{"status":true,"msg":{"data":{"id":39563,"auction_id":58,"set_id":86,"lot_number":"172","artist":"Onib Olmedo (1937-1996)","title":"The Apartment","starting_price":1200000,"signed_dated":"signed and dated 1992 (lower right)","medium":null,"size":"62 1/4” x 43” (158 cm x 109 cm)","property":null,"coa":"This piece is accompanied by a certificate issued by Gisella Olmedo - Araneta confirming the authenticity of this lot.","provenance":"Private Collection, Makati City","exhibited":null,"literature":null,"write_up":"Awarded: Honorable Mention, \"International Exposition de Paintres,\" Chateau Musee de Cagnes-sur-Mer, France, June 1992                             The medium used is one in which the artist exhibited exceptional skills, and succeeded in bringing out with greater clarity and graphic impact the message that he was trying to convey.  This is the “ink-wash” medium whereby the artist poured ink on the surface of a “cartolina” board and then, against this black background, used swabs of cotton to etch out the image or design  of the painting.    The title “The Apartment” by itself carries a connotation of irony and pathos. Because, in actuality, this term is used to  describe concrete two-storey structures, usually built in rows, sometimes with as many as 10 or 15 adjoining houses with  uniform architectural designs and even colors, and rented out to middle-class couples who still don’t have the means to build their own single-detached houses.  This was in vogue in the fifties all the way up to the early nineties, before the advent of  more chic dwelling places known as townhouses and high-rise condominiums.  Onib Olmedo’s “apartment” is a far cry from these solid, concrete structures.  What it depicts is a flimsy, make-shift, “two-storey” shanty made out of woven bamboo sidings and pieces of found or discarded materials, featuring a tilted roof.. \nThe composition of the painting is highly dense and compact, utilizing visual devices that provide contrapuntal motifs –  organic materials like woven bamboo sidings and discarded capiz window panes, which evoke a soft, indigenous, and even romantic aura, providing a stark contrast to the harshness projected by rolls of barbed wire strewn right on the floor.\nThe painting is divided into two sections.  On the upper level, there is a man hunched over in prayer, seated on bamboo  flooring, clutching his rosary beads, his eyes closed, totally absorbed in prayer.  On the lower level is a bespectacled man with a “skin-and-bones” figure and an emaciated face that looks almost like a skull, playing the guitar and singing what we would surmise is a sad and plaintive tune.  In the background, barely visible is a woman, who we presume to be his wife. She is  preoccupied with household chores, hanging her laundry in a makeshift “sampayan,” (clothesline).  On the foreground, right  on the floor, are pots and pans, suggesting that the family utilizes a small space for all their activities.  This is where they cook and eat and wash the dishes; this is where they do their ablutions; this is where they sleep.  With all these graphic images, the painting exhibited at the biennial competition in France, must have sent out shock waves through the European continent, among its nationals who had not been exposed to the harsh realities of life in a Third World country during that era. \nOnib Olmedo’s award-winning painting sends out its message in a subliminal manner: in spite of the abject poverty depicted by the Filipino family’s squalid surroundings in a cramped shanty, the human spirit still shines through.  The man in the upper level holding his rosary beads in a gesture of supplication, exemplifies the Filipino who takes refuge in his faith and spirituality, which empowers him to hurdle the challenges posed by his dire circumstances — a seemingly hopeless situation brought about by the extreme poverty in Third World countries.  This was borne out during the visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines, when he praised the Filipino people for the strength of their faith that gave them amazing resiliency in the face of the disaster brought by super-typhoon Yolanda.\nThe man in the lower level of the painting depicts the other coping mechanism of Filipinos.  In their day-to-day struggles,  in the midst of their hand-to-mouth existence, they experience joy and solace through music. Most Filipinos enjoy singing  or playing some musical instrument, mostly the guitar.  In the poorest neighborhoods, somehow the “istambays” (hangers-on) bond together by belting out either English pop songs or the latest OPM (Original Pilipino Music) compositions, usually at night, in front of the community’s sari-sari store. \nIn a nutshell, the painting is an affirmation of the two major elements of the Filipinos’ support system:  PRAYER, manifesting their  profound belief in a Supreme Being who, they are convinced, will always take care of them, in the midst of all the  hardships and struggles brought on by poverty; and MUSIC, which has a way of soothing the mind and uplifting the spirit in  the most tumultuous situations,  “The Apartment,” the award-winning painting by Onib Olmedo, is thus an artistic statement on the social problems plaguing Philippine society.  The work is a subtle indictment of the ineptness of Philippine society, including the leaders of government and the private sector, in solving the problem of informal settlers.  The Filipinos who live on less than one dollar per day do  not have the basic necessities of life that would give them the dignity they deserve as human persons.  They do not even have  a decent roof over their heads.  They squat on makeshift shanties along rivers and waterways, their dwelling literally blown away whenever a typhoon hits the Philippines, which happens at an average frequency of 20 per year.  And yet, paradoxically, studies have shown that Filipinos are among the happiest people in the world.  The painting explores the reason behind  this phenomenon: the Filipino can always rely on his faith and his music to alleviate the suffering brought on by poverty and  oppression.  This perennial problem is rooted in the feudalistic system prevailing in the Philippines, to which our people have been subjected, over the past four centuries.\nOnib Olmedo (1937-1996) has been acclaimed by critics as a major Filipino artist of the 20th century.  Olmedo created a body  of work that utilizes the expressionist technique of distortion to portray the inner torment experienced by modern man.\nHis paintings are characterized by an implosive impact, but have an uplifting and ennobling quality, celebrating the triumph  of the human spirit in the face of pain and anguish.  At the same time, they are social commentaries with touches of wit and irony—reflections of the artist's quintessential, down-to-earth humor.  The subjects of his paintings were the denizens of  Sampaloc and Ermita, including musicians, prostitutes, vendors and waiters, as well as people from the upper strata like  society matrons, corporate executives and ballerinas.\nOlmedo garnered all the significant local awards during his lifetime, including those given by the Cultural Center of the  Philippines, The Art Association of the Philippines, Mobil Oil Philippines and the Manila City Government. In the international  art scene , he won an award in the prestigious Internationale Exposition des Peintures in Cagnes Sur Mer, France. \nOlmedo died in 1996 when he was only 59 years old.  His impact in the art scene continues to be felt until this day, as  evidenced by a whole new generation of artists who are self-confessed Olmedo disciples, producing works inspired by their icon's distinctive style, and putting up exhibitions that have paid homage to their late master.","lot_group":"PAINTING","lot_details_html":"<p><strong>Onib Olmedo</strong> (1937-1996)<br /><em>The Apartment</em><br />signed and dated 1992 (lower right)<br />ink and acrylic on board<br />62 1/4&rdquo; x 43&rdquo; (158 cm x 109 cm)</p>","alias":null,"hp":4800000,"bp":0.168,"isWithdrawn":0,"accounting_hp":4800000,"userBid":null,"isPaid":0,"userId":22,"lot_status":"SOLD","isDone":1,"bid_history_id":null,"reserve_price":null,"hammer_price":5606400,"fav":0},"image":[{"id":37894,"img_url":"https://leongallery.sgp1.digitaloceanspaces.com/v2/auction/58/86/lot/172.jpg","isFeatured":1}]},"increment":[2200000,2400000,2600000,2800000,3000000,3200000,3400000,3600000,3800000,4000000,4200000,4400000,4600000,4800000,5000000,5500000,6000000,6500000,7000000,7500000,8000000,8500000,9000000,9500000,10000000,11000000,12000000,13000000,14000000,15000000,16000000,17000000,18000000,19000000,20000000],"prev":171,"next":173,"count_bid":0,"bid_history":[],"tokenExpired":1}