{"status":true,"msg":{"data":{"id":50238,"auction_id":99,"set_id":131,"lot_number":"150","artist":"Betsy Westendorp (1927 - 2022)","title":"a) Painting No. 634 <br />\nb) Untitled (Flowers)","starting_price":700000,"signed_dated":"a) signed and dated 1993 (lower right) <br />\nb) signed and dated 1992 (lower left)","medium":"acrylic on canson paper each","size":"a) 39 3/4\" x 38\" (101 cm x 97 cm)<br />\nb) 39\" x 38\" (99 cm x 97 cm)","property":null,"coa":null,"provenance":"Galleria Duemila, Inc.","exhibited":null,"literature":null,"write_up":"A discussion on Filipina visual artists is lacking if one falls short of acquiring a profound understanding of their distinctive style and treatment of the subject matter. For instance, Pacita Abad cast her trademark on her trapunto works and Anita Magsaysay-Ho on her depiction of the beauty and resilience of the Filipino working women. Such is also the case for Betsy Westendorp. Specifically, she pursued her passion for painting orchids as if they were her lifeblood. Cid Reyes wrote: “Indeed, it is the orchid, with its wild delicacy and seductive surprise, that has become the starting point for a Westendorp trademark style.”<br /><br /> In an interview with Reyes, Westendorp narrated how her lifelong passion for painting orchids began. The artist shared: “And the orchids— there is a place in Madrid, a greenhouse called Bourguignon. It’s a very famous flower shop. They have a greenhouse where they raise orchids. So, I asked, “Will you allow me to paint these orchids?” And they said yes. I painted there— right inside the greenhouse.<br /><br /> “In Manila, there were friends of mine, Tonette and Linda Lagdameo, who were very involved with the Orchid Society. They had a magazine to come out. They asked me to do an orchid painting in their house. That was my first orchid painting here. And for that issue, BenCab also painted an orchid for them. And that started my relationship with the orchid.”<br /><br /> It would not be an exaggeration if one would say that Betsy Westendorp treats flowers as if they were real humans. Westendorp said: “At the beginning, I had to paint on location so I can be in touch with the orchids.<br /><br /> It’s like getting to know a person. With flowers, you have to know them also.”<br /><br /> Westendorp captures the character and mood that emanates from the orchid. When gazing at Westendorp’s orchids, we are treated to a harmoniously executed pageant of colors, forms, and patterns. The work transforms into a physical stimulus that stirs up our sensory perception. One can perceive the calm wind seemingly caressing the petals; the vividly colored corollas and the cascading floral showers set against an azure backdrop resembling an unclouded sky, thus forming a visual spectacle; and the delightfully sweet fragrance that stirs up both nostalgia and optimism for better days. (A.M.)","lot_group":"PAINTING","lot_details_html":"<p><strong>Betsy Westendorp</strong> (1927 - 2022)<br /><em>a) Painting No. 634</em><br />signed and dated 1993 (lower right)<br />acrylic on canson paper<br />39 3/4\" x 38\" (101 cm x 97 cm)<br /><br /><em>b) Untitled (Flowers)</em><br />signed and dated 1992 (lower left)<br />acrylic on canson paper<br />39\" x 38\" (99 cm x 97 cm)</p>","alias":null,"hp":2000000,"bp":0.168,"isWithdrawn":0,"accounting_hp":2000000,"userBid":5926,"isPaid":0,"userId":22,"lot_status":"SOLD","isDone":1,"bid_history_id":null,"reserve_price":null,"hammer_price":2336000,"fav":0},"image":[{"id":50159,"img_url":"https://leongallery.sgp1.digitaloceanspaces.com/v2/auction/99/131/lot/150.jpg","isFeatured":1},{"id":50163,"img_url":"https://leongallery.sgp1.digitaloceanspaces.com/v2/auction/99/131/lot/150a.jpg","isFeatured":0},{"id":50162,"img_url":"https://leongallery.sgp1.digitaloceanspaces.com/v2/auction/99/131/lot/150b.jpg","isFeatured":0}]},"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":149,"next":151,"count_bid":0,"bid_history":[],"tokenExpired":1}