Immerse in the history and heritage of the Filipino people.
The National Museum sits at the busy centre of the country’s capital, imposing in its size and severe appearance. The massive vertical columns that frame the museum entrance is surely a sign of what to expect when one enters through the doors. Inside, a reception area filled with a sizeable number of tourists composed of high school students and foreigners greet the visitors. It would be best not to bring a big bag when going to the museum, since only valuables are allowed to be brought inside the galleries.
The National Museum is composed of two buildings: the one facing Padre Burgos Avenue is the National Fine Arts Museum (formerly the National Art Gallery), which served as the Legislative Building before the shelling of Manila in 1945, and now houses the most treasured artworks in the country. On the other side, facing Finance Road is the Museum of the Filipino People, which holds within its walls the artifacts that chronicle the existence of Filipinos.
Highlights of the National Fine Arts Museum
The first area to be explored is The Old House of Representatives Session Hall, or also known as The Hall of the Masters. Inside are two of the most important paintings in Philippine history, the Spoliarium by Juan Luna and the Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho by Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo. Evident in the whispers coming from the people and the clicks of their cameras, the floor-to-ceiling scale of both masterpieces inspires the awe of the crowd.
Spoliarium
Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho
Following the markers plastered on the walls of each exhibit room entrance, one should make way to Gallery I, where Christian-themed artworks from the 17th to 19th century are set up on display.
Gallery I
Gallery III opens up to a room of paintings by masters Luna and Hidlago, as well as a number of their contemporaries such as Lorenzo Guerrero, Gastón O’Farrell, and Félix Martinez.
A portion of Gallery III
Down the hall, Gallery IV features the timeless works of master Filipino sculptor Isabelo Tampinco, and his contemporaries and artistic successors.
Gallery IV
Gallery VI houses the works of Luna and Hidalgo’s artistic successors coming from the early 20th century. Notable artists included in the gallery are Fernando Amorsolo and Fabián de la Rosa.
The only gallery with a warning displayed at the entrance is Gallery VIII, which shows artworks depicting the suffering and turmoil experienced by the Filipinos during World War II.
Upstairs, the works of Filipino modernists such as Cesar Legaspi, Victorio Edades, and Fernando Zobel deck the halls. At certain times of the year, special exhibitions take place on this floor, occupying the Senate Hall and the remaining galleries.
A gallery on the third floor of the National Fine Arts Msueum featuring modernist works
Spotlight on the Museum of the Filipino People
A short walk across the street from the National Fine Arts Museum leads to the Museum of the Filipino People where important artifacts that tell the story of the Filipinos are shown to the public.
A traditional Ifugao house in the open air area of the Museum of the Filipino People
The first gallery showcases the recovered articles from the San Diego Galleon wreckage from over 400 years ago. Among the items on display are porcelain artifacts dating back to the Ming Dynasty, and the 11 cannons installed on the ship.
A collection of porcelain artifacts in the San Diego Gallery
The cannons from the San Diego wreck
The succeeding galleries present the pre-historical Philippine setting with pieces from the Paleolithic, Neolithic, Metal, and Ceramic Ages. Archaeological finds pertaining to burial traditions of the early Filipinos are also on display.
Walking through many years of continuous cultural expansion, the museum also features exhibitions that focus on the ethnic diversity in the country. This section includes the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino gallery that showcases a vast collection of indigenous textiles and fabrics, with one particular piece said to date back to the 13th to 14th centuries. Another is the Baybayin gallery which houses the ancient and traditional scripts of the Philippines.
An exhibit in Hibla
You might also like: