This piece is a accompanied by a certificate issued by Mrs. Josefa
Joya-Baldovino confirming the authenticity of this lot

ABOUT THE WORK

The figurative side of Joya has always produced gentle, contemplative images in a romantic manner. In contrast to his more gestural and extemporary abstract works, Joya’s figurative pieces reveal the artist’s penchant for softer and more familiar imagery. This endearing 1994 Mother and Child pastel on paper piece is emblematic of Joya’s ethereal and intricate portrait work. The piece features a strikingly familiar woman, dressed in traditional Filipiniana garb, holding her infant son. The mother’s traditional baro’t saya features billowing butterfly sleeves that evoke an almost transparent and ethereal quality. The scene’s local and rural roots are heightened by Joya’s use of bamboo trees as the piece’s background, solidifying the work as a tableau that is uniquely Filipino. For all its logic and clarity the picture remains a remarkable example of Joya’s powers of pictorial composition. With his sure-footed and eloquent technique, the National Artist portrays the unbreakable bond between a mother and her child.