Tags: Performing Arts, Visual arts
By KC Santos
PASAY CITY, METRO MANILA – The “Parisian Life” is considered one of the masterpieces of Juan Luna and is currently on display at the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).
Before the GSIS sells this truly remarkable painting, I took the opportunity to understand its significance based on various interpretations.
I felt privileged to learn from the free lecture of historian Michael “Xiao” Chua about the painting at the GSIS Museo ng Sining.
In just the two hours that I spared for the lecture, I learned to look at history, even myself differently. I never understood why paintings become too expensive over time. GSIS members were even appalled when the insurance institution bought back the “Parisian Life” from Christie’s in Hong Kong for P46 million in 2002.
Chua believed that if there was a perfect time to tell people the painting’s genuine worth, the time is now.
Using collective data from art historians, curators and fellow educators, Chua presented the “JVAN LVNA Code”, which consists of three different interpretations of the controversial painting.
These interpretations are based on research and there are hidden messages in the painting as well, Chua said. The first interpretation is a literal interpretation, particularly the three gentlemen depicted in the painting.
According to Dr. Eric Zerrudo, the current director of the Metropolitan Museum of Manila, the scenario depicted in the painting preceded the reputation of the three gentlemen believed to be Dr. Ariston Bautista Lin (on the right), Juna Luna (in the middle) and Dr. Jose Rizal (on the left).
The painting shows a three men seemingly talking about the woman in the egocentric fashion. The conversation about the woman has a connection to Bautista Lin’s playboy image, Luna’s reputation as an “indefatigable painter of women,” and Rizal’s international taste for women, an image often translated to being a “womanizer.”
The second interpretation is more biographical and tragic, Chua said.
When Luna made the “Parisian Life” in 1892, it was symbol of his need for solace. It is said that during this time, Luna suspected his wife Paz Pardo de Tavera of having an illicit affair. Their marital woes resulted to Luna killing his wife and to his imprisonment.
The third interpretation leans toward the painting’s symbolic and historical meaning.
Based on the angles and lines pointing directly to the woman in the painting, it was clear that Luna wanted her to be the focal character in the painting. Students from the University of the Philippines-Diliman saw several symbols in the painting.
The woman seated awkwardly in the painting is a “mirror image” of the map of the Philippines. Indeed, the islands in the map fit the outline of the woman’s posture perfectly to point to several regions of the country and their significance to history.
Some say the painting have other “connections” to Philippine history, such as the foundation of the Katipunan and Manila’s liberation.
According to Dr. Zerrudo, people should not ask the worth of the painting but to ask what is our worth as a people to deserve a historically valuable artwork.
I left the museum with a deeper understanding of the worth of heritage. I now know that the “Parisian Life” doesn’t only serve as a window to the past, but as a reflection of our real worth as a nation.
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I remember with fondness my personal “encounter” with this painting when it was displayed in the entertainment center of SM Davao. I stood there for a long time gazing and remembering the points given by the lecturer.
I was a very proud moment for me.