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Juan Luna's Spolarium... The painting shows fallen gladiators being dragged to an unseen pile of corpses in a chamber beneath the Roman arena.

Beyond this what is really the painter wants to tell us?

Ngek! Ikaw ha magagalit sayo si Juan Luna.

He wanted to depict the suffering of the people of his native copuntry from colonial rule. He wanted the audience to be touched emotionally. I think this painting was joined in an art competition in Paris during the late 19th century where he gained high regognition and the painting even won first prize.

Can someone tell me the meaning of Spolarium?
Sorry for my ignorance...

eto na

First of all, it is a Luna. Juan Luna gained fame for himself and his country for his painting of the 1884, Spolarium, which won the Exposicion Nacional Bellas Artes in Madrid.

Second, it is rare that Luna would include himself in his paintings. He has done numerous portraits and self-portraits, but he hardly ever included himself in the scenes he has portrayed.

Lastly, the painting depicts some of our most prominent patriots. Rizal is the national hero of the Philippines, aside from being a renowned doctor, writer and a scholar. Dr. Ariston Bautista was a noted physician and was one of the main financiers of the Katipunan. He was also an influential adviser to succeeding generations of Filipino leaders.

There are several interpretations of the meaning of the painting. The simplest of all being that the lady was a whore and that the three patriots were contemplating sampling her goods. However, upon closer scrutiny, the lady illustrated in the painting doesn’t look like a whore. She is modestly dressed and looks more troubled rather than seductive. Also she seems to have a companion as indicated by the beer mug opposite her and the top hat and cape on the seat beside her. Perhaps she has quarreled with her lover and he left her to contemplate things. The three patriots, could have overheard their quarrel and sympathized with her plight.

Also another interpretation is that perhaps Luna empathized with the woman’s troubles as he was having trouble with his personal life as well. The year Parisian Life was painted was also a very tumultuous year in Luna’s life. It was during that year that he discovered his wife Paz Pardo de Tavera in an act of adultery and killed her in fits of rage, later pleading temporary insanity.
The most interesting interpretation is highly symbolical. The lady is seated in an unusual position, and looks highly agitated while the three patriots are contemplating her in a wistful manner.

In a lecture about the painting, Eric Zerrudo of the GSIS Museum demonstrated when a map of the Philippines is overlaid onto the painting, the shape is an almost perfect copy. Thus it could be surmised that the lady symbolizes the Philippines which is currently in distress (which is reflected in the troubled lady’s expression) and that the three patriots are contemplating ways in which to ease her suffering.

Anak ng! Nag lecture na sya ah... Thanks for the info.

It is sad to think that some of the most important examples of our cultural heritage are not our own property, having been purchased by wealthy collectors the world over.

How can we as a country stand to see an important treasure slip away from us?

ikaw kasi e

It happens all the time... What important that there are still people like you. Keep it up.

Juan Luna’s famous works include the “The Death of Cleopatra”, which won him a silver medal at the National Exposition of Fine Arts (1881) and “The Spolarium”, his greatest masterpiece that won him a gold medal at the National Exposition of Fine Arts held in Madrid in 1884. The “Battle of Lepanto” won him another gold medal at the Barcelona Exposition in 1888. Among his last painting include “El Pacto de Sangre” which won first prize in Paris and at the St. Louis Exposition, USA in 1904.

hmmmm.......

Hmmm ka jan...

Hmmm... What we have here?