Philippines underwent a change in 2022 that was unprecedented on a global scale: electing the child a dictator back to the country’s sit of power, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. as the President of the Philippines. Shocking as it may have been, something more staggering will be revealed days after his victory in the 2022 election.
May 13, 2022 when it was revealed to the world, by a footage of Marcos Jr. visiting his mother, Imelda Marcos, a Pablo Picasso painting that has been missing. This painting is entitled Femme Couchée VI (Reclining Woman VI) with a dimension of 21.5 inches by 28.75 inches and art medium being oil on canvas. It also has a label in its rear with the words:
“Homage to Picasso October 1971 Marlborough Gallery Inc. Saidenberg Gallery, Inc.”
Image of supposed Picasso’s Femme Couchée VI seen during Marcos Jr. visit to Imelda Marcos.
Although it is hard to prove the authenticity of the painting hanging on Imelda’s home, it is important to note that the Femme Couchée VI supposedly seized in 2014 by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) under Andres Bautista had been proven fake. A question then arises: what is with art that the Marcoses desired to hoard them? To answer this, we will be analyzing 3 stolen art by the Marcoses and see if there is a pattern that connects the 4 of them.
A set of Picasso’s artworks featuring the Reclining Woman.
First, Pablo Picasso’s Reclining Woman VI. The title itself indicates that Picasso made multiple iteration of the same motif which upon research, can be proven true. The set of paintings doesn’t follow a uniform visual element but instead might show a glimpse on Picasso’s development. From an initial sketch of graphite on paper slowly heading towards painting on canvas with an art style of surrealism that turns into cubism. Note however, that even with this clear change in art style there is something specific that remained the same: Picasso’s emphasis on the bodily figure. Though this may sounds lude, it is simply a study on the style of a prior painter Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres and his work, The Grande Odalisque.
The Grande Odalisque (1814) by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres. Oil on Canvas. 91cm x 162cm.
Picasso is not an abstract painter but a surrealist and a cubist. In featuring the arms, breast, face and waist can one acknowledge that the work is rooted in reality and not simply a work of Picasso’s imagination.
Another painting presumed stolen by the Marcoses is the Vase of Red Chrysanthemums by Bernard Buffet. Said painting features a slightly off-centered vase of chrysanthemum placed on top of what can only be assumed as a small cabinet with a backdrop of green wooden wall panels. Though the object of the art, red chrysanthemum, symbolizes positive ideas of love and passion, Bernard Buffet’s painting exudes the feeling of grim. One can only assume that the event of the World War 2 affected the work with seemingly heavy brush strokes and emphasis on black paint.
Vase of Red Chrysanthemums (presumably 1964) by Bernard Buffet. Oil on Canvas. 33in x 45in
That, or perhaps his art has always been a reflection of what he feels inside. He was a poor man who suddenly rose to stardom yet at his new found glory, Bernard Buffet earned the incarceration of other famous artist of his time such as Picasso. He also developed Parkinson’s Disease which limited him from doing what he wanted which is to paint. With his last work La Mort (1999) meaning “The Death”, Bernard Buffet decided to leave the world of his own volition on October 4th of the same year.
La Mort #5 (1999) by Bernard Buffet. Oil on Canvas. 196cm x 114cm.
Another painting which apparently can also be seen during the Marcos Jr. visit to Imelda’s home the missing work of Camille Pissaro, the Jardin de Kaw pres dela serre. Pissaro is known for his impressionist art style, depicting the reality of French peasant life while the emotions his work imparts reflect his gentle demeanor. Pissaro showed harmony and serenity in his work even though “peasant life” may sound like hard work and poor labor condition so much so that the people within his painting could blend seamlessly to the landscape as if man and nature are one and the same.
Jardin de Kaw pres dela serre (1892) by Camille Pisarro. Oil on Canvas. 54cm x 64cm.
In studying these 3 stolen painting (Femme Couchée VI, Vase of Red Chrysanthemums, and Jardin de Kaw pres dela se) one can not see any artistic elements that can tie them altogether. All are made by different artists with different backgrounds, art styles, and motifs yet, for some reason were all brought together presumably by the same house.
Fame.
Fame is what connects all these arts together. The names of the artists behind each painting are well-known and as such the prices of each work also comes at a high cost. It is well known by Filipinos that Imelda Marcos has a fetish for things that are expensive and would include her in high society. Many stories can allude to the vanity of Imelda, from her shoe collection, jewelries, clothes, trips, all the way to the parties either she attended or hosted herself but, as one dealing with art and architecture, I would like to prove this claim based on what she commissioned to build.
Façade of the Manila Film Center (1982) located in Pasay, Philippines
The worst project that always pops up in conversations revolving Imelda Marcos is the Manila Film Center and the tragedy that befell it. In an effort to impress international film directors that the Marcoses has become acquainted with, Imelda pioneered the first national film archive in the Philippines. A great idea on itself but, with a selfish goal leading the project and a tight schedule, tragedy was bound to happen. The colossal structure being pushed to completion has to force 4000 workers continuous labor so as to be ready in time for the first Metro Manila Film Festival in January 1982. In the midst of all the rush, a scaffolding collapsed which resulted in more than 100 workers to be buried in quick drying cement. Today, the brutalist style of Manila Film Center only serves as a brutal reminder for the stone-cold heart that Imelda gave to the victims. The Marcos regime attempted to cover the tragedy that fell at 3am in the morning of November 17, 1981 preventing immediate rescue while lying that only 7 people died. The edifice closely resembling an Olympian temple as if to say that the Marcoses are higher beings are void of any glamour nor decorations. The stairs envisioned to be filled with people going up to see the king and queen are empty.
Image of Imee Marcos with one of the BLISS Housing Project.
Art and politics are topics that often collide with each other. Though politics can be anything that involves decision and power, I wish to focus more on the mainstream definition of the word. The art of the Marcoses are that of an exhibition of power and wealth. Rather than presenting the sweet idea of a Bagong Lipunan, the art they made through there construction projects showed only their authoritarian and corrupt ways. Forcing the construction of their pet projects: taking away lands to build the Calauit Animal Sanctuary that nearly became an animal hunting grounds instead if not for the efforts of the safekeepers, initiating BLISS Housing project meant for the poor only to be used by political allies, and of course building the Manila Film Center just to show off to international film makers. Likewise, the act of collecting (illegally acquiring) of famous art was not driven by genuine enthusiasm on the artist and their works but rather a selfish desire to be an “aristocrat with sophisticated taste”.
Award winning film, The Kingmaker by Lauren Greenfield.
It is baffling to think how despite all the stuff saying otherwise, 31 million Filipinos believed that the Marcoses did nothing wrong, that they are a benevolent family who will return the gold they have stolen, that they committed no atrocities. These missing art pieces and all the missing people yet to be rediscovered are a testament to how cruel time can be to the ignorant.
Additional Viewing:
The Manila Film Center Tragedy
Greenfield, L. (2019). The Kingmaker. Showtime.
https://www.rappler.com/nation/elections/marcoses-flaunt-picasso-supposedly-already-seized-2014/
https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-29427876
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000047235
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/manila-film-center-haunted-a1729-20191107-lfrm2