First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos lauded Filipino artist Lauren Mark Libunao for his unique style of painting.

Libunao uses garlic oil in his artwork, which include a life-size painting of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. that he presented to the First Lady.

Araneta-Marcos met Libunao on Tuesday when he paid her a courtesy call to show his art pieces.

Libunao, from Nueva Ecija, is known for his unique painting technique using garlic oil. His works have also been featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!

"(I) was happy to meet Lauren Mendoza Libunao, a talented Filipino artist who uses garlic oil as his medium," the First Lady said in an Instagram post.

"Iyan ang Tatak Pilipino," she added.

One and only

Ripley's Believe it or Not certified Libunao as the only artist in the world who uses garlic oil as a medium.

Among the famous personalities he has painted are former presidents Rodrigo Duterte and the late Benigno Aquino III.

In 2008, his works were exhibited in the municipal plaza of Guimba, Nueva Ecija.

The idea of using garlic oil to paint came to Libunao as he helped his parents in their carinderia (eatery).

He noticed that in cooking, garlic produced an oil that he thought could be used as a medium in painting. He experimented with the technique until he came up with his masterpieces.

It takes Libunao several days or weeks to finish a painting, depending on the subject. His dream is for garlic painting to be recognized here and abroad.