'Rizalpabeto' painted using iPad

MANILA, Philippines -  In last month’s third Philippine International Art Fair dubbed ManilArt 11 held at the NBC Tent, Bonifacio Global City, one exhibit intrigued and beguiled both lovers of art and technology for its unique rendition of new materials on our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal.

The artist, Elmer Borlongan, used an Apple iPad as his canvas to paint his one-of-a-kind series of Letras Y Figuras that celebrates the life and legacy of Rizal.

A full-time visual artist from San Antonio, Zambales, Borlongan collaborated with multi-awarded poet Vim Nadera to create RIZALPABETO, a reflective collection of images drawn and painted on the iPad and inspired by the poems of Nadera about Rizal.

The result was a refreshing yet poignant artwork that was put on display at ManilaArt 11 using iPads, of course, which were lined up against a wall while some were put together to look like one good-size canvas.

Visitors who stopped at the RIZALPABETO exhibit saw how Andres Bonifacio was thoughtfully drawn as part of the letter “K” or how the image of Rizal’s common-law wife Josephine Bracken formed the letter “J.” For the letters “F” and “T,” Borlongan sketched Rizal’s parents, Francisco Mercado II and Teodora Alonso Realonda. The three Filipino martyr priests, commonly known as “Gomburza,” represented the letter “G.”

Borlongan first tried drawing on his iPhone using an application called Brushes, until Apple released the iPad and he got himself a new canvas.

A video on how Borlongan and Nadera fused their res-pective drawings and poems together was also presented vis-a-vis the digital RIZALPABETO exhibit. In the video, Borlongan narrated his early use of digital medium and later, his process in sketching using the iPad.

Painting since he was 11 years old, Borlongan said he first tried drawing on his iPhone using an application called Brushes and felt like he was a student again given the technical controls of his new medium. By the time he finished some samples, Apple released the iPad and, to cut the story short, Borlongan got himself a new canvas.

Meanwhile, Nadera, who is also a teacher, thought that for the 150th birth anniversary of Rizal, a good project could be an “alpabeto” based on Rizal’s life designed for children learning the Tagalog alphabet. Nadera also reasoned that because Rizal is so versatile and productive, his legacies cover all types of people “from A to Z,” he said.

Borlongan soon learned that painting on the iPad requires the same amount of patience and discipline one needs when working in traditional media. He said he would first fill in the background with his preferred color before sketching the actual image and finally, putting the highlights. He said he also did a lot of online research on subjects mentioned on Nadera’s poems to help him visualize the total form of each letter, first on his head, then on the iPad.

Borlongan said his and Nadera’s RIZALPABETO project proposal was accepted by the Center for Art, New Ventures and Sustainable Development (Canvas), a non-stock, non-profit organization that promotes Philippine art and culture.

Canvas put up the teaser exhibit of RIZALPABETO at the ManilArt 11 before it is turned into a children’s book this year and as signed limited edition reproduction prints in October.