HISTORY
The Lopez Museum and Library was founded on 13 February 1960
by Don Eugenio Lopez, Sr. in honor of his parents, Benito Lopez and
Presentacion Hofilaña. Don Eugenio built the museum in order to provide scholars
and students access to his personal collection of rare Filipiniana books,
manuscripts, maps, archaeological artifacts, and fine art.
The museum’s original four story edifice designed by
National Artist Juan Nakpil stood right in front of the founder’s residence in
Lancaster Street, Pasay. The Lopezes kept the museum open all throughout the
martial law years. In1986, the museum moved to its second and current home at
the Benpres Building in Ortigas to protect its collection from the salty air
from Manila Bay and the frequent monsoon floods in Pasay. Despite the transfer,
the museum remained as a popular hub for Filipiniana materials and rare
artifacts. Another thing that sets the Lopez Museum & Library apart is the
brand of customer service that it offers to visitors.
Lopez Museum and library during the 60's
COLLECTIONS
The museum is home to paintings by 19thcentury Filipino masters, Juan Luna and
Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo. Luna and Hidalgo garnered honors for their country
when the paintings they submitted to the 1884 Esposicion National de Bellas
Artes in Madrid won the Filipino some international recognition in the field of
fine arts. Luna’s Spoliarium received one of the three gold medals awarded while
Hidalgo’s entry, Las Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho, was awarded
the first silver out of a total of fifteen that were given out. A walk through
the galleries will prove that Luna’s works are in distinct contrast to those of
Hidalgo’s. If Luna’s canvases depict drama and a certain bravura, Hidalgo’s portray
a delicate sensibility, which a critic has described as “more pure, more serene
in feeling”.
The museum also has selected works by 20th century National Artist Fernando Amorsolo, who
The museum also has selected works by 20th century National Artist Fernando Amorsolo, who
gained prominence during the early 30’s and 40’s as the artist
who popularized the era’s rustic
Philippine landscape and the lovely dalagang Filipina. Throughout
the years, the museum has acquired paintings by many of the country’s National
Artists including Victorio Edades,
Botong Francisco,Jose Joya, Ang Kiukok,Vicente Manansala, HR
Ocampo, Cesar Legaspi, Arturo Luz,and J. Elizalde Navarro. Important artist
such as Fernando Zobel, Nena Saguil, Macario Vitalis, and Romeo Tabuena are
also represented in the museum’s ever-expanding collection. The museum is
equally proud of its under-rated pieces from Alfonso Ossorio, Juan Arellano,and
Dominador Castañeda.
Among the museum’s other treasures is an initial collection
of 14th
and 15th
century artifacts recovered in Calatagan burial sites. The Calatagan
excavations opened new areas of study on the culture and civilization of the
early Filipinos. The museum’s share in the diggings, which Don Eugenio financed,
consists chiefly of porcelain of Chinese origin, Filipino earthenware, beads
and a few Annamese and Siamese pieces.
The museum’s Rizaliana includes some 90 priceless letters of
Jose Rizal to his mother and sisters. Other memorabilia in the collection
include his billfold and brushes, flute, as well as personal papers from
Dapitan, Hongkong, and Europe.
The library has a collection of over 21,000 Filipiniana titles,
constantly enriched by new acquisitions. Its rare Philippine imprints date from
the early 17thcentury –the
oldest being a unique copy of the Belarmin-Lopez Doctrina Cristiana
in Ilocano (Manila, 1620.) Am
ong the other rare books and manuscripts are works by such
eminent printers as Tomas Pinpin, Raymundo Magysa, Nicolas Cruz Bagay, Laureano
Atlas,and Juan Correa. The earliest book in the library is the third edition
(Rome, 1524) of De Moluccis Insulis, by Maximilianus Transylvanus, which has
the first printed account of Magellan’s voyage to the Philippines. Ano
ther important book in the collection is the famous Relacion
de las Islas Filipinas by the Jesuit Pedro Chirino (Rome, 1604). The library
also has extensive holding of books from the Spanish and early American period.
To these are added old periodicals (such as The Tribune), photo
albums of Philippine flora, fauna, Philippine urban and rural
environs, and microfilms of manuscripts and the like.
To strengthen the goal of the Lopez Memorial Museum and
Library in preserving and promoting Philippine arts and letters, the Eugenio
Lopez Foundation continues to publish Filipiniana material intended for
scholars and the general public. Its publications include The Philippine
Insurrection Against the US,edited by Renato Constantino, Juan Luna: The
Filipino as Painter by Santiago A. Pilar, Orchidiana Philipiniana by Helen
Valmayor, Philippine Rariora by Mauro Garcia, and Fernando Zobel by Rod Paras-Perez.
The Foundation’s most recent project was the book, Hidalgo and the Generation
of 1872 by Alfredo Roces, whose publication marked the Foundation’s
contribution to and commemoration of the Philippine Centennial. The Hidalgo
book won the 1998 Manila Critics Circle national Art Book of the Year.
EXHIBITION PROGRAM
The museum’s semi-annual changing exhibition program since
2001 seeks to interpret segments of its permanent collection alongside
contemporary expressions.
EDUCATION PROGRAM
The museum offers a wide diversity of workshop offerings,
thought-provoking public talks, and roundtable conversations.
Exhibiting artists, critics, curators, cultural workers, and
other cross-disciplinary experts engage the museum’s curatorial and outreach
talking points which touch on a range encompassing psychology, sociology,
political science, anthropology, the natural and physical sciences, new media
studies, and pop culture.
Portrait of Don Eugenio H. Lopez, Sr. by F. Amorsolo, oil on canvas, 1957
CONSERVATION PROGRAM
To help ensure that the present and future generations learn
and enjoy Philippine art, history, and culture, the museum has embarked on two
collaborative and parallel programs:
Roberto M. Lopez Conservation Center–Conducts conservation
research and analysis as well as the actual conservation and restoration of paintings
and works on paper with the use of state-of-the-art equipment.
Digitization Project –Aims to preserve original and archival
material and to enable greater access to these resources.
The Lopez Memorial Museum is open to all students, art
lovers, Filipiniana scholars and researchers who wish to discover their
heritage and maintain pride in being Filipino. The museum is located at the
ground floor of the Benpres Building, Exchange Road corner Meralco Avanue,
Pasig City. Museum and Library hours are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Mondays to Saturdays.
