Eminent social realist Antipas Delotavo donated an oil painting to the UPV Museum of Art and Cultural Heritage (MACH). The portrait done in 2010 was turned over to UPV on July 29, 2023.
Delotavo is an Ilonggo artist from the town of Dumangas. He has an ongoing solo exhibition of his paintings at the Iloilo Museum of Contemporary Art (ILOMOCA) titled “Ilonggo Variants.” In the 1970s he left Iloilo to study in Manila and became part of the group of artists who painted the life of the ordinary folks that critiqued the Marcos administration during the Martial Law years. That Delotavo’s works are included in collections of local and foreign museums attest to his stature in Philippine art. Delotavo’s work shall be permanently displayed in Lubiok: Hiligaynon Art, which traces the development of art in Western Visayas inside Taliambong UPV Art Gallery of the MACH.
Jose Tence Ruiz, another important Filipino artist whose works teem with social commentary, donated four copies of his book “Litanya 1972-2022” on August 8, 2023. The self-published book is a photo documentation of the artist’s works that span his over 50-year career.
Ruiz is a painter, sculptor, and illustrator. He also worked as a political cartoonist and did performance art. He has mounted over 30 solo exhibitions and participated in over 200 group exhibitions in Manila and in international art centers like Italy, Germany, and Australia among others.
Ruiz’s books will soon be available for browsing at OICA and the UPV Library. OICA Director Martin Genodepa facilitated the donations and received them from the artists.
