August Calendar

Paleta de Sangre (Palette of Blood)

As a social realist painter, I was swiftly ushered to the dramatic use of the contrast of light and shadow (chiarascurro) which was influenced by the old masters like Rembrandt, Caravaggio and our own Luna and Hidalgo. There is a subtle play of the darkest dark and the brightest bright, I guide myself with questions like “Where is the light coming from?” or “Is it a light or cool light?” It is in identifying the light source that the figures are illumited and the artist achieves ‘realism’. I want to give the feeling that if you cut the canvas with the blade it would bleed. I view my obras as ‘real’ not because of the technique but because of the reality happening in our society. “Where is my own light coming from?” “What gives me direction in spite of darkness?” “What makes me paint?” It struck me that Jesus had been painting my own portrait on the canvas of my soul, not using paint but the palette of His blood. Throught the field of art, He was introducing Himself to me. It was as if he was tryong to tell me who He really is. “Saan nagmumula ang sinag?”

– Joey Velasco