Images courtesy of White Walls Gallery
Depictions of maternal love remain to be common among local artists in the scene. It seems for Filipinos who grew up in traditional households it is inherent and natural for one to have a connection with the women who birthed them. Just as artists paint their works from the ground up, the same can be said to women behind everyone’s beginnings. In a recent showcase at White Walls Gallery, young artists Renee Avila and Kiko Urquiola, relayed their experiences as children raised by loving mothers in a select few of their works.
Renee Avila, a young painter who is known for composing romantic images of classical figures, incorporates Bartolini’s sculpture, Carità educatrice (Charity the Educator), in her work Amor Mortis (Mother’s Love), where a female figure is seen cradling a child lovingly amidst a cove of flowers. Personally, she interprets the sculpture as a personification of Charity, as it is a woman’s role to be her child’s first teacher and primary source of love and care.
The artist emphasizes the importance of honoring the bond between a mother and child through presenting a sentimental picture on canvas. As someone who was raised by a single mother herself, she grew up thankful of her guardian’s support, stating that though it is difficult to fully grasp the hardships of motherhood unless experiencing it firsthand, her art has become a means for her to express her gratitude.
Kiko Urquiola, on the other hand, paints a comparatively more contemporary and realistic image of motherhood. His oil painting titled Puno’t Dulo IV shows a child anchored on his mother’s feet. The act of stepping atop one’s mother’s feet is inspired by his own experience feeling the comfort of his mother helping him walk as a young boy. He surmises that the women in his household, his mother and grandmother, have been integral in his journey as an artist, and that everyone is somehow made into what they are now because of their mother’s guidance.
Though different in artistic styles and providence, both artists agree that motherly themes are commonplace in the portfolio of artists in the community. The concept of using maternal figures as a subject in the Filipino arts parallels the culture of women traditionally been expected to raise their children at home. Such duties have made it possible for everyday people to have a strong connection with their guardians, from childhood well into their adulthood. Though in time, most may choose to leave home and diverge paths from their caregivers, the bond between mother and child is analogous towards the attitude of an artist with his art: just as an artist paints his picture with a piece of him or her in it, a mother leaves an impression with her child enough for them to go about their lives.