PROPERTY FROM THE LEONARDO AND ARMIDA SIGUION-REYNA COLLECTION

León Gallery wishes to thank Mrs. Sylvia Amorsolo-Lazo
for confirming the authenticity of this lot

ABOUT THE WORK

It is no secret that Fernando Amorsolo genuinely appreciated feminine allure. He was trained in the Classical-Romantic art tradition, where the female figure represented beaux idéals. Similar to his approach in his rice cycle paintings, Amorsolo adapted the Western classical style in his lavandera paintings which he created throughout his career. Amorsolo painted from posed models in his Manila studio. But the magnificence of his lavandera paintings lies in the background landscapes, which were inspired by places that Amorsolo frequently visited. Sylvia Amorsolo-Lazo states: “Since there are so many streams or rivers in rural places, as well as in some urban places then, and Papa took his time going to these places for his on-the-spot sketching and paintings. I think his lavanderas were mostly painted in the provinces of Laguna and Bulacan and along the Pasig River.” Amorsolo’s lavanderas are usually seated next to a batya and a banga that appear as still lifes within the composition. In some instances, young boys accompany their mothers. This particular piece depicts two women, with the one on the right focused on her laundry and the other seemingly about to take a bath. The young boy revels in the coldness and freshness of the waters, implying a sense of childhood innocence. The graceful flow of the water encapsulates Amorsolo’s skill in depicting refraction. The woods and stream serve as safe spaces for the barely clothed women to bathe and do their laundry. The use of a subtle color palette complements Amorsolo’s mastery of employing natural lighting in his paintings. Amorsolo would continue to paint an idealized environment where people lived and communed harmoniously with nature. Intimate landscapes of woods and streams became the backdrops of native Filipinas who lived in a rustic setting complemented with streams, forests, and mountains. In the words of Sylvia Amorsolo-Lazo, “his iconic lavanderas – youthful, graceful, and modest – represent an ideal of Filipino, not European, beauty.”