Philippine Art History Timeline

PRE- CONQUEST

- In art historical terms, we refer art before the coming of the first colonizers as "pre-conquest." In stylistic terms, we refer to it as "indigenous" to emphasize the idea that our ancestors have been making art even before colonization

- Pre- colonial Filipino were hunter gatherers. They Imitated the movement of animals and prey. They even have ritual, music, dance and literature.

- Ethnic Musical instruments: pipes, flutes, zithers, drums and various string instruments like the kudyapi- a three stringed guitar, the kulintang - an array of bossed gongs, the gansa or flat gong, bamboo percussion instruments and the agong- a large bossed gong.

- Native dance forms: pangalay - mimetic of the movement of seabirds, Mandayas'kinabua, the banog-banog of Higaonon and of the B'laan communities and the man-manok of Bagobos. The talip dance of the Ifugaos, the inamong of the Matigsalus, Kadaliwas of T'bolis and Tinikling.

- Carved Images: bulul and hagabi of Ifugaos. Santos or sculptures of saints from Christianized communities in Laguna and Pampanga. Okir of Southern Philippines, sarimanok, and sultan's house called the torogan.

- Ancient Forms: Mannunggul Jar - made out of terracota.

- Weaving Tradition: Pis siyabit, malong, langkit.

- Illustrated Manuscript: Boxer Codex

Pre- Conquest

ISLAMIC COLONIAL

13th century to the Present

- Islam influence art before the coming of Spanish colonizers by the arrival of Sayyid Abbubakar of Arabia in the 15th century that led to a significant turn of events.

-Filipino Muslims recognise that they belong to an ummah or a community of believers. Central to the Islamic faith is the doctrine of Tawhid or unity of God.

- Unlike other religious traditions which make use of icons, In islam, divine unity is expressed through abstract forms and patterns that compel the believer to engage mental concentration.

- Mihrab or niche and the Qibla wall are part of the mosque toward west.

- In the courtyard is the Ka'bah, a black shrine believed to be built by the Prophet Muhammad himself.

- Luhul or canopy features motifs from the Tree of Life.

Islamic Colonial

SPANISH COLONIAL PERIOD

1521-1898

- Art that flourished during Spanish colonial period conformed to the demands of the church and the colonial state.

- The art forms from that period are referred to stylistically and culturally as religious art, lowland Christian Art or folk art.

- During this period, cruciform churches following the shape of the Latin Cross were built.

- The Baroque style was predominantly employed; characterized by grandeur, drama and elaborate details.

- Images of saints and interpretations of biblical narratives were considered essential to worship.

- Western muscial intsruments: pipe organ, the violin, the guitar and the piano.

- Secular music forms: Awit and Korido.

- Baybayin script used to compse short poems.

- Local theater forms: senakulo or Passion, komedya.

- Visual arts: paintings served as an instructive function through visual presentation of biblical texts central to Catholic devotion.

- The reprographic art of printmaking.

- Lithography: mass printing of newspapes and periodicals.

- Famous arts during this period: Letras y Figuras and

Simon Flores, Primeras Lestras

Spanish Colonial Period (1521-1898)

AMERICAN COLONIAL PERIOD TO THE POSTWAR REPUBLIC

1898-1940 & 1946-1969

- The new colonial government took charge of initiating the natives into the American way of life, creating a lasting influence on Filipino culture.

- Plays during this period: Juan Abad's Tanikalang Ginto, 1902 Juan Matapang Cruz's Hindi Ako Patay, 1903 and Aurelio Tolentino's Kahapon, Ngayon at Bukas, 1903.

- Facilitating teaching of the English languange.

- Bodabil- motley collection of slapstick, songs, dances, acrobatics, comedy skits, chorus, girls, magic acts and stand-up comic acts.

- In the beginning of 20th century, a new urban pattern that responded to the secular goals of education, health and governance was imposed.

- The new patrons of the arts included the Americans who enganged governance, and education, business or tourism.

- Peninsulares - spanish-born residents of the Philippines.

- A sculpture of life-sized figures in dynamic poses emerged in this period like the Oblation of Guillermo Tolentino.

American Colonial Period (1898-1940) to the Postwar Republic (1946-1969)

JAPANESE OCCUPATION

1941-1945

- The Japanese forces led the formation of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, a propaganda movement that sought to create a Pan-Asian identity rejected Western traditions.

- Publications emerged: Shin-seiki, Liwayway and Tribune.

- Genre paintings were the most widely produced particularly those that presented a neutral relationship between the Filipinos and the Japanese through works that showed the normality of daily living.

- The colonizers preferred works that showed indigenous and pre-colonial traditions.

- Example of paintings during this period: Crispin Lopez's Study of An Aeta, 1943, Amorsolo's Bombing of the Intendencia, 1942, Ruins of the Manila Cathedral, 1945.

- Using modernist figuration, many of the artists explored folk themes and also crafted commentaries.

- Cubism- soft fragmentation of figures using transparent planes.

- Distorted- elongated or marked rotund forms in a well- ordered composition.

- Abstraction - non-representational or non objective art.

- The church's design of this period is a curious combination of

modern architecture with a minimalist character.

Japanese Occupation (1941-1945)

70s TO CONTEMPORARY

- The New Society was propagated and implemented through an art and culture program that combined the fine arts, architecture, interior design, tourism, convention city buildings, engineering, urban planning, health, etc.

- The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) is the Shrine for Arts.

- Social Realism: a form of protest art that exposed the sociopolitical issues and struggles of the times like Antipas Delotavo's Itak sa Puso ni Mang Juan.

- The format of protest art is not just confined to painting on canvas but also extends to other more accessible and popular forms like posters and illustrations or street art. One example of this: Edgar Fernandez' Kinupot.

- The native or the folk, the self , the environment, the nation, the past and the various variations of the Modern continue to be revisited by artists as sources of inspiration in contemporary art.

70s to Contemporary