Back in college, I had a list of museums which housed Van Gogh's paintings pinned to a cork board in our room. The list included The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, the Österreichische Galerie in Belvedere, among others. It was an impossible list to say the least, and I realized early on that getting to see the paintings in person could be no more than wishful thinking. But my heart wishes on, and art galleries and museums always make it flutter. It was such a delight when I found an art exhibit being showcased in Museo ng Republika ng 1899 when @steemitph and I were wandering about the grounds of Barasoain Church.

Museo ng Republika ng 1899 or Museum of the Republic of 1899, is run by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. Their goal is to preserve the historical heritage of the Barasoain Church, which played a significant role in Philippine History. My family frequent the Church, and I heard there was a museum somewhere in its vast compound, but I never got to wander around. Yesterday though, while Sam was in school, Red and I got to see more of the grounds and found the museum. We found so many interesting things that I would like to share in my ulogs, but I will start with the Art Exhibition, simply because its the one closest to my heart.

Everlasting by Diana Manalastas

This solo exhibit of Diana Grace Manalastas is in Bulwagan 5 or Hall #5 of the museum, in an area right after the section where the Prominent Flags of the Philippines were hung. From what I have read in the information sheet, the self-taught artist came up with the Everlasting Exhibit as a means to "confront impermanence".

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"When I visited my mother's grave, I thought of beautiful flowers that will never wilt. This is my way of giving new life to things that people throw away"

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The materials she used range from wires to recycled campaign posters. Diana is said to be a prolific junk artist and is very much aware of the excessive consumption and wasteful culture that that world has today. She has found her own way of elevating waste to serve a higher purpose.

The first piece I saw was this work called Everlasting HAMSA, and according to information there, the artist's first solo exhibit was an intricate collection of HAMSA. The HAMSA hand is an archaic Middle Eastern talisman signifying the hand of God. It is believed that it brings its owner happiness, luck, health, and good fortune.

Her work is absolutely awesome. The complex minute details surely took an incredible amount of time and effort. It gave me so much joy to examine each of her work; the materials she used, the colors she chose, the strokes she made to create an exquisite world that always seems out of reach. Below are a number of her artworks displayed at the exhibit, and I found each and every one of them beautiful.

Aside from art pieces hanging on the wall, there were also items displayed on stands. The following are just a couple of them.

Since we visited on a school day, there was no one else around. I took my sweet time admiring the art work of the talented artist.The exhibit was the the last stop at the museum and before I got to the exhibit, I've had quite an experience in the first parts of the museum. I shall write about them too in another ulog, so do stay tuned.

All photos taken by me using a Samsung S7 Edge camera phone.

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