Manuel Rodriguez Sr. (
Father of Modern Philippine Printmaking )
Manuel Rodriguez, Sr., (b. 1915)
was given a grant by the Rockefeller Foundation to study printmaking
in New York. He pioneered the Graphic Arts movement in the Philippines
by sharing his knowledge of modern printmaking. He single-handedly
taught an entire new generation of young printmakers. He devoted
so much time to teaching printmaking that he almost neglected
painting. He believed that this relatively new form could help
bring art closer to the masses. He learned printmaking from masters
like Mauricio Lasanski of the Iowa University, Gabor Peterdi of
Yale and Stanley William Hayter of Ateliar 17 in Paris. Rodriguez
started doing serigraphs in the 1950s and was one of the early
modern painters that looked up to printmaking as a major art form.
Artists like Fernando Zobel, Juvenal Sanso, Arturo Luz, Anita
Magsaysay Ho and Jose Joya also made prints during this time.
In 1968, Mr. Rodriguez formally organized the Philippine
Association of Printmakers. This time marked the participation
of Filipino artists in international printmaking competition and
art biennials. The Philippine Association of Printmakers was awarded
the National Commission for Culture and the Arts Alab ng Hiraya
Award last 2002.
He opened Contemporary Arts Gallery in Manila,
a gallery cum workshop in Manila specializing in prints. He specialized
in etching but could teach all the different techniques of printmaking.
For his enormous influence in the reemergence of printmaking in
the country, he is known as the Father of Philippine Printmaking.
Some of his notable works include The Traveller and Nipa-Hut Madonna.
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Mang Maning
signing citizenship.
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