas

BY ALICE GUILLERMO

One of the most striking paintings in “Piglas” is that of Roy Veneracion entitled "Paulit-ulit ang mga pangyayari noong Pebrero sa gunita ni Ferdinand samantalang siya’y hele-hele sa awiting Dahil sa Iyo", in oil on acrylic in enamel. The colors, while vivid and in unusual combinations, do not have a decorative effect, but instead have the intensity of a dream or a lingering after-image that haunts the mind. The scarlet and golden hues mold the figures and lend them an unusual expressiveness. Its surrealism lies in its theatrical quality – the scene of Imelda singing to the crowd below with Marcos seated and watching – is like a stage for a lurid melodrama. But this time, Filipinas, the beautiful muse draped in the flag, is held captive by a familiar heavy square-jawed figure in the military attire. In Ferdinand’s dream, there are historical resonances: the Imelda form is sleekly dressed in a costume of the Thirties, while the work itself simulates a gilded antique frame broken in parts, It is not only Ferdinand and Imelda, it is also Peron and Eva, and the other conjugal dictatorship and fascist regimes of this century.

- Alice Guillermo
1986