Untitled (1977)

Rippling coastines, pastoral landscapes, untamed woodlands. To Martino Abellana the Maestro, all these were mere extensions of the classroom. His academic career spanned half a decade, from his beginnings in the architecture departments of various Cebu universities, to his co-establishment of the University of the Philippine Cebu Fine Arts Department. Today, generations of acclaimed artists like Sofronio “SYM” Mendoza, Adeste Deguilmo, and Jose “Kimsoy” Yap are proud to have called him their mentor.

At the core of Abellana’s pedagogy was the “technique of seeing”, and he taught this by inviting his students to see the art around them in the countryside. These Sundays in Carcar would be spent tracing the natural movement of waves and light plein air, for students and teacher alike. One can imagine that the above 1977 work of an artist in media res was done by Abellana under similar circumstances. A woman is illustrated painting at a beach, a man in a buri hat close beside her. The perspective is voyeuristic but not uncomfortable, depicting the point of view of a watchful teacher. Here, Abellana utilizes the impasto technique that was the signature of many of his seascapes. Through it, he is able to convey the realness of the scene, making the viewer feel as if they are a student out on the same excursion. For Abellana, the artist should be able to find art wherever they go, a philosophy that is certainly reflected not only in his work, but through his alfresco manner of teaching.