Ayala Museum and Shell probe the realities of urban life through art

In days gone by, I distinctly recall imposing calendars prominently enhanced on the strategic wall of hacienda estates and rural homes. They were from Shell Pilipinas Corporation, a pioneering supplier of energy, their images showcasing winning paintings from the Shell National Students Art Competition (NSAC). These calendars were handed out at Shell filling stations during the holiday season to appreciative patrons who valued both art and more.

We must be remiss not to mention another calendar. Those by Royal Tru-Orange bore the names of saints for each day, guiding the faithful to name newborns and to keep track of feast days, as if they needed one, because of our never-ending fiestas.

We must recall this was before the era of television and the total absence of mobile phones. The only object which connected us to the world were transistorized radios. These calendars were multipurpose — reminders were scrawled in their margins, schedules penciled in. These printed artifacts were a fixture in homes, bedrooms and kitchens, as they reminded us of sunrise and sunset times, the many phases of the moon and even the high and low tides of the sea.

To honor this rich legacy, the Ayala Museum has launched Kalunsuran: Images of City Life, the latest exhibition of NSAC-winning works donated by Shell Pilipinas Corporation. For over 70 years, the NSAC has provided a platform for young Filipino artists, with winners to include National Artists like Jose Joya, Federico Aguilar Alcuaz, Ang Kiukok, and BenCab, alongside contemporary luminaries such as Ronald Ventura, Rodel Tapaya, and Leeroy New.

Since 2017, Shell has entrusted its entire collection to the Ayala Museum, ensuring these precious artworks are carefully preserved and shared with future generations. Rather than displaying them chronologically, the museum curates them thematically. Each exhibition is a fresh exploration of artistic and social narratives.

This year’s theme delves into the complexities of urban life. The exhibit takes inspiration from urban planner Sir Patrick Geddes’ quote that “a city is more than a place in space; it is a drama in time.”

As the Philippines undergoes rapid urbanization, with a majority of Filipinos now living in metropolitan areas, cities have become both places of opportunity and sources of struggle. The 27 paintings and a singular sculpture on display captured this tension — growth and displacement, prosperity and poverty, individuality and anonymity.

The collection began with Postwar Impressions from the 1950s, when the NSAC was first established. Congested City (1951), a watercolor piece by Nicolas Villanueva, the competition’s first winning piece, portrayed a war-ravaged Manila struggling with makeshift homes and poor sanitation. Our Times (1955), an oil-and-acrylic creation by Fausto Galang, shifted the lens to the dispossessed, portraying vagrants on a street corner — a symbol of postwar struggle.

Birth Pangs illustrated the mass migration to populated centers where more opportunities seemed to be present. This has led to informal settlers in vacant lands, riverbanks, and abandoned properties — all brought about by pure desperation to have a roof over their heads.

We were then drawn into the intimate realities of City Dwellers. The paintings in this section explored how individuals navigated urban life. Some found themselves shaped by the rigid infrastructure around them, and their existence dictated by the availability of lights, the presence of maintained roads and reliable transport systems.

Law and Disorder examined the perils of political instability and urban crime. Metro Manila, Cebu, and Davao — densely populated and economically polarized — have long been breeding grounds for organized syndicates. The exhibit highlighted how the vulnerable, particularly children, often fall prey to cycles of violence and exploitation.

A sight to behold was Target (2006), a watercolor obra by Ronald L. Jeresano, which recalled the tumultuous period during former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s administration, when threats of military coups culminated in a state of national emergency.

We closed the eye-opener, straight-to-the-face day of a paseo at the museo with The City Never Sleeps but Always Dreams, a reminder that amid the chaos, there is hope. Works like Happy Pilipinas (2010), digital fine art by Reynan S. Sanchez, transformed Manila’s concrete jungle into a whimsical explosion of celebration. Behind the Smile (2010), an oil and acrylic work by Chrisanto N. Aquino, captured the unbreakable spirit of impoverished children. In The Thread and the Kite (2015), an oil and acrylic composition by Kurt Morris P. Rojas, kites with human-like eyes hover above a crowded street, their strings twisting into human forms — a reminder the youth are agents of change.

Oh, yes, a simple but profound activity awaited visitors. Equipped with pencils and notepads, we were encouraged to reflect on the city that shaped us. As other guests penned their answers, they, too, have become part of the stellar exhibit.

Ultimately, the inhabitants make the city!

¡Enhorabuena, Ayala Museum and Shell Pilipinas Corporation!