The nineteenth century—steamships, family names, world trade, foreign firms, liberal ideas. Great tides of change are roiling Manila. In the middle of the chaos, a new art trend captures the imagination of local elites. How are these letras y figuras holding a mirror to Philippine society?

Cover Photo from the Ayala Corporation Collection.

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References:

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Santiago, Luciano P.R. (December 1991). “Damian Domingo and the First Philippine Art Academy.” Philippine Quarterly of Culture and Society, 19(4), pp. 264-280. 

Flores, Patrick D. (17 November 2011). “Everyday, Elsewhere: Allegory in Philippine Art.” Contemporary Aesthetics, (0)3 (Special Issue). 

“Lot 46. Jose Honorato Lozano, c. 1815-1885.” (2021) Salcedo Auctions. 

Quirino, Carlos (1961) "Damian Domingo, Filipino Painter." Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints, 9(1), pp. 78-96.

“Jose Honorato Lozano (c. 1815-c. 1885).” (undated) Christie’s.

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