Manila Art 2011

I like this artwork because of its light delicate strokes, choice of color, and setting.   In my opinion, the picture suggests an old traditional Spanish era setting. This is a picture of a fragile, delicate, and skillful woman. The tints of red and the strokes of white made me think she is fragile and delicate while the musical instrument suggests that she is talented. The cup of maybe a tea or coffee also made me conclude that she is practicing her skill in playing this particular string instrument. I am not sure though if it is a cello or a double bass. I believe that despite her superficial fragile, feminine look she is on the inside independent and strong. This painting makes me feel calm and motivated. Calm for the reason that the setting was in a balcony surrounded by roses and plants. It is like a place where I would go whenever I want to be alone to reflect and to relax. I also felt motivated because the picture somehow suggests women empowerment. Besides the physical feminine attributes of the woman the instrument highlights the inner characteristics of the woman. A professor once told me that musicians are clever and that most of them are good in mathematics. Ergo, she is a beautiful image of what women ought to be that is not just beauty but also brains.

 If I were to make a film using this painting as an inspiration it would be a love story about a woman named Ambriel who not only possesses the characteristics of a kind-hearted, God-fearing, patient, loving, humble and talented person but also the striking beauty of a delicate angel.  On the other hand, a man named Jace who is the opposite of everything that she is; the typical good looking, hot blazing body, playboy, conceited, and overconfident guy who is the cause of heartbreaks of seldom girls is bound to become her better half.  They met at the wedding where she is the bridesmaid and he is the groomsman. He became interested to her because he was surprised his charms did not work and was impressed when she played a double base at the reception. He wanted to get to know her only to find out that she already have a boyfriend. The reception was held in a hotel near the beach. Right after the reception, there was some sort of group bonding between the bride and the groom’s friends near the shore. They were able to spend the night getting to know each other after everybody left.  Few weeks pass they meet again in a dinner date that was set-up by, Dana, her cousin who happens to be the current girlfriend of Jace.  They were both surprised to see each other especially Jace who did not have a single idea that Ambriel was Dana’s cousin. An angry woman approached them and introduced herself as the girlfriend of Cam, Ambriel’s boyfriend. Upset, Ambriel walked out and was followed by Jace and Dana. Jace now faces a dilemma on how to break up with her girlfriend when she is the cousin of the woman that he really wanted to be with.

I am also fond of this painting because of its nakedness. I love how the red petals were accentuated having the mixture of black and white as its receding background.  The paleness of the woman’s skin suggests innocence however the butterfly tattoo on the upper back, red lips and white corset dress contradicts the latter. When I first looked at this painting it made me feel sad for the reason that the woman’s expression showed grimace and her posing was quite stiff which made me think that she has problems and did not really want men to see her as an object of desire for lust.

If I were to make a film using this painting as an inspiration it would be about social problems where exploitation is the main idea. The story revolves around a girl named Cherry who was born in an underprivileged family. Luckily, she was able finish high school because of scholarship grant by the government but struggling to finish college. Her parents can no longer provide for her studies because she has three (3) siblings who are still in grade school and two (2) other in high school. It has always been her dream to become a doctor. Her frustration had driven her to try every means possible in order to support her studies. Desperate, she allowed a woman she acquainted with to pimp her out and ended up working in a strip club. She goes to school in the morning and works at night. Never in her life had she expected for this to happen, however, she thinks that she has no other choice (she think of it as her last resort) but to work as a prostitute if she is to attain her main goal which is to graduate with doctorate degree. A boy named Daniel made her want to get out of this situation. Daniel came from a wealthy yet humble family. He is compassionate and God-fearing. He is her schoolmate and they eventually developed feelings for each other. Because of Daniel’s background she finds it hard to tell him the whole truth about her. She is afraid he would not accept her. Confused, she has to choose between love and her most aspired dream.


- Zeera L. Galangue