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A. T. CAEDO AND THE UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES: A CLASSICAL SCULPTOR’S CONTRIBUTIONS (1952 – 1972)
Eugene Raymond P. Crudo
Assistant Professor 4, Division of History, Department of Social Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna
E-mail: [email protected] Received: 11 November 2021
Accepted for publication: 16 March 2022
Abstract
Anastacio T. Caedo is a forgotten classical sculptor whose contributions are ignored today. When Modernism gained a foothold in Philippine Art society, Caedo entered the University as faculty and served for twenty years. During those twenty years, some Caedo biographers missed noting his significant contributions to the University. Some of these works are icons of constituent universities for a time, while some are permanently exhibited, etched, and distributed. However, the problem remains that nobody remembers the artist behind them. Using periodicals, interviews, unpublished documents, and available scholarly research as a source of this article demonstrates the significant contributions of Anastacio T. Caedo and classical sculpture to the University of the Philippines from 1952-1972.
Key-terms: Biography, Philippine Art, Classical Sculptor, University of the Philippines, History
2 Introduction
Every institution has its own sets of artists under their service, but some tend to be forgotten or not given due recognition. Santiago A. Pilar wrote about National Artist for Sculpture, Guillermo Tolentino, and his contribution to the Philippine sculpture, notably The Bonifacio Monument, the Oblation, and President Ramon Magsaysay statue. Special mention was given to a student of his ‘perpetuating his teacher’s style in elegant monuments but is unjustly underrated today.’1 The name of that acclaimed student, Anastacio T. Caedo.
Few artists step out of their masters’
shadow to create a name for themselves.
Anastacio T. Caedo is one of them. In 1925, Tolentino brought Caedo to his shop and hired him as his assistant. The young Caedo was exposed to the different techniques, methods, and processes of sculptural works at this age. As Caedo began his studies both in secondary school and in the arts, he also made time to serve as an apprentice and learn the most from Tolentino.
Tolentino’s biographer, Paras-Perez, stated Caedo as his protégé who was like a son to Tolentino and came to a point when he informed his soon-to-be wife of his likes and dislikes.2
However, not everyone recognizes his works in the same way as his mentor. It is in this light that the author would like
to present the forgotten sculptor’s contributions by reviewing the available material and presenting his contributions outside UP and the sheer number of works that unfolded as faculty of sculpture for the School of Fine Arts up to his retirement in the College of Fine Arts. Alfred McCoy identified the differences between the problem of great lives of men and the obscure ones. Many national historians tend to focus on the national narrative with the canonical lives of dominating figures.3 While all the histories of that period tend to focus on select, outstanding Filipinos in our nation’s history, other artists are relegated to the sides, and only a few only get duly recognized. Another factor could be identity problem as a result of centuries of colonization.
This pandemic constrains this paper.
Documentary access is limited. The adjusted scope of his connection and contribution to his alma mater will be covered by materials online and on hand interviews conducted previously.
This article has three parts, first is the review of the published biographic entries about Anastacio Caedo, second, a look at possible problems encountered by various authors on the few and available published ones, and lastly, the list of his contributions to the University of the Philippines during his term as a faculty member.
3 Previous Biographic Entries
Several visual artists like painters have multiple biographies but not sculptors, especially classical sculptors. The Earliest encyclopedic entry of Anastacio Caedo can be found in the CCP Encyclopedia, published four years after his death in 1990. In this biographic entry, Edgar Catipon devotes almost an entire page,4 from his early years in Calaca, his double schooling during Secondary school, his apprenticeship at UP School of Fine Arts under Guillermo Tolentino. A paragraph mentioning Caedo’s invaluable assistance to Tolentino’s commissioned works are enumerated like the UP Oblation; the Bonifacio Monument; Ramon Magsaysay at the GSIS Lobby; Rizal Monument in the Rizal Provincial Capitol; Shaw Monument; and the dancing figures at Malacañang. His contributions to the Jesuit-ran Ateneo College are briefly mentioned, including a colossal statue of St. Thomas More measuring 14 feet.
The last two paragraphs detail his famous works like Gen. Douglas McArthur landing at Palo Red Beach, Leyte; the Benigno Aquino monument in Makati,5 and yearly trophies of the Film Academy of the Philippines. The awards he garnered during his undergraduate and graduate years before the war were also mentioned, except for the 1952 award from the Art Association of the Philippines or AAP
after the war. As the CCP Encyclopedia is published in the national level and Caedo does not seem to lack on achievements, this primary biographic entry published in the book could only display portions of his sculptural life rendering it incomplete and outdated.
In 1996, the UP Press published the Philippine History in Art that had a more substantive biography of Caedo.
Defeo and Burgos identified his sculptural lineage beginning with his father whose living revolved on tombstones in Batangas.6 They mentioned his remarkable contribution in producing sculptures, the cold cast, a method he introduced was given importance as it can withstand the tropical weather and reduces the overall cost of the material. A brief mention about his promising sculptor son, Florante, was also included. His contributions on the facades of buildings in Diliman, the same awards he received during his student and graduate years, his two award-winning works, the Problem and Bathaluman, which won prizes from the AAP in 1951 and 1952. His works at the Ateneo de Manila University - St. Thomas More;
Christ Blessing the Children; and Madonna and Child were also mentioned. There is a short reference of his work for the film industry and finally, his more popular works that include the McArthur statue in Leyte;
and the Ninoy Aquino statue in Makati.
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While this entry has more depth and centrality to the institution, the authors only mentioned his original works excluding his faithful reproduction of the statues of Jose Rizal and Guillermo Tolentino.
In 2000, the Peso Book Foundation published their book entitled Kayumanggi: Biographies of Philippine Visual Artist,7 which included Anastacio Caedo. Though the content here is signed by “HAAP-SP,” most of it echoes what was written six years earlier in the CCP Encyclopedia.
By the time CCP released its updated Encyclopedia in 2020, Cecilia S. Dela Paz had updated the entry.8 Dela Paz removed details of Caedo’s significant awards in the yearly school competition. She included his 1961 entry in the Jose Rizal National Centennial Commission (JRNCC) that won third prize and was mass produced. Finally, there was recognition on the encyclopedia about his Jose Rizal portrait bust. Although he might have bagged the third place, he might also have been chosen because of his youth and workshop space for mass reproductions that the two other winners did not have.
Problems Encountered in Documenting Caedo
The dearth of writings about this classical sculptor may be attributed to
the genre itself that Filipinos were uncomfortable with due to their conservatism, owing to the influence of the Catholic Church. As Alice Guillermo notes, the aesthetic problem of the classical style is its ideal form is the human body or in the nude.9 Moreover, artists were wary because they had little training on human anatomy. Another factor could be that Caedo’s abilities were overlooked because he paled in comparison to Guillermo Tolentino, his mentor. In an essay written by Jeannie E. Javelosa, she recognized Caedo’s ability but pointed out how he paled behind his master’s reputation.10 Furthermore, Caedo is the progenitor of Tolentino’s Classical Style, which by the 1950s, was colliding with another art movement, Modernism. According to Catipon, the classical school prevailed at UP until the mid-1960s, as the change from the conservative to modern was genuinely inevitable.11 Another factor discussed by Santiago Pilar in his essay on Philippine Secular Sculpture identified
‘the intention of the AAP to push for Modernism led to the degradation of classical sculpture.’12 He further identifies the victims of this push by the AAP - all traditional secular sculpture dating back to the 1850s, as this was the context of postwar art movement, that also led to the eventual demise of classical sculpture. The works of Isabelo Tampingco, one of the greatest secular
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sculptors who graduated from Escuela de Bellas Artes in Quiapo, experienced the same neglect.13 In 1952, the AAP awarded the first prize to a young student named Napoleon Abueva for his work Modern ‘Mother and Child’
while the author describes the second place winner ‘went to old-time A. T.
Caedo’s conservative “The Problem.”14 With these factors, the artist of his time is not as advantaged as the artists of today who have social media at their disposal for publicity. Previously, artists relied on journalists, then later art historians and biographers, to write about their works. In the Philippines where the AAP are dependent on latest art styles abroad are influential to the rest of country. This influence resulted to the rise of Modernism to a huge portion on the arts. Caedo’s Classical Style of sculpture remained but without the recognition of the AAP as before.
Nevertheless, sculptors such as Caedo relentlessly pursued and continued this tradition until the end of his time, which became significant to different parts of the country, as indicated in the biographic entries. His steady popularity among the remaining classical artists turned to commissions and rarely an exhibit has yet to be unearthed by the author. To the very end, Caedo lived and fulfilled his obligation as a classical sculptor though there were temptations but he did not pursue them as indicated in an
interview, “Yes, I have at time felt a very strong urge to create symbolically, in an expressionistic way; but the call has not been strong enough for me to heed it…”15
Documented Works for the University prior to 1952
As an alumnus, Caedo continued to serve the University. Of his many talents aside from sculpture, he also went into the traditional pen and paper.
Although he is not a comic illustrator, he is also widely known for his annual contribution to every commencement exercise.
Diploma of Honoris Causa of Elpidio Quirino (1949)
The presence of a facsimile diploma (Figure 1) in the Caedo box owned by sculptor and collector Ram Mamalio is evidence of another remarkable talent and service provided by Caedo Sculptural Works. The name of the host university is written in an Old English typeface, while the unification of the body written in a beautiful italicized script adorns its content.16 A bold and distinguishable design immediately arrests the eyes to focus on the name the honor is given to, with the latticework clearly emphasizing the prestige of the recipient. In this particular case, it was the highest government official of the land, President Elpidio Quirino. On the
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lower left can be seen the dry seal of the University. Furthermore, it is signed by the Board of Regents Chairman and the President of the University. Two of the highest positions in the University give prominence and weight to the importance of and authenticity of the diploma.
Based on the date affixed, the 12th of February, 1949,17 they had arranged an event bestowing President Elpidio Quirino's well-deserved, distinguished honorific title, in line with the sale of the government-owned Diliman lot to the University of the Philippines. In the subsequent years following the devastation of Manila, the University had yet to re-establish a strong campus presence in war-torn Ermita, where the Manila campus is located.
The awarding of an Honoris Causa to President Quirino demonstrates the magnitude of the obligation of the University Board of Regents in relocating to a spacious and conducive site free from population-dense Manila.
This singular yet valuable surviving document displays his multifaceted array of talents when it comes to his fine calligraphy. Caedo's undeniable calligraphic services penned the historic moment between his alma mater, the University of the Philippines, and the sitting president of the Republic of the Philippines.
According to his grandson, Frederic, he would also go into the diploma- producing department, not Recto, though he also lived near the vicinity when there was a downtime in sculpture.18 The evidence of any calligraphy works is said to be a sculptor's mainstay during the graduation season. Schools would have had hired him for this visual artistry on calligraphic work (Figure 2). He accepted diploma work as it provided an alternative income when no sculptural works were pending, or it could also be a respite from three- dimensional art. Perhaps it too brought a sense of renewed vigor when Caedo returned to the brush in place of his molding tools.
In early 1952, LVN film production company hired the services of Caedo to portray the life-size figure of one of their leading ladies, Lilia Dizon. The statue shows a lady covered thinly in garments flowing much like silk while the hands, carefully placed in their feminine clasp and tenderness, portray the dignified grace for any fair lady. Her curls resting gently on her shoulders afford a glimpse of her neck. In proportion to other life-size statues, Caedo handled this beautifully well, and some critics hailed it compared to different Venuses of Europe.19 On July 2, 1952, he won the Second Prize in the AAP for his movie prop work, the
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Bathaluman (Figure 3). A month later, on August 7, 1952, he was officially hired as a part-time instructor of sculpture.20 Seven days shy of his 45th birthday on August 14. The School of Fine Arts acting director back then was no other than his mentor, Guillermo Tolentino, who recommended his former assistant to be a part-time faculty to UP President Vidal Tan.
Initially, he would teach courses like Elementary Modelling and Still-Life Drawing, Guillermo Tolentino and Ambrocio Morales, respectively.
Select Documented Works (1952- 1972)
Caedo began his work as a part-time instructor during this period. By 1955, the School witnessed the retirement of his mentor, Guillermo Tolentino. And as his mentor retired, Tolentino was assured that the students would still be trained in a classical way by one of his best students as divulged in an interview, “He is really good --- talagang magaling iyan. He is still the shining star.”21
As a part-time instructor, Caedo continued executing his sculptural works. Three years after being hired, he was granted a leave without pay in May 1955 to execute a commissioned work from Fr. McMahon of the Ateneo University.22 The noted works were the
14 ft. high St. Thomas More statue near the Rizal Library, the 62 ft. panel of Christ Blessing the Children at the Grade School compound, The Madonna and Child, St. Stanislao Koska at the High School. At this time, Caedo could not be done in a few months only. He would then extend his leave the following semester and report to duty the following year on January 4, 1956.23 Triumph of Science over Death (1959) In the original site of UP in Manila, where Caedo graduated, he would be given a sculptural opportunity. The original Oblation statue was transferred in 1949, leaving the campus bare.
Another statue emerged ten years after in 1959, and the concept was taken from Jose Rizal himself. The original Triumph of Science over Death was a gift from Rizal to his Austrian brother, Dr. Ferdinand Blumentritt.24 It depicts the victory of a naked woman symbolizing Science standing over a skull representing Death. The Triumph of Science over Death (Figure 4) was the design chosen by the UP College of Medicine Class of 1933, which celebrated their Silver Jubilee Anniversary. To mark this special occasion, they funded and unveiled the statue on Medical Alumni Day, April 12, 1959.25 The statue became the symbol of UP Manila and PGH from 1959- 1982.26 It was Anastacio T. Caedo who sculpted this likeness of Rizal’s statue.
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Some scholars identified this statue as the Muse for the masculine Oblation.27 The Research Institute of Tropical Medicine or RITM also has a similar statue on its grounds. A smaller version is also housed in the Museo ni Jose Rizal in Calamba, attributing Rizal with the original and the reproduction to Caedo.
Caedo sculpted the national hero on numerous occasions and reproduced the works of this multi-talented Calambeño as well.
Jose Rizal (1961)
By 1961, his commitment to the University entered into a new season, and the part-time Assistant Professor Caedo was now promoted as a full-time faculty. One of his contributions in adding prestige to the college came when he joined another competition. A century after the birth of the national hero, Jose Rizal, the government formed a commission in 1961 to celebrate his life and achievements, the Jose Rizal National Centennial Commission (JRNCC) chaired by Senator Geronima T. Pecson. The JRNCC also held a contest on an updated interpretation of a bust of Rizal worthy of national and international fame. The first prize was awarded to Caedo's mentor, Guillermo Tolentino. In second place was a sculptor named Alere. Caedo's Rizal placed third, and yet among the three of them, his was chosen by the Philippine Cultural Foundation to be distributed to
various institutions, locally and abroad.28 The JRNCC Sculpture competition was a momentous awarding as two of the finalist hailed from the same College and had a special relationship with them. In an interview with Jose Quirino, Caedo revealed he finished the bust of Rizal, replete with minute detail, in three days, which tells a lot about the enormity of his talent as a sculptor, and won him the competition.29
In 1962, the School of Fine Arts was upgraded to a College. It was now known as the College of Architecture and Fine Arts. They are located on the third floor of Gonzales Hall. It was a historic year for Assistant Professor Caedo as he saw another achievement in his academic career happen, being promoted to Associate Professor.
During his term as Associate Professor, he caught the attention of the UP President, who had a special request from him that year.
The Noli-Fili Memorial in UP Diliman (1963)
On February 27, 1963, a commemorative milestone was constructed at the University of the Philippines. Colossal in its scale and a product of a rushed yet masterfully executed memorial befitting the two novels which contributed most to the Filipinos rise against the Spanish yoke,
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the Noli-Fili memorial was unveiled under the leadership of UP President Carlos P. Romulo. He had asked for a memorial to commemorate the two historical Rizal novels, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, in front of the University Library. With only one day and one night to deliver, Professor Caedo was up to the task. He tapped into his arsenal, his days in the film industry when multiple props were required of him. He then successfully delivered a giant representation of the two books mounted on a green knoll.30 Although no surviving photographs of the Noli-Fili memorial remain, the letter of appreciation from UP President Carlos P. Romulo left him impressed, saying,
‘I want you to know how pleased I am not only at the artistic conception of the Noli- Fili memorial and its beautiful execution but also the industry which you displayed in completing it, in such a short time. I realize the handicaps you had to overcome and that you overcame them is a tribute to your ingenuity which had deeply impressed me’.31
The UP Main Library is named after Bienvenido Maria Gonzales, the youngest UP President and one of the first Agriculture graduates. National Artist for Architecture Julio Nakpil designed the building. Back in 1963, there were still many greens. Not only did he do something for UP President
Romulo in 1963, but he also left a mark in this building which is still visible until now. (Figure 4)
Chiselling Façade Names
Aside from the main library and other buildings like the Juan Arellano designed Benitez Hall, which houses the College of Education, and across it, with the Sunken Garden in between them, Malcolm Hall, or College of Law.
Moreover, the Melchor Hall or College of Engineering and the Vinzons Hall, the Student Union Building before, were designed by the University Architect Cesar Concio.32 The University needed someone to deliver the final touches of chiseling the Trajan Pro like typeface forty feet in the air, and that is the context and humble contribution of Caedo.33
As we further delve into the university's halls, he also made extensive donations to the university collection. Between 1965 and 1966, Caedo sculpted four busts of selected heroes for the university's collection when he was a professor of sculpture at the College of Fine Arts. In his letter to Caedo, UP President Carlos P. Romulo expressed his appreciation of the delivered bust and expected more to arrive soon.34
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Jose Rizal (1965)
Burgos said, "This bust was reproduced by the thousands in different sizes for the Philippine Cultural Foundation in the 1960s."35 However, the only difference would be found in their base.
In the award-winning bust, the only name etched is the word Rizal.
However, this bust has his complete name, as probably Caedo intended the distinction for this particular work. In terms of its production, it was molded and cast in plaster. Then it was given an ivory finish.36
The Jose Rizal bust (Figure 5) boasts of the finest detail in his physiognomy, worthy of being observed and studied for long hours. Suppose one would look closely in the fine detail such as the trademark Caedo eyes or glistening pair of eyes that animate the bust into life.
Another signature is the way he does the hair strands, the eyebrow, and even the mustache. The side partition allows a volume to be gathered in his right side while also subconsciously exposing his rich forehead on the left, exposing a portion of his immense cerebral fortitude. The haircut reveals the ears clearly with the left side tilted, closely following the direction of the head while the right ear is relaxed and stationary. His eyebrows divide the forehead and the eyes with clarity and intensity shadowing the eyes. In closer detail, the strands of the eyebrows are
seen delineating artwork from reality.
The mustache, though slight in volume, accentuates the lips. In close detail, it looks carelessly done at first glance, but it turns out to be systematically measured to fit the correct proportions and the right volume, enough to connect his nose and lips.
Apolinario Mabini (1966)
The upright portrait bust of Apolinario Mabini (Figure 5) is masterfully executed in a dark bronze finish. His neatly brushed hair depicts a sagacious and straightforward man reflective of his true character in life. The eyelids and the eyebrows highlight the clear vision of his eyes. The cheekbones are worn by passionate discourse lead to permanent muscle frowning. Sporting a frock coat, he seems to have been well-placed in society. His eyes are well-proportioned to his nose and ears, an idealized look for Mabini. Nevertheless, the unique characteristic of this bust would be his eyes protruding from the shadows of his eyebrows which offer a glimpse of his insight and frailty. Caedo signed this bust in 1966, but in 1967, he donated it to the University.37
Andres Bonifacio (1965)
In his splendor and glory with his well- proportioned face (eyes, nose, and lips), Andres Bonifacio (Figure 5) exudes the subdued yet perceptive character of the
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reputable Supremo. The eyes gaze lightly, without sign of stress with the distance of the eyebrows from one another. The eyelids heighten the look.
Any deeper and the light bouncing off it would have a mysterious effect. A certain amount of shadows cloud the eye of Bonifacio, evocative of his natural life predicament. His properly-combed hair reveals a prominent forehead containing the mind of an effective organizational revolutionary leader.
The elongated nose ends with an ample breadth and semi-flaring nostrils.
Bonifacio appears to be wearing the same coat when he married Gregoria de Jesus, probably explaining his ideal and serene countenance.
Caedo was able to meet the surviving younger Bonifacio, Espiridiona or Nonay during 1930 because of the Bonifacio Monument hosted by the National Heroes Day Committee that he and his mentor, Tolentino, used to take part in.38 With that in mind, it is one possibility that his source of close physiognomy would be the widow and sister of the great Supremo himself.
Marcelo H. Del Pilar (1966)
Burgos described, "The bust portrait captures Marcelo H. del Pilar's staunch character. The clean and simple lines of the shoulders and collars brace the slightly turned head, a robust head emphasized by the mustache and the
taut jaws. The furrowed brows set the squinted eyes in deep concentration."39 The Del Pilar bust (Figure 5) was the only bust separated from the three due to the unrivaled claim that one of the buildings in UP was named after him.
The building is the College of Mass Communication of the University, where courses such as Broadcast Communication and Journalism are taught. It also plays host to the Plaridel Awards for the significant contribution of alumni in journalism and mass communication.
The Oblation Statues
Aside from identifiers and heroes, he also provided a replica of the original statue he posed for, the UP Oblation. He also had a hand in them on three different campuses, as in UP Los Baños, where the Oblation statue was reproduced by the National Artist for Sculpture Napoleon Abueva, fronting the building designed by National Artist Leandro Locsin. In contrast, in front of the UP Open University, the Oblation was made by Gigi Javier- Alfonso, a known student of Caedo.
The Oblation being synonymous with the symbol of UP was created in the mind of the classical sculptor Guillermo Tolentino. It was described to be the peak of realism and ideality, according to Tolentino biographer Rodolfo Paras- Perez.40 Due to its ‘realism and ideality’,
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the physique and proportion were taken from two models, Anastacio Caedo and Virgilio Raymundo, respectively. Caedo was shown to be well-built due to bodybuilding, one of his hobbies. There are indications that Caedo posed for the bodybuilding contests during his time as shown in the photos in the collection of Ram Mamalio. This statue was significant in a sense, from the conception of verses taken from Rizal’s Mi Ultimo Adios, its meaning and measurements, and even the unveiling with the widow of Andres of Bonifacio, Gregoria de Jesus was replete with history. Given this chance with history, the young Caedo was able to witness and become part of it.
UP Oblation in Baguio (1965)
During the term of Dean Felixberto C.
Sta. Maria from 1964-1967,41 UP Baguio acquired the symbolic statue of the University. The Oblation statue (Figure 7) in UP Baguio is a faithful copy of the original statue reproduced by Caedo.
Faithful as it was lifted and molded from the original or Version 2, made of bronze, as Cañete identifies it. As it turns out, the Oblation statue in UP Baguio is considered Version 3.42 Attempts by the alumni members to transfer the original statue to Baguio did not materialize due to its fragility.43 Having resigned from the University in 1960, Tolentino left UP with Caedo as the next classical sculptor to continue
the tradition. He decided to render a copy taken from the original faithfully, and the Baguio Oblation is a little bigger than the original. Cañete also assumed the material used by Caedo to be concrete, but in fact, he employed his technique of cold-cast bronze as it was suited for the outdoors then painted over instead of polychromed concrete.44 Perhaps the choice of molding from the bronze statue was more robust than the original polychromed concrete. The UP Baguio Oblation statue was not the only statue Caedo reproduced. He was also responsible for two more identical measurements are like the bronze version of Tolentino.
UP Oblation in Tarlac (1960s)
During the mid-60s, there was a UP College in the Province of Tarlac. Gov.
Benigno Aquino, Jr. approached USAID to develop the Tarlac College of Technology, a brief mention of the presence of the UP college for courses not available in the supposed College of Technology.45 According to Cañete, the students used the UP Tarlac Oblation as a “dress-up” against the Marcos administration prior to Martial Law on February 2, 1972.46 During the term of UP President SP Lopez, UP Tarlac witnessed its last days. Financial assistance from the provincial government did not materialize, eventually leading to its closure.
However, another satellite campus
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came to the fore in Tacloban, Leyte fully supported by its Provincial government. 47 UP Tarlac slowly closed its doors in the following years, leaving the Oblation in a defunct campus. In 1979, the UP Tarlac Alumni Association and the Provincial government decided to make the transfer upon the request from UP Manila.48 It was finally unveiled on March 22, 1982, in the UP Manila grounds, not under the Philippine General Hospital.
UP Oblation in Iloilo (1970)
On the island of Panay, South of Manila, is Iloilo City, one of the oldest cities in the Visayas. Located here is where Caedo’s third work was found. During the seventies, another UP campus commissioned Caedo for an Oblation statue (Figure 8). At first, Cañete thinks it was inaugurated in early 1971 and thus was made during 197049 but recent publication from the UP Visayas website identifies the original inauguration date as of January 25, 1970. It was a donation of the UP Iloilo Alumni Association Class of 1969- 1970.50 Based on the measurements by Virginia Dandan and Santiago Pilar, it is also a faithful reproduction of Version 2 of the Oblation as it is bigger than the original polychromed concrete by Tolentino.51
In 1970, he witnessed the separation of the Architecture course and the creation
of the College of Fine Arts. Associate Professor Caedo, as faculty of sculpture and inheritor of the classical style from Tolentino, completed the three-faithful reproduction of the Oblation statues before his retirement in 1972. After his retirement, he would be commissioned his most notable larger-than-life-size statues in the province of Leyte commemorating a long-sought liberation after five years of war.
Conclusion
Initial biographic entries of Anastacio Caedo point out his contributions on the national scale. Except for select publications made by the UP Press, some of his University contributions were not attributed to him. Though his contributions to classical sculpture is intertwined with UP, his legacy is unrecognized. In fact, it was only upon Cañete’s scholarly work on the Oblation, that Caedo’s pivotal contributions to UP gained prominence.
Cañete chronicled his career as a student and faculty; his remarkable contribution to University iconography.
Several factors may have come in play for Caedo’s lack of recognition. The Classical style before his time was not widely accepted, especially in its ideal form, the nude, in a conservative Catholic country. As for his master’s reputation, he was overshadowed, and after the war, having gained
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independence, the shift of Modernism began leaving Classical artists like him to a few traditional art aficionados.
Without the support of a professional association, he was further shunned into obscurity. Being part of an old art style hindered the writers from covering much of his works in the face of Modernism. Anastacio T. Caedo began his career as a faculty member in the School of Fine Arts until his retirement, when it changed into a College of Fine Arts. Before he was hired, he was already delicately rendering beautiful diplomas for the University. When he entered the College, he was already a multi- awarded sculptor, with The Bathaluman as one of his prized works in 1952. When he started teaching as a part-time faculty, he continued practicing his profession. He was granted permission from the University to pursue these commissions like the Ateneo de Manila University contract.
Aside from this, he also won in a portrait bust contest of Jose Rizal in 1961, which was later well circulated and popularized. A few years later, in 1963, he was commissioned by the UP President himself to render two iconic books of Rizal in a short amount of time, and he proudly delivered. He would also leave with four portrait busts to the
University Art Collection of four heroes permanently available within the University Library in a few years. As UP regional centers were realized, Caedo provided them with symbolic campus statues like the Muse or Triumph of Science over Death in 1959, the UP Oblation in Baguio in 1965, UP Tarlac Oblation now in UP Manila, and the UP Iloilo in 1970. His Oblations are not original, but faithful reproductions mark his service of excellence and quality craftsmanship. Besides icons, we have also identified Caedo as the sculptor who chiseled the names of Benitez Hall, Malcolm Hall, Gonzales Hall, and Melchor Hall, displaying a unique neo-classical tradition in perpetuity. Most of the previous works are still available to the public lasting more than half a century. Classical sculpture is tied to the history of the University of the Philippines, with Caedo right in the center of it.
Endnotes:
1 Santiago A. Pilar, “Philippine Secular Sculpture,” in Sculpture in the Philippines: From Anito to Assemblage and Other Essays. ed. Alice Guillermo (Manila: Metropolitan Museum of Manila, 1991), 70.
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2 Rodolfo Paras-Perez. Tolentino.
Malolos: The National Art Foundation of Malolos, 1976, 155-156.
3 Alfred Mccoy, ). "Biography of Lives:
Obscure, Ordinary, and Heroic" in Lives at the Margin: Biography of Filipinos Obscure, Ordinary, and Heroic edited by Alfred W. McCoy (Center for Southeast Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin- Madison, 2000), p. 10.
4 Edgar Catipon, “Anastacio Tanchangco Caedo,” in CCP Encyclopedia, Visual Arts ed. … (Manila:
CCP, 1994), 325.
5 Later moved out of Makati and replaced with another Ninoy Aquino monument due to its supposed connotation of bad luck for the Business district. It was believed to be transferred to Tarlac. Recent exchanges with Dr.
Lino Dizon of Tarlac State University, confirmed the current state of the historic statue and noticed the depredation and drastic changes since its original unveiling.
6 Armando B. Burgos, and Ruben D.F Defeo, “Anastacio Tanchangco Caedo,”
Philippine History in Art: A Promenade to the Past. (Quezon City: Office of the Chancellor, University of the Philippines, 1996.), 59-60.
7 HAAP-SP, “Caedo, Anastacio,” in Kayumanggi: Biographies of Philippine Visual Artists. (Peso Book Foundation, 2000) 19.
8 Edgar Catipon, Cecilia S. De La Paz,
“Caedo, Anastacio” in CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Art Digital Edition, Internet, accessed on 15 March 2021, available from
(https://epa.culturalcenter.gov.ph/3/17/
3461/)
9 Alice Guillermo, ‘Classical Sculpture,’
in Sculpture in the Philippines: From Anito to Assemblage and Other Essays. ed. Alice Guillermo (Manila: Metropolitan Museum of Manila, 1991),29.
10 Jeannie E. Javelosa, “The Public Sculptural Tradition,’ in Sculpture in the Philippines: From Anito to Assemblage and Other Essays. ed. Alice Guillermo (Manila: Metropolitan Museum of Manila, 1991), 71.
11 Catipon, 325.
12 Pilar, 70.
13 Santiago Pilar, The Life and Art of Isabelo Tampingco. (Vibal Foundation:
Manila, 2014), xi.
14 “Sculpture Show,” This Week, Sunday Magazine of the Manila Chronicle, 15 July 1951, Vol.VI No. 82, p.19
15 Ma. T. San Jose, “For Anastacio Caedo, Purity of Spirit is the Essence of True Art,” Philippine Panorama, 16 February 1986, p.10
16 Based on the Photograph of the Diploma, from the collection of Ram Mamalio
17 Elpidio Quirino (1949). Address of President Quirino upon his conferment of the degree of Doctors of Laws,
16
honoris causa. Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines, 45(2), 657-666.
18 Frederic Caedo, interview by the author, April 2015, Manila, voice recording, UP Diliman, Quezon City
19 Eliseo Estrella Solano, "Unrecognized Genius Part II," Bulletin Today, 10 January 1984. p.7.
20 Guillermo Tolentino, Letter to UP President Vidal Tan, 12 August 1952, 201 files, 13.
21 Guillermo Tolentino, Graphic Article, 1931
22 Solano, 7.
23 Guillermo Tolentino, Letter to UP President Vidal Tan, 27 May 1955, 201 files, 25.
24 Jose Rizal, “150. Rizal, Brussels, 5 July 1890,” from Jose Rizal Correspondence with Blumentritt, Volume II (Manila:
National Historical Commission of the Philippines, 2011), 369.
25 Marker, To Our Alma Mater, In Loving Reverence This Statue Is Humbly Dedicated On The Occasion Of Our Silver Jubilee Anniversary (College of Medicine, University of the Philippines Manila) 12 April 1959.
26 Rueben Cañete, Sacrificial Bodies: The Oblation and the Political Aesthetics of Masculine Representation in Philippine Visual Cultures. (Quezon City:
University of the Philippines Press, 2012.) 207.
27 Cañete, 208.
28 Josefina Constantino, "Rizal Resurrected," Sunday Times Magazine, 26 February 1961, 6-7.
29 Jose A. Quirino, “Man Behind the Images,” Literary Song-Movie Magazine, 23.
30 Eliseo Estrella Solano, "Unrecognized Genius Part III," Bulletin Today, 11 January 1984, p.8.
31 Carlos P. Romulo, Letter to Professor Caedo, 27 February 1963. 201 files, 56.
32 Burgos and Defeo, 59.
33 Solano, 8.
34 Carlos P. Romulo, Letter to Professor Caedo, 8 March 1966. 201 files, 67.
35 201 Files of the UPCFA quoted in Burgos, Armando B. Philippine History in art: A Promenade to the Past (Quezon City: Office of the Chancellor, University of the Philippines, 1996), 66.
36 J.A. Quirino, "The Man Behind the Cover," Philippine Free Press, 17 June 1961, 11. quoted in Burgos, Armando B.
Philippine History in art: A Promenade to the Past (Quezon City: Office of the Chancellor, University of the Philippines, 1996), 66.
37 Adm. Gen., Brief: Donation of life-size statue of Mabini from Professor Caedo, April 17, 1967, 201 files, 71.
38 Rodolfo Paras-Perez. 1976, 137.
39 Burgos, Armando B. Philippine History in art: A Promenade to the Past (Quezon City: Office of the Chancellor, University of the Philippines, 1996), 63.
40 Paras-Perez, 118.
17
41 “U.P. at Baguio Deans – 1961-1971,”
Baguio Yearbook ‘ 71. (UP Alumni Association Baguio-Benguet Chapter, 1971), 1.
42 Cañete, 221.
43 Ernesto L. M. Abellera, “Oblation in Baguio,” in Baguio Yearbook ‘71. (UP Alumni Association Baguio-Benguet Chapter, 1971), 43.
44 Cañete, 221.
45 Edward H. Redford and William H.
Olsen, Planning the Future Development of the Tarlac College of Technology, United States Agency for International Development, Manila, 1966, 61.
46 Cañete, 250.
47 Oscar Alfonso Ed., “University of the Philippines: The First 75 Years(1908- 1983), Quezon City, University of the Philippines Press, 1985”
48 Ibid., 222.
49 Ibid., 277.
50 Lyncen Fernandez, “UP Iloilo Finds A New Home After 50 Years,”University of the Philippines Visayas, Internet,
available from
https://www.upv.edu.ph/index.php/ne ws/up-iloilo-oblation-finds-a-new- home-after-50-
years?fbclid=IwAR1pwEPGx4m7JpWb qQ_7Vm4nC1kT13_cynA6UVj7UuYk3 wrB0ZSty2t3Mhs
51 Cañete, 221.
Bibliography:
“Sculpture Show,” This Week, Sunday Magazine of the Manila Chronicle, 15 July 1951, Vol.VI No. 82.
Abellera, Ernesto L. M. “Oblation in Baguio,” in Baguio Yearbook ‘71. (UP Alumni Association Baguio-Benguet Chapter, 1971).
Alfonso, Oscar Ed., “University of the Philippines: The First 75 Years(1908- 1983), Quezon City, University of the Philippines Press, 1985
Alfred Mccoy. "Biography of Lives:
Obscure, Ordinary, and Heroic" in Lives at the Margin: Biography of Filipinos Obscure, Ordinary, and Heroic edited by Alfred W. McCoy (Center for Southeast Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin- Madison, 2000).
Burgos, Armando B., and Ruben D.F Defeo. Philippine History in Art: A Promenade to the Past. Quezon City:
Office of the Chancellor, University of the Philippines, 1996.
Caedo, Frederic. interview by the author, April 2015, Manila, voice recording, UP Diliman, Quezon City.
Cañete, Reuben Ramas. Sacrificial Bodies: The Oblation and the Political Aesthetics of Masculine Representation in Philippine Visual Cultures. Quezon
18
City: University of the Philippines Press, 2012.
Carlos P. Romulo, Letter to Professor Caedo, February 27, 1963. 201 files.
______________, Letter to Professor Caedo, 8 March 1966. 201 files.
Catipon, Edgar. “Anastacio Tanchangco Caedo,” in CCP Encyclopedia, Visual Arts ed. … (Manila:
CCP, 1994)
Constantino, Josefina. "Rizal Resurrected," Sunday Times Magazine, 26 February 1961.
Fernandez, Lyncen .“UP Iloilo Finds A New Home After 50 Years,”University of the Philippines Visayas, Internet,
available from
https://www.upv.edu.ph/index.php/ne ws/up-iloilo-oblation-finds-a-new- home-after-50-
years?fbclid=IwAR1pwEPGx4m7JpWb qQ_7Vm4nC1kT13_cynA6UVj7UuYk3 wrB0ZSty2t3Mhs
Guillermo, Alice. ‘Classical Sculpture,’
in Sculpture in the Philippines: From Anito to Assemblage and Other Essays. ed. Alice Guillermo (Manila: Metropolitan Museum of Manila, 1991),29.
Frederic Caedo, interview by the author, April 2015, Manila, voice recording, UP Diliman, Quezon City
Javelosa, Jeannie E. “The Public Sculptural Tradition,’ in Sculpture in the Philippines: From Anito to Assemblage and Other Essays. ed. Alice Guillermo (Manila: Metropolitan Museum of Manila, 1991)
Pilar, Santiago A. “Philippine Secular Sculpture,” in Sculpture in the Philippines: From Anito to Assemblage and Other Essays. ed. Alice Guillermo (Manila: Metropolitan Museum of Manila, 1991)
Quirino, E. (1949). Address of President Quirino upon his conferment of the degree of Doctors of Laws, honoris causa. Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines, 45(2).
Quirino, J.A. "The Man Behind the Cover," Philippine Free Press, 17 June 1961, 11. quoted in Burgos, Armando B.
Philippine History in art: A Promenade to the Past (Quezon City: Office of the Chancellor, University of the Philippines, 1996)
Rizal, Jose. “150. Rizal, Brussels, 5 July 1890,” from Jose Rizal Correspondence with Blumentritt, Volume II (Manila:
National Historical Commission of the Philippines, 2011).
San Jose, Ma. T “For Anastacio Caedo, Purity of Spirit is the Essence of True
19
Art,” Philippine Panorama, 16 February 1986
Solano, Eliseo Estrella. "Unrecognized Genius Part I-II," Bulletin Today, 10 January 1984
Tolentino, Guillermo. Letter to UP President Vidal Tan, 12 August 1952, 201 files.
_________________. Letter to UP President Vidal Tan, 27 May 1955, 201 files.
Appendix of Illustrations
Figure 1. Facsimile of Elpidio Quirino
Honoris Causa.
1949. Ram Mamalio Collection.
Figure 2. Sample of Diploma titles found in the Caedo sketchbook. Ram Mamalio Collection.
Figure 3. A cropped photograph of Bathaluman. 1952. LVN Photo Collection, Lopez Museum and Library.
20
Figure 4. Triumph of Science over Death, 1959. Photo taken by Jerome Ong, 15 November 2021.
Figure 5. (Clockwise) Apolinario Mabini (1965), Andres Bonifacio (1966), Jose Rizal (1965) at Gonzales Hall and Marcelo Del Pilar (1966) at Plaridel Hall. Photos taken by the author.
21
Figure 6. Cropped photos of Benitez Hall, Melchor Hall, Vinzons Hall, Gonzalez Hall and Malcolm Hall. (clockwise) Benitez Hall photo from educ.upd.edu.ph. Melchor Hall photo from Patrick Roque. Malcolm Hall photo from Ramon Velasquez. Vinzons Hall from Edma Remillano. Gonzalez Hall from Misael Bacani. (up.edu.ph)
22
Figure 7. Oblation (1965) at UP Baguio.
Photo by Misael Bacani, UP MPRO.
(up.edu.ph)
Figure 8. Oblation (1970) at the UP Visayas Iloilo City Campus. Photo by Bong
Arboleda, UP MPRO. (up.edu.ph)
Figure 9. UP Tarlac Oblation in 1971. Photo from Lino Dizon Collection.
