Juan Luna - Tribute To A Proud Filipino
Just who is Juan Luna?
Juan Luna
A testament to the greatness of Filipino painters
Juan Luna’s Spoliarium, in vivid, moving colors, is a testament to the artist’s invaluable contribution to Philippine and world arts. Spoliarium earned Luna the gold medal in the prestigious Exposicion Nacional de Bellas Artes in Madrid, Spain.
His painting skillfully captured the drama and agony of gladiators killed in Roman arenas. Prior to this, Luna won the silver medal for painting La Muerte de Cleopatra in the same exposition.
Juan Luna’s triumph as a painter is symbolic of Filipinos’ enduring spirit and capability to succeed in a league dominated by foreigners. From his humble origins in Ilocos Norte, the young Luna went to Manila to get his diploma, and later on to study painting in the Academia de Dibujo y Pintura.
A grant recipient for art in Spain gave him the opportunity to travel to Europe, which helped inspire him to create an impressive body of works that includes España y Filipinas, Woman with Manton in Manila, and Lady at the Race Track.
In Spain, he also had the opportunity to form deep friendships with other patriots such as Rizal and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo. His love for country, as well as his abiding concern for the poor and the oppressed, imbued his later paintings with deep social realism and meaning.
This is evident in his later works, such as the Les Moins Malheruex and the Le Chiffonier, which depicted the poor in various situations. Juan Luna also did the illustrations for Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere.
Juan Luna is a shining example of how one’s talent and love for art and country can empower one to overcome limitations and challenges in creating enduring beauty and continuing art’s social relevance.
We should be reminded that Juan Luna lived in a historical context when Filipinos were deemed inferior by their colonial masters. Luna breached conventional barriers and displayed the Filipino’s artistic prowess.
What Luna left for generations to come is debunking the colonial myth that Filipinos were of a weaker people. He joined international art competitions, won, and was admired by locals and foreigners alike.
Notwithstanding his personal frailties, his paintings are still being sought-after by today’s popular museums and curators around the globe. Juan Luna only proved that no barriers can prevent the Filipinos’ talent and brilliance from reaching greatness.
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