As with many of his works, Michael Cacnio’s Vendor Series is an enduring homage to the sweet innocence and bubbly attitude of one’s childhood. “I draw inspiration from my childhood. As the youngest of the family, I was very carefree and playful. I was always out on the streets of Malabon playing the latest popular games,” Cacnio once said in an October 2014 interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
In this work titled Pampalamig, Cacnio depicts a boy blissfully flying his kite all the while running excitedly towards a “sorbetero” (ice cream vendor) to quell the heat of the afternoon sun. The work is seemingly a visual interpretation of Celeste Legaspi’s popular song “Mamang Sorbetero,” in which she sings the lines: “Mamang sorbetero tayo'y sumayaw / Kalembang mong hawak muling ikaway / Batang munti sayo'y naghihintay / Bigyang ligaya ngayong tag-araw”
Cacnio’s intention of leaving the figures’ faces blank hints at a theme of universality; it evokes intimate affinity with the viewer, reminding us of the brevity of childhood, a sweet melancholia for the days of yore.
Moreover, Cacnio reminds us to always honor the dignity and humanity of the vendors we encounter in our every journey. They are our unsung heroes who have always brought out the excitement in our inner (child-like) selves and fulfilled the urgent necessities—tangible or intangible—meant to pull us through the humdrum and vicissitudes of everyday living. (Adrian Maranan)
Accompanied by a certificate signed by the artist confirming the authenticity of this lot