World Renowned Filipino glass sculptor Ramon Orlina opens today his first museum “Museo Orlina” at the overlooking Taal Lake and Volcano in Hollywood Subdivision, Tagaytay City, Philippines.
Most of Ramon Orlina’s abstract sculptures are on display at the lavish 4-story building (with a floor area of about 370 square meters) including a replica of the tubular stainless steel, a phase first suggested in “Basketball Mi Mundo” which won the coveted First Prize in the sculpture category of the II International Biennale of Basketball in the Fine Arts held in Madrid in January last 2000. Also in display is the much-publicized QuattroMondial, a bronze masterpiece created by sculptor Ramon Orlina in celebration of the 400th founding anniversary of his alumni school, University of Sto. Tomas (UST).
Ramon Orlina’s reputation extends to art circles and patrons in Asia, Europe and the United States. Among his art awards is a special prize he won called “Mr. F Prize” in the 1999 Toyamura International Sculpture Biennale, Japan. Subsequently in the year 2000, he won the First Prize in the Sculpture Category of the II International Biennale of Basketball in the Fine Arts, Madrid, Spain. His masterpieces place him, in international appraisals of the art, among the gurus Dale Chihuly of the United States and Bertil Vallien of Sweden. He has been conferred two prestigious ASEAN Awards in the field of Visual Arts and recently in 2006 he was bestowed The Outstanding Filipino (TOFIL) Award for having led a life of excellence in the field of Arts and having contributed immensely to public welfare and national development. Check out the photo slideshow of some of Ramon Orlina’s masterpieces:
Some familiar bust-portratit that can be found in the Museo Orlina are National Hero Jose Rizal, former Philippine President Corazon Aquino, and yes, matinee idol Piolo Pascual. The actor, a UST graduate himself, was the sculpture’s choice to personify “the student” in the QuattroMondial sculpture in UST.
Ramon Orlina is also a fan of the beetle car. With a huge collection of beetle car miniatures, it’s no surprising that his very own beetle car is also transformed into an artwork. But this time, the 1974 beetle car is hand-painted by another Filipino artist Ben Cab, who is also close friend of Ramon Orlina. The art car hand painted by Ben Cab is named “Sabel Sa Beetle”.
Here’s a special performance from pianist Ingrid Santamaria and opera singer Cris Go who performed “Mutya ng Pasig”:
Aside from Museo Orlina’s soft opening, The Green Bean Coffee also did a soft launch yesterday. Situated on the roof deck is the coffeeshop serving specialty pastries and organic coffee. Ramon Orlina says he has tapped for partner Green Bean Organic Coffee Co., known for its Arabica sourced from Irving Farm in Upper New York.
Grand opening of the museum is said to be on January 27, 2014, in time for Orlina’s birthday. This will be handled by Paseo Gallery, with an exhibit of works by National Artist Arturo Luz and painter Onib Olmedo.
Special thanks to Dr. Eric Tan of Green Bean Organic Co.
