Tag: June 18, 2011

COUNTLESS accounts of Jose Rizal have been written since his death in 1896, but it was not long until a member of his kin decided to compile the bits and pieces of the hero’s life through first-hand stories passed on from their generation to the next.

Asuncion Lopez Bantug, Rizal’s grandniece and journalism and education graduate of UST, provided a genuine portrait of the Filipino patriot in the biography Lolo Jose (1988) as she carefully recounted family narratives about the child who was once called “Pepe.”

‘Lolo Jose’

Bantug is the granddaughter of Rizal’s older sister, Narcisa. She is the eldest among her siblings Carmen Lopez-Consunji, Natividad Lopez-Francisco, and Leandro Lopez.

IN THE 19th century, the University of Santo Tomas began in a small compound in the walled city of Intramuros, standing by the Pasig River. Its edifice was marked by arched interiors and white-painted stone walls, while a lavish garden decorated the entrance.

In celebration of the 150th birthday of Jose Rizal, The Varsitarian looks back at the school the national hero had come to know and the academic environment he grew up in.

Rich history

The University relocated to Sampaloc in 1927 to accommodate the increasing number of students, while the land where the old Intramuros campus once stood was sold by the Dominicans.

JOSE Rizal not only ignited the Filipino’s fight for liberty, but also inspired other nations to embrace his deep sense of nationalism.

Through his writings, he showed how a people could rise from tyranny and define their national identity. Filipinos learned from him and so did the world.

Global hero

Jose David Lapuz, a UST professor and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) commissioner, described the national hero as “a profound Filipino, an Asian, and most especially, a citizen of the world.”

WAS JOSE Rizal a womanizer? A heretic? Was he mistreated in UST?

These are just some of the popular myths about the national hero, coming mainly from false accounts by history and misinformed fictionists. And these are the same popular myths that Augusto de Viana, chairman of the Department of History, seeks to debunk.

“Everything you hear revolves around the building up of the myth of Rizal,” De Viana said. “But he’s just an ordinary person who happened to have a drive to make the best out of his life.”

Misconceptions

So was Rizal a heretic? De Viana said perception was on his relationship with Josephine Bracken amid a conservative environment then.

WITH A line-up that boasts of 32 artists representing four generations of Thomasian education, Kulô is celebrating UST’s Quadricentennial anniversary as well as National Hero and fellow Thomasian Jose Rizal’s 150th year at the Cultural Center of the Philippines Bulwagang Juan Luna (Main Gallery) from June 17 to August 21.

LIKE Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the women portrayed in Eros Basilio’s first one-man exhibit exuded the same mysterious aura that intrigued onlookers as Femme Series opened at the Ayala Museum ArtistSpace in Makati City last May 28.

Drawing inspiration from artists Michael Cheval, Cesar Legaspi, and National Artist Ang Kiukok, his present works are a fusion of realism and cubism. His artworks are also influenced by Renaissance and Gothic architecture.

“Raconteur” depicts a seated woman holding a small and thick book with its pages unfurling as she reads stories to her children.

On the other hand, “Woman of the Garden” depicts a demure woman covering her face with the back of her hand as she sits on a field of surreal plants.

FOR THE contemporary art scene, paying tribute to the National Hero is all about incorporating traditions with the changing time, as Looking for Juan and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) both held multimedia exhibitions in honor of Jose Rizal from June 3 to 10 and from June 14 to 17, respectively.

Screenings of Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere, storytelling sessions, and lecture-discussions were held at CCP. Several exhibits by different artists were held to commemorate Rizal’s idealism and ardor.

“It’s about presenting cultural events in a less than traditional way,” explains Karen Flores, officer-in-charge of the Visual Arts and Museo Division (VAMD) of the CCP.

NATIONAL Artist for Literature Francisco Sionil Jose is the fifth addition to Freeway’s National Artist Collection Series (Nacs). The clothing company launched the F. Sionil Jose line at The Row in Glorietta 5, Makati City, last May 31.

Included in the F. Sionil Jose collection are shirts, office wear, and semi-formal dresses that bear excerpts from some of Jose’s prose works. Artworks visualizing his famous fiction also appear on casual tees, blouses, polos and skirts.

“Now, I can say that I’m fashionable,” Jose said.

The launching kicked off with an introduction of his life and works and was followed by a Tertulia, a traditional ceremony where people gather around a storyteller while live music is played in the background.

YOUTH-DOMINATED ensembles comprised the fourth musical concert by Filfest Cultural Foundation titled “Allchestra,” which was staged at the Insular Life Corporate Center Auditorium in Alabang last May 21.

The University of Santo Tomas’ (UST) Symphony Orchestra associate conductor Jeffrey Solares led the Philippine Youth Symphonic Band and the Philippine Research for Developing Instrumental Soloists (PREDIS) Chamber Orchestra as they co-performed with New York Times-acclaimed cellist Wilfredo Pasamba.

Solares commended the ensembles for playing at a professional level despite their age. “Although we only had four days of practice, they (the ensemble) showed an exemplary performance,” said Solares.

MEN IN azure uniforms and flintlock rifles marched exactly like how their Spanish puppeteer would want them to. The fresh air teamed around their rotten souls. They were breathing yet decaying.

Death had consumed them a long time ago. Since then, they were mere occupants of spaces—cold and dismal spaces, gasping for lives they would never have.

Between the soldiers alignment was a man sported in a three-piece black suit with a bowler hat. Although his wrists were tied with rope behind him, he walked placidly as if nothing tragic was about to happen.

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