ABOUT THE WORK

GUILLERMO TOLENTINO: Patriot and Grand Old Man of Filipino Sculpture by LISA GUERRERO NAKPIL I f Botong Francisco created a pantheon of heroic Filipinos, Guillermo Tolentino literally built the pantheon of monumental heroes. A patriot who felt each commission keenly — he would say that Andres Bonifacio and his Katipunan warriors would visit him in his dreams and guide his chisel — his sculptures evoke not only the immortality of these great men but stir the emotions they quicken. Tolentino’s first foray in heroworship was the popular engraving Grupo de Filipinos Ilustres which featured Jose Rizal front and center. His heart, however, was in sculpture; an inclination that started as a child when he formed clay figures of dogs and horses. The sculptor would make his way to New York where he secured a serendipitously arranged scholarship from the wealthy American Bernard Baruch. With funds scraped together in the United States, he then went on to book passage to Europe. Like Juan Luna, he determined to take up further studies in Rome and this he did for three more years. The Italian community in Manila eventually rallied around to support him. He would return to Manila and receive many commissions for work, including from the influential architect Juan Marcos Arellano. This tribute to Jose Rizal has a double meaning : on the first level, it references the National Hero’s own rendering of The Triumph of Science over Death. Also known as Scientia, this work has become synonymous to the power of reason In the original, a goddess-like figure holds aloft the light of knowledge, illuminating the world around her and vanquishing the death that comes with ignorance. She tramples a skull that sits helpless and hapless on top of a thick volume, a book with the title ‘Scientia.’ However, because Tolentino has depicted Jose Rizal within the composition, he also tells us that Rizal himself is an immortal. In this homage, Rizal is dressed for a European winter and also carries a second cape on his arm, perhaps referring to his academic. He carries the book of learning in one hand (which may have the double meaning of the novel Noli that sparked a revolution). Rizal appears to be in happy contemplation of the future as Lady Knowledge lights his way. Through his life and works, as well as through his death and example, Rizal has also thus become victorious over death and will live forever in the nation’s esteem.