Fernando Amorsolo

Fernando Amorsolo y Cueto (May 30, 1892 – April 24, 1972) is one of the most important artists in the history of painting in the Philippines. Amorsolo was a portraitist and painter of rural Philippine landscapes. He is popularly known for his craftsmanship and mastery in the use of light. Born in Paco, Manila, he earned a degree from the Liceo de Manila Art School in 1909. 


Amorsolo is best known for his illuminated landscapes,  which often portrayed traditional Filipino customs, culture, fiestas and occupations. His pastoral works presented "an imagined sense of nationhood in counterpoint to American colonial rule" and were important to the formation of Filipino national identity. 

Sketch of a woman, whose unfinished style is representative of Amorsolo's sketching.

He was educated in the classical tradition and aimed "to achieve his Philippine version of the Greek ideal for the human form."^] In his paintings of Filipina women, Amorsolo rejected Western ideals of beauty in favor of Filipino ideals  and was fond of basing the faces of his subjects on members of his family. 

"[The women I paint should have] a rounded face, not of the oval type often presented to us in newspapers and magazine illustrations. The eyes should be exceptionally lively, not the dreamy, sleepy type that characterizes the Mongolian. The nose should be of the blunt form but firm and strongly marked. ... So the ideal Filipina beauty should not necessarily be white complexioned, nor of the dark brown color of the typical Malayan, but of the clear skin or fresh colored type which we often witness when we met a blushing girl."

(From Wikipedia)