Rodel Tapaya established himself as the foremost articulator of Filipino myths and legends into visual language. Just like his other forays into the Filipino collective imagination, the work is characterized by a wildly colorful palette, an assembly of figures that enacts a narrative, and a slew of highly symbolic imagery that adds to the texture of the story. The particular story alluded to by the painting may be the legend of the jackfruit — of how, from being once a smooth fruit, it gained its spiky skin.
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Rodel Tapaya (b.1980)
The Tree of Make Believe
signed and dated 2012 (lower right)
acrylic on canvas
48” x 72” (122 cm x 183 cm)
SOLD: PHP 2,569,600
Provenance: Sotheby's Hong Kong, Modern and Contemporary Asian Art, 3 April 2017, Lot 207