PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF DON MAXIMO PAZ COLLECTION

Provenance:
Heirs of Don Maximo Paz

Literature: Roces, Alfredo. Felix Resureccion Hidalgo and the Generation of 1872. Eugenio Lopez Foundation, Inc. Pasig City. 1998. p. 146.

ABOUT THE WORK

The work at hand is a rarity among rarities. It is a piece from Hidalgo's numerous studies on his award-winning Neoclassical painting La Barca de Aqueronte (The Boat of Charon). Inspired by his reading of Dante's Inferno while in Italy, La Barca de Aqueronte depicts swarming nude figures representing the tormented souls of the condemned. The boatman Charon can be seen transporting them across the River Acheron and towards the underworld. In that iconic piece, Hidalgo remains faithful to the classical depiction of the boatman, portraying him as a macabre old man, the ruthless reaper of the damned. His eyes reflect the fiery flames of Hell, giving a menacing glare at his passengers. La Barqa de Aqueronte would become Hidalgo's most awarded painting. It would go on to win two gold medals: one at the 1887 Exposición General de las Islas Filipinas in Madrid and another at the 1893 Madrid Exposición Internacional de Bellas Artes, where the Spanish monarchy, through a royal decree dated March 7, 1983, would purchase it for 7,500 pesetas. First hung at the Museo-Biblioteca de Ultramar, La Barca de Aqueronte would eventually find its home at the Museo Nacional de Pintura de Madrid. "La Barca" would also be showcased at the 1889 Paris Exposition, where an international jury would confer a silver medal. As Alfredo Roces would note, "no other Filipino Artist reaches this distinction in the major arena of art that is Paris." Two years later, Hidalgo would receive a Diploma of Honor at the Exposición General de Bellas Artes in Barcelona. As such, this rare study serves as a mirror to Hidalgo's artistic ingenuity and the creative process that made him earn his laurels and a worthy pedestal among the pantheon of Filipino artists.