Miyong Rosete: Soul Artist
November 18, 2002 | 12:00am
For this column, I am constantly on the look out for a subject that is "real" to me. Lately I’ve limited myself to personal essays because there was nothing worth writing about, from my point of view anyway. If I hadn’t voice these complaints to a friend, I probably wouldn’t have found out that what I was looking for was right under my nose. For one whole semester I was going to school with a multi-awarded painter and I didn’t know about it! Perhaps I was looking a little too hard. Sometimes something special can be right in front of you and you might not even notice it.
Romeo Jose E. Rosete III, or Miyong to his close friends, has been winning national art competitions since he was a little kid so many in fact, that when I asked him for a number he couldn’t quite remember. Among the more notable ones though are the 1995 D.O.S.T Sci-Art Competition, where he was the grand awardee, the 1997 L.G. Collins National Art, and the 2001 Art Petron Competion, where he bagged first place for both. There are many more contests that he joined, but even if he didn’t get the top prize for some, he’s made it as a runner up more often than not. This is not an easy feat, considering there are thousands of entries coming from all around the Philippines for each of these competitions. He has proven that he can hold his own.
Romeo is described by his friends as down-to-earth, cool and calm. Our mutual buddy Tet Enciso told me that he is usually a very quiet person who prefers to sit back and watch rather than be the center of attention. She also added that he hardly tells anybody when he wins a contest, not even his closest friends. They always find out about it though, but never from him. At first I was worried that the interview might not go as smoothly as I hoped since I’ve hung out with the guy before. I remembered what Tet jokingly told me, "Basta mag-shot, maingay yan!"
When we sat down to talk he unexpectedly popped open two bottles of Red Horse for both of us, and true to the descriptions of his friends, he had no airs.
Romeo was born on December 27, 1981, the second child of Romeo senior and Magdalena. His four other siblings paint as well, not surprising since their father is also an artist. Romeo started drawing at the age of three. Rather than going out to play with the other kids when he was younger, he preferred to stay at home and watch his mentor paint. "Noong bata ako nasa bahay lang ako, hindi nakikipaglaro. Yun yung nakikita ko, dumo-drawing lang siya at ginaya ko yung ginagawa niya." Romeo tells me that his dad never pushed him to be a painter, he just really enjoyed what he saw and as he got older his dad taught him the basics. This was in the first and second grade. Romeo won his first major art contest Guhit Bulilit in 1991 and has joined competitions since. "Nung nanalo ako gusto ko pang manalo ulit. Kapag minsan lang ako nanalo wala akong nai-prove sa sarili ko. Gusto ko yung consistent para alam ko na hindi lang ako naka- tsamba, kaya ako palaging sumasali."
Romeo describes the work that he enters in contests as "folk art." Children are usually the subjects and oftentimes, these pieces reflect social realities and things that are of significance to him. His winning piece for the 2002 Art Petron Competion is entitled "Tatsing" ( Bottle Caps in a Square), a game popular with young boys. Lessons in fair play and competitiveness are the messages that he is trying to get across through that particular work.
Even when there aren’t any competitions, Romeo consistently paints. He usually gets behind the canvas four times a week and makes many sketches throughout a normal day. The paintings that he makes for himself are very different from what he enters in competitions though. I can’t wait to see them because he describes them as surreal. These paintings are usually the ones which help him express himself. When there are things that he can’t say in words he puts them down on canvas where he feels he can get his message across and be better understood. He also tells me that he does his best work when he is in an isolated place, not having to leave to get the things he needs. He can stay alone by himself for a month just to paint, as long as he has the basic necessities, which include quite a bit of alchohol. "Basta maraming shot," he adds jokingly, and we both laugh. Hey, nothing wrong with drinking if it doesn’t interfere with your creative juices, right? I find out later on that Romeo usually finishes 10 paintings in a month.
Among all of his siblings Romeo is the only one who pursued a course in Fine Arts. Now in his fourth year at UP Baguio he is undoubtedly talented and perhaps doesn’t need any more additional training. But the hallmark of a good artist is being open to different techniques and wanting to keep on learning something new. He views the course as a chance to try his hand at different mediums apart from oil painting. "Tumutulong sa akin yung knowledge tungkol sa mga ibang medium." It is in UP that he tried things that he normally doesn’t do at home such as copper plate printing and sculpture.
Romeo wants to make sure that he makes something of his life. "Gusto ko na habang nabubuhay ako mayroon akong iiwanan dito sa mundo para kung mamatay ako alam nila na nabuhay ako dahil mayroon akong iniwanan na mga paintings." He adds that keeping a record of his life is what inspires him to paint. Incidentally, his favorite piece is "Cruise Over a Wheat Field," Van Gogh’s last painting.
Earning the respect of your peers through hard work is something that I admire regardless of what field you are in, especially nowadays when it is so easy to hype something up even if it really doesn’t deserve much attention. Like I always say, art is mainly for the soul.
Romeo Jose E. Rosete III, or Miyong to his close friends, has been winning national art competitions since he was a little kid so many in fact, that when I asked him for a number he couldn’t quite remember. Among the more notable ones though are the 1995 D.O.S.T Sci-Art Competition, where he was the grand awardee, the 1997 L.G. Collins National Art, and the 2001 Art Petron Competion, where he bagged first place for both. There are many more contests that he joined, but even if he didn’t get the top prize for some, he’s made it as a runner up more often than not. This is not an easy feat, considering there are thousands of entries coming from all around the Philippines for each of these competitions. He has proven that he can hold his own.
Romeo is described by his friends as down-to-earth, cool and calm. Our mutual buddy Tet Enciso told me that he is usually a very quiet person who prefers to sit back and watch rather than be the center of attention. She also added that he hardly tells anybody when he wins a contest, not even his closest friends. They always find out about it though, but never from him. At first I was worried that the interview might not go as smoothly as I hoped since I’ve hung out with the guy before. I remembered what Tet jokingly told me, "Basta mag-shot, maingay yan!"
When we sat down to talk he unexpectedly popped open two bottles of Red Horse for both of us, and true to the descriptions of his friends, he had no airs.
Romeo was born on December 27, 1981, the second child of Romeo senior and Magdalena. His four other siblings paint as well, not surprising since their father is also an artist. Romeo started drawing at the age of three. Rather than going out to play with the other kids when he was younger, he preferred to stay at home and watch his mentor paint. "Noong bata ako nasa bahay lang ako, hindi nakikipaglaro. Yun yung nakikita ko, dumo-drawing lang siya at ginaya ko yung ginagawa niya." Romeo tells me that his dad never pushed him to be a painter, he just really enjoyed what he saw and as he got older his dad taught him the basics. This was in the first and second grade. Romeo won his first major art contest Guhit Bulilit in 1991 and has joined competitions since. "Nung nanalo ako gusto ko pang manalo ulit. Kapag minsan lang ako nanalo wala akong nai-prove sa sarili ko. Gusto ko yung consistent para alam ko na hindi lang ako naka- tsamba, kaya ako palaging sumasali."
Romeo describes the work that he enters in contests as "folk art." Children are usually the subjects and oftentimes, these pieces reflect social realities and things that are of significance to him. His winning piece for the 2002 Art Petron Competion is entitled "Tatsing" ( Bottle Caps in a Square), a game popular with young boys. Lessons in fair play and competitiveness are the messages that he is trying to get across through that particular work.
Even when there aren’t any competitions, Romeo consistently paints. He usually gets behind the canvas four times a week and makes many sketches throughout a normal day. The paintings that he makes for himself are very different from what he enters in competitions though. I can’t wait to see them because he describes them as surreal. These paintings are usually the ones which help him express himself. When there are things that he can’t say in words he puts them down on canvas where he feels he can get his message across and be better understood. He also tells me that he does his best work when he is in an isolated place, not having to leave to get the things he needs. He can stay alone by himself for a month just to paint, as long as he has the basic necessities, which include quite a bit of alchohol. "Basta maraming shot," he adds jokingly, and we both laugh. Hey, nothing wrong with drinking if it doesn’t interfere with your creative juices, right? I find out later on that Romeo usually finishes 10 paintings in a month.
Among all of his siblings Romeo is the only one who pursued a course in Fine Arts. Now in his fourth year at UP Baguio he is undoubtedly talented and perhaps doesn’t need any more additional training. But the hallmark of a good artist is being open to different techniques and wanting to keep on learning something new. He views the course as a chance to try his hand at different mediums apart from oil painting. "Tumutulong sa akin yung knowledge tungkol sa mga ibang medium." It is in UP that he tried things that he normally doesn’t do at home such as copper plate printing and sculpture.
Romeo wants to make sure that he makes something of his life. "Gusto ko na habang nabubuhay ako mayroon akong iiwanan dito sa mundo para kung mamatay ako alam nila na nabuhay ako dahil mayroon akong iniwanan na mga paintings." He adds that keeping a record of his life is what inspires him to paint. Incidentally, his favorite piece is "Cruise Over a Wheat Field," Van Gogh’s last painting.
Earning the respect of your peers through hard work is something that I admire regardless of what field you are in, especially nowadays when it is so easy to hype something up even if it really doesn’t deserve much attention. Like I always say, art is mainly for the soul.
BrandSpace Articles
<
>