Visual artist Jadie Regala Pasaylo presents the ‘Declining Woman’
Right after the 2022 elections, social media went a buzz over the sighting of a famous painting. At the center of the conversation is Pablo Picasso’s “Femme Couchee VI (Reclining Woman VI)” seen in the living room of former first lady Imelda Marcos, during a visit of her son, presumptive presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr..
This painting was also captured in #TheKingmaker https://t.co/cVLmGu7Qbp
— Andy Bautista (@ChairAndyBau) May 11, 2022
In Lauren Greenfield’s documentary about the family Marcos, titled “The Kingmaker,” the said masterpiece and eight other paintings were supposedly ordered to be seized by the Sandiganbayan in 2014. While it was never confirmed it the spotted Picasso painting is the real thing, netizens couldn’t help but express what they were feeling. One such “expression” is by visual artist Jadie Regala Pasaylo who, instead of just posting his thoughts online, put on canvas what he feels about the “resurfacing” of the controversial artwork.
Through a social media post, the 22-year-old artist shared his reimagination of the Picasso piece, dubbed “Declining Woman,” with a surreal character that looks similar to Imelda Marcos.
“I was inspired by the ruckus behind Pablo Picasso’s lost painting,” Jadie tells Manila Bulletin Lifestyle. “Nagkaroon ako ng lakas gumawa ng ng sarili kong version sa isa sa gawa ni Picasso dahil bilang artist, ramdam ko ang pakiramdam ni Pablo Picasso kapag ang isa sa likhang sining ko na pinaghirapan at binigyan ng oras para gawin ay bigla nalang nawawala. Concern ako sa isyung ito dahil isa akong artist. Tungkulin naming mga visual artist ang magkaroon ng kamalayan sa nangyayari sa aming paligid.”
According to Jadie, it took two weeks to complete the artwork, which has now been sold. For him, “art can never be isolated from politics.”
“If art can be part of a revolution, then it’s our job to make art that would respond to the needs of the people,” Jadie says. “As I said in one of my posts, art represents one’s social and political standing and standpoint. It is a relic that lives through history and immortalizes the people, experiences, and artists who lived through a certain period of time. Art contributes to the expanding discussion of politics so people cannot repeat the same mistakes again.”
See more of Jadie’s artworks on Facebook and Instagram.
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