16: Hernando Ruiz Ocampo – Abstraction, 1977
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Details
Sizes:
Frame: 60.3 × 72 cm | 23.7 × 28.3 in
Artwork: 46 × 57.5 cm | 18.1 × 22.6 in
Signed lower left “H. R. Ocampo ’77”.
Hernando Ruiz Ocampo’s Abstraction (1977) is a beautiful example of the Filipino master’s exploration of organic form and color as containers of emotion and rhythm. The painting is a symphony of curves — overlapping and interlocking like fragments of living matter suspended in air. Ocampo’s colors of amber, coral and turquoise is earthy and cosmic at the same time, echoing the dynamism of his homeland’s natural world.
Done in watercolor on paper, Abstraction shows Ocampo’s mastery of transparency and layering. The paint seems to breathe across the surface, creating transitions of tone that give depth and movement. Each line flows into the next with a musical cadence, a reflection of the artist’s lifelong quest for visual harmony from chaos.
Abstraction (1977) is from the mature period of Ocampo’s work when his abstraction became more meditative. Here form becomes energy and color becomes light — a distillation of his idea that art can reveal the inner structure of life itself.
Provenance
Private Collection, Spain.
Condition
Good vintage condition with some signs of wear. Framed.
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Hernando Ruiz Ocampo was one of the most important figures in Philippine modern art and the leader of the post-war avant-garde. A self-taught painter, Ocampo was a writer first before he became a visual artist. He developed a biomorphic style with radiant colors, organic forms and rhythmic composition. His canvases are abstract yet symbolic, depicting the tropical landscape, social change and the tension between tradition and modernity in a rapidly changing country.
As one of the Thirteen Moderns, Ocampo was instrumental in redefining Filipino visual identity in the mid-20th century. His abstract forms and bold color structures were metaphors for renewal and life — national spirit and personal introspection. Today, his works are considered icons of Philippine modernism, combining indigenous and international abstraction in a powerful visual language.
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