MANILA, Philippines — Last February, a video of a student on a field trip in the National Museum of the Philippines went viral after the student was caught on-cam making a phone stand out of one of acclaimed Filipino artist Impy Pilapil’s sculptures, presumably to shoot a dancing reel for social media platform TikTok.
Early this week, another sculpture worthy of reverence was brought to the public eye.
The National Museum of the Philippines and the Embassy of the United States of America signed last May 16 the renewal of the loan of the Arthur Walsh Fergusson Monument.
First loaned to the National Museum in 2017, the Fergusson Monument was created in 1912 by Spanish sculptor Mariano Benlliure in honor of Arthur Walsh Fergusson, the first Executive Secretary of the Philippines who held office until his death in 1908.
Benlliure, according to National Museum of the Philippines Director Jeremy Barnes, was a friend to many Filipinos, including National Artist Juan Luna, painter Felix Resurrecion Hidalgo, and Pedro Paterno, the first Filipino National Museum and library director. Mariano and his brothers were acquainted with Jose Rizal and other Filipinos of that generation.
“They kind of grouped together, talking of art and culture. And I don’t think it’s a stretch to say though, more research needs to be done, that Mariano Benlliure, as many of us Filipinos would understand, has adapted as part of their ‘barkada’ of Filipinos there in Madrid,” Barnes shared.
“He is to the Spaniards perhaps who Guillermo Tolentino is to Filipinos,” Barnes said of Benlliure, stressing that Benlliure’s Fergusson Monument is a reminder of the artist’s life and friendship with Filipinos.
Benlliure’s Fergusson Monument now joins the opuses of his Filipino friends and contemporaries Luna and Hidalgo in the Spoliarium Hall of the National Museum.
‘¿Qien es Mariano Benlliure?’
Born in Valencia, Spain, Benlliure came from a family of artists. His work was widely recognized and appreciated during his lifetime and he also received many awards and titles for his works. His monuments can be found all over the world, including Spain, France, Italy and the United States.
“He was a member of the San Fernando Royal Academy of Spain in Madrid and appointed director of the Spanish academy in Rome, where he first connected in his younger years with our Filipino masters Juan Luna and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo, whose masterpieces, as you can see here, also adorn this very hall,” Barnes recalled.
“Mariano Benlliure’s monument and sculpture of Arthur Fergusson is a magnificent work of art that embodies the talent, creativity and passion not only of the artist, but of the subject as well,” Deputy Director-General for Museums of the National Museum of the Philippines Jorell Legaspi said.
Fergusson served as an important diplomatic figure and secretary of the US Philippine Commission under Governor William Howard Taft and as first executive secretary of the Philippines in the early 1900s until his death in 1908.
Standing over 10 feet tall, the bronze statue depicts Fergusson’s dignified demeanor while the Carrara marble pedestal features exquisite inscriptions, coats of arms, garlands and two female figures representing America and the Philippines, Legaspi explained.
Benlliure completed the statue in 1912 as “the only grand monument to any historic American figure in the Philippines” and the only work of its kind by the master sculptor in Asia.
The statue was first located in Plaza Fergusson in front of Ermita Church and sustained damage from the 1945 Battle of Manila. Years later, it was moved to the US Embassy garden and in April 2017, it was first unveiled for public exhibition in the Spoliarium Hall of the National Museum of Fine Arts, on loan from the US Embassy of the Philippines courtesy of the US Department of State, Legaspi narrated.
“Since then, it has been admired by many for its presence, artistry and historical significance,” he enthused.
‘First of its kind in Asia’
In her first visit to the National Museum, US Ambassador, Her Excellency MaryKay Loss Carlson, said that she was particularly interested to learn more about the monument that has been created in Spain then moved to Manila where it was first placed in the plaza across the governor general’s mansion, the present US Embassy location. She said it stayed there until the Battle of Manila and suffered damage alongside the rest of the city. Then after surviving the war, was moved to the embassy grounds.
According to her, the statue is very historic as it still bears its bullet hole reminder from World War II, similar to the bullet holes in the embassy’s flag stands. Inside the embassy is a long hallway of reminders of predecessors from the colonial period to the transition period up to the last ambassador before Carlson.
Fergusson’s statue, she noted, is the only one of its kind from the American Commonwealth period.
“So him, as a predecessor of mine, it’s a little bit daunting to stand in front of him, female, colorful, modern, against this backdrop. But in any case, it is truly an honor to be here,” Carlson said in her speech, thanking the National Museum for their commitment to their collaborations through the years.
“The Fergusson monument has stood the test of time in various places in Manila for more than a century and witnessed the long part of history between the United States and the Philippines…” she said, adding that she is honored to be part of both countries’ shared histories and future.
“This partnership is a testament to a strong and enduring relations among our nations and our shared commitment in promoting and preserving cultural heritage,” Legaspi noted.
According to him, for the US to entrust the monument’s care and exhibition to the National Museum means that their partnership “is a testament to a strong and enduring relations among our nations and our shared commitment in promoting and preserving cultural heritage.”
“We are very pleased to renew our partnership with the US Embassy… Indeed, the public exhibition of the Ferguson monument here… is arguably the most visible symbol of the relationship between my institution and the United States of America,” Barnes added.
He recalled that when the monument was first unveiled in the museum April 2017, it has been aesthetically highly noteworthy of the artist as it is the only example in Asia of his public sculptures, which are found in many famous and well-loved places in Madrid and other Spanish cities, and these works included the statues of Spanish King Alfonso XII and Spanish artist Francisco de Goya.
Barnes shared that it has been a “difficult process of getting approval from US’ state department” to bring the Fergusson Monument to National Museum, including transport and logistics.
From April 2017, the statue has been in a five-year loan with the museum, and the loan agreement ended last December. With the extension for three more years that might be extended again after three years, Barnes hopes that the monument, which he touted to be “a gem of the first decade of the early 20th century,” would be appreciated by more people.
The monument’s extended loan coincides with 2023 as the 125th year of the Spanish-American War and the annexation of Hawaii and also with the Philippines’ 125th anniversary of proclamation of Independence from Spain, thus, Barnes said the monument contributes to the thinking and contemplating of that era and its essence for us today. He called it a “shared treasure of our artistic heritage” with Spain, this as he acknowledged the presence of a Spanish embassy representative at the event of the extended loan signing.
“This monument is one of the first objects that catches attention as you walk into the museum, and we’re very proud to have it here and share its… significance…,” he said, wishing that today’s new generation would be inspired by the monument “paid for by the Filipinos through leading Filipinos, and commissioned from an eminent Spanish artist.”
“It touches not only on history and art but also culture, taste and politics of that time,” he stressed.
He was recently in the USA to explore and learn from many museums and art galleries like Smithsonian. He also attended a Washington exhibition opening in National Portrait Gallery.
Titled “1898 Imperial Visions and Divisions,” the exhibit contains contributed items from the Philippine National Museum’s National Gallery. The exhibit lasts until February next year and has been described by Barnes as “the first major Smithsonian exhibition to examine the US intervention of Cuba, and US expansion into Guam, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, as well as the Philippines.”
“Museums, of course, hold a great fascination for all of us… because they are gateways to the past,” attested Carlson.
“They help us understand the past. Art and artifacts play an important role in opening the aperture for us to see and experience what has gone on before us and to understand our histories that help us not only to remember but also to learn from the past.” — Video by Philstar.com/Deni Bernardo