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ABOUT THE WORK

Lamberto Hechanova is a visual artist whose works exemplified the modernist inclinations of the era in which he was most active, namely the 1960s and 1970s. His artistic practice encompassed a variety of media such as assemblages, collages, fine prints, oils, reliefs, sculptural pieces and temperas. Though his work eventually became popular abroad than in his own home country, there has been a renewed interest in his body of work within local cultural sectors and communities due to his involvement in development of Philippine Modernism. Hechanova earned his Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the University of Santo Tomas. He then ventured into the advertising business where he worked as a Visual Creative Director. He then went to work overseas for a few months in an Advertising Agency in Hongkong. During his time abroad his spare time was devoted to numerous on-the-spot drawing sketches and paintings of scenic landscapes.. Upon his return, Hechanova studied Graphic Arts and Printmaking at the Philippine Women’s University. He was eventually offered a teaching position at the Fine Arts department where he was given the Honor Certificate in Teaching, and was offered a Research Grant for Sculpture. He then went on to receive multiple awards and accolades for his craft, effectively kick-starting his artistic career. Most notably, he was chosen to represent the Philippines in Sculpture during the 6th Paris Biennale Art Expo in France. Hechanova’s works drew upon the radical shifts and movements of Modernist at the time. His works contained a palpable formalist approach to Modern abstraction given his insistence on minimalist form and restricted color palettes. His practice is undoubtedly reminiscent of the works of artists such as Wassily Klandinsky and Josef Albers. His flat and neutral canvas unearths a myriad of relationships between shape, form, color, and light that were often disregarded in more traditional approaches to art and design. Hechanova’s artistic practice is hence an indelible part of Philippine Modernism, a testament that will undoubtedly enshrine his works in the annals of Philippine Art History.