Masterworks go on the block in dueling auctions
Every auction by the biggest auction houses in the country is an event by itself as moneyed collectors turn up for the rarest of the rarest pieces, each one with a story, each one with the richest provenance.
But on March 9, collectors will be spoiled (or split) for choice as the major auction houses hold simultaneous events.
León Gallery will be partnering once again with Asian Cultural Council (ACC) Manila in a fundraising auction for their grantees. Proceeds go entirely to the ACC Philippine Fellowship Program.
The John D. Rockefeller III Foundation was founded in 1963 to promote cultural exchange between the United States and the Philippines. Since then, some 300 Filipino artists have been sent to the United States on grants. It was renamed the Asian Cultural Council in 1980 after Rockefeller’s death. The ACC Philippine Foundation was founded in 2000 to help raise more funds for Filipino artists (there is an ACC Tokyo, ACC Hong Kong and ACC Taiwan).
Among the illustrious past grantees of the ACC are National Artists Jose Joya, Lucresia Kasilag, Lamberto Avellana, Alejandro Roces, Francisco Feliciano, Jose Maceda, Kidlat Tahimik, Ramon Santos and Alice Reyes. The ACC Manila grants have gone to organizations such as the National Museum and Museo Pambata. It also goes to contemporary artists. The 2023 grantees are choreographer and art educator Japhet Mari Cabling; self-taught multi-disciplinary artist and multi-awarded sound designer Corinne De San Jose; and composer and ethnomusicologist Maria Christine Muyco.
De San Jose says the grant means a lot because “at this stage, I’m kind of shifting my practice also, so it’s the perfect opportunity for me to see if I can get into public art installation, or sound art in public spaces. New York is the place for that; there’s so much public art there. We don’t have a lot of public art spaces here.”
Muyco will hold a series of workshops on a song cycle with Southeast Asian cultures and to workshop the songs with a chamber music ensemble in New York City.
Unique
“It’s very meaningful to have the community itself participate, because the text comes from the songs they actually wrote,” Muyco says of her project. “The significance of that is that the music was actually produced not just by myself, but motivated and also inspired by their musical instruments and materials,” Muyco says.
León Gallery director Jaime Ponce de Leon told Lifestyle, “Every ACC auction is unique and León Gallery has successfully collaborated with the ACC for the last 10 years.”
He identifies the five most sought-after lots up for bid as the Anita Magsaysay-Ho painting “Planting Rice”; “Yellow Abode,” the 1961 Jose Joya from the collection of Eugenio “Geny” Lopez Jr.; Juan Luna’s “Ecce Homo” (“done during his incarceration at Fort Santiago”); “Windows,” the extremely rare 1965 canvas work by Roberto Chabet; and the large three “Sabels” by National Artist for Visual Arts Benedicto “BenCab” Cabrera.
He adds that a staggering number of works by National Artist for Visual Arts Fernando Amorsolo are in this auction with one coming from the Carlos P. Romulo collection.
“What sets this auction apart are important works like the ones from the Geny Lopez collection, major furniture formerly in the Romeo Jorge collection and numerous abstract works from the 1960s like Fernando Zóbel, Lee Aguinaldo, Nena Saguil, Marciano Galang and the ACC grantee Roberto Chabet,” Ponce de Leon says. “Another important highlight is the Alfonso Ossorio, which was the artist’s gift to a fellow artist, Fernando Zóbel.”
ACC Manila president Maria Isabel Ongpin explains, “We are working to have as many grantees as possible, and that is why we formed the Philippine branch because we could we could wait and they give us three or four grants, maybe two a year. But with our own resources, we have added [grants] because this country is full of talent, and we have to give every opportunity for that talent to be developed.”
This auction is also the perfect lead-in to 2025, when ACC Manila celebrates its 25th anniversary.
Even more high-end
Also on March 9, Salcedo Auctions will present the 10th edition of it’s “The Well-Appointed Life” auction at its headquarters at the NEX Tower. “The Well-Appointed Life” auctions have always been about extremely high-end items for high-end collectors, but this year’s auction is even more high-end than ever.
Salcedo Auctions mastermind Ramon E.S. “Richie” Lerma told Lifestyle this specific auction, copresented by Metrobank, is special “for widening Filipino collectors’ perspectives when it comes to discovering and appreciating value and importance in art, not just in Philippine art, but also in Asian art as seen in the debut of original signed works by significant Japanese artists such as Yayoi Kusama, Yoshitomo Nara and the early 20th-century vanguard Tsuguharu Fujita and the works of esteemed Chinese artist Xia Jing Shan, who has been honored with an exhibition at The Palace Museum, Beijing.”
Exclusive quality
Lerma identifies five particularly sought-after items up for bids: “Bathing by the River,” a 1939 oil-on-canvas painting by Amorsolo; “Portrait of Manuel de Yriarte,” an 1885 oil-on-canvas painting by Félix Resurreccíon Hidalgo depicting the son of one of the artist’s first patrons, Francisco de Yriarte, an ilustrado who later became director of the National Museum; “Martha” by Junyee (“A rare version in kakawate wood of his iconic tribute to the dancer Martha Graham. There is a great resurgence of interest in the Mindanaoan artist who is often referred to as the ‘Father of Philippine Installation Art’ and is slated to show his works when the Cultural Center of the Philippines reopens”); “Minibus,” an assemblage sculpture by Jose Tence Ruiz created from 1981 to 1997 (“The works feature on the cover of the monograph of the artist, who featured in the Philippine pavilion at the 2015 Venice Biennale, the first time the country participated in the world’s most important art festival after a 51-year absence”); and an 18th-century balayong “Lion Mask” refectory table.
There are also a Ronald Ventura painting (with the artist painting the frame itself); a 19th-century Philippine battle flag, rare balayong wood furniture, an eclectic selection of etchings, screen prints and scrolls from Japanese and Chinese artists; and a 1978 painting from National Artist for Visual Arts H.R. Ocampo. There’s even a 1979 metallic green Vespa scooter up for grabs.
Thus, Lerma says the auction does seek to broaden views: “The educative aspect of this event is underscored also by our ‘The Well-Appointed Life’ series of talks on these artists led by speakers from both countries who will be flying into Manila.”
But he adds there is an exclusive quality to this edition: “We also have a private sale section devoted for the first time to fashion showcasing very unique and collectible clothing and accessories, acknowledging this as an artistic touch point for the growing class of affluent Filipinos in tune with the tastes of their HNW-UHNW (high-net-worth individuals/ultra-high-net-worth individuals) counterparts internationally. Altogether, these added perspectives are seen to further deepen the collecting public’s appreciation of the choices to be had both in art and in luxe in an increasingly global environment.”
The ACC fundraising auction will be held March 9 starting at 2 p.m. at León Gallery, Eurovilla 1, Legaspi corner Rufino Streets, Legaspi Village Makati City. Visit www.leon-gallery.com and www.asianculturalcouncil.org.“The Well-Appointed Life” live and online auction will take place on March 9 starting 2 p.m. The online catalog is available at salcedoauctions.com; in-person viewing runs until March 8 at NEX Tower, 6786 Ayala Avenue, Makati City. Email info@salcedoauctions.com; tel. no. (+63917) 107-5581, (+63917) 591-2191 or (+63917) 825-7449.
