Vivid images of PBBM, VP Sara featured in Nueva Ecija rice paddy art
By Jel Santos
In time for the 65th birthday of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, Sept. 13, a realistic portrait of him, together with Vice President Sara Z. Duterte's image, is now featured in the latest rice paddy art of the Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice) in the Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija.

Known for featuring well-known Filipinos through diverse rice varieties, the group of farmers created an artwork that uses PSB Rc 10 and the traditional purple rice, as it follows the anamorphosis design principle; a 3D technique where a picture looks distorted but appears normal when viewed from a certain angle.
Coincidingly, the DA-PhilRice's Lakbay Palay with the theme "Bukid Tipid Tips: Subukan!" is happening this September 14 to 15, and some 600 farmers from Luzon will get to see the paddy art along with high-yielding rice varieties, machines, digital agriculture tools, and other production technologies.
In 2016, researchers from PhilRice also transformed rice paddies into an enormous masterpiece for then-new leaders Rodrigo Duterte (president) and Leni Robredo (vice president). Two identical rice portraits were then viewed in Los Banos, Laguna and Muñoz, Nueva Ecija.
Prior to the Marcos-Duterte rice paddy art, PhilRice was also able to feature images of national hero Jose Rizal and some Filipino celebrities like the Phenomenal love team AlDub.