{"status":true,"msg":{"data":{"id":22148,"auction_id":24,"set_id":43,"lot_number":"52","artist":"Elmer Borlongan (b. 1967)","title":"Bili na Kayo ng Bonsai","starting_price":4000000,"signed_dated":"signed and dated 2014 (lower right)","medium":"oil on canvas","size":"60\" x 48\" (152 cm x 122 cm)","property":null,"coa":null,"provenance":null,"exhibited":null,"literature":null,"write_up":"One of the most renowned contemporary\nFilipino painters, Elmer Borlongan stood\nout among the Salingpusa artists when its\nmembers launched their respective careers in the mid-\n1990s. A recipient of the coveted CCP Thirteen Artists\nAward in 1994, Borlongan is remarkably admired for\nhis “Social Realism meets Figurative Expressionism”\n– a style influenced by his most revered artists Onib\nOlmedo, Danny Dalena, and Jaime de Guzman. His\nthemes are often associated with social realism due\nto his exposure to the turbulent political climate\nduring his art education. He was first trained in art\nlessons under Fernando Sena during Martial Law,\npainted murals after the EDSA Revolution, and joined\nprogressive art groups such as Artista ng Bayan\n(ABAY), Salingpusa, and Sanggawa.
\nRegarding Olmedo’s influence on his style, he stated:\n“I admire his spontaneity and closeness to his subject\nmatter. I love the freedom in his brushstrokes, without\nhewing to the correct proportion of human anatomy\nbut capturing the soul of every figure.” Borlongan\nhas always preferred distortions rather than realistic\ndepictions, exploring the contortions “that light and\nlines exert on the human figure.”
\nThe Labyrinth of Kinship, where this piece was\nfeatured, exhibits the complexities of social realities\nand individuals in their daily circumstances. It is a\nphrase taken from Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s One\nHundred Years of Solitude that delves deep into\neach character’s personalities and consciousness\nand their reactions to the world around them.\nBorlongan’s works traverse through the humanization\nof situations that may seem uncanny to those in\npositions of privilege but are confronted and\nendured by the masses.
\nBorlongan’s portrayals of the masses at work, at play,\nor even at rest form his exemplary oeuvre, displaying\na pageant of whimsical satire. His paintings are\ncharacter studies represented by distorted, elongated\nfigures juxtaposed with a monochromatic backdrop.\n“The figures in my paintings do not have different\nexpressions, but the eyes can’t hide it. I want to\nportray my subjects with hope - that they still have\nthe capacity to survive despite the situation they’re\nin,” said Borlongan. His paintings are among the\nmost widely exhibited and highly coveted in local\nand Southeast Asian auctions.","lot_group":"PAINTING","lot_details_html":"
Elmer Borlongan (b. 1967) Bili na Kayo ng Bonsai signed and dated 2014 (lower right) oil on canvas 60\" x 48\" (152 cm x 122 cm)