Property from the Forbes collection Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Green Circulation No.12 signed and dated 1973 (verso) acrylic (aqua-tec) 24" x 24" (61 cm x 61 cm) Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist Aguinaldo's Green Circulation series draws inspiration from his earlier Linear works. In the case of Green Circulation #12, it underscores the primary objective of this series, which is to investigate the inherent connection between the color green and the various shades and levels of illumination associated with it through color field painting. In the center of the artwork, you'll find various transitions from white, blue, then to different shades of green. These components are complemented by two areas of emerald green. Aguinaldo's presentation of two versions of the same color, with the central area acting as a spectrum and the flanking sides as solid masses, invites us to consider the visual experience, suggesting that singular elements are best appreciated when juxtaposed with their opposites. Lee Aguinaldo's artworks often exhibit a sense of minimalism and a distinct approach to color and paint quality. Aguinaldo perceives color as a tangible and self-sufficient presence, and when arranged in flat compositions, it prompts the viewer to engage in an objective and analytical exploration. He places significant emphasis on erasing brushwork and any visible signs of handling, striving for a completely smooth and uniform layer of pigment that upholds the picture's integrity. Aguinaldo doesn't attempt to create anything beyond the essential elements of picture space. The geometric precision of the frame, with its right angles, imparts order and a deliberate rationality. For Lee Aguinaldo, an overly complex spatial structure, just like excessive use of color, decoration, or narrative, could diminish the impact of the artwork itself. Thus by sticking to a singular cohesive palette, we are able to absorb and ultimately enjoy it in its pure simplicity. (Jed Daya)
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) The Black Night signed and dated 1964 (verso) oil on marine plywood 36” x 36” (91 cm x 91 cm) Provenance: Leon Gallery, The Spectacular Mid-Year Auction 2018, Makati City, 9 June 2018, Lot 37. Aguinaldo, who by the mid 1960s had turned his back on nebulous “drips” and “flicks” (building up thick textures all over his painting by slinging pigment from a palette knife), took the road to minimalism in his sober, rational “linears”, with their wide spaces, superfine surface, and high tech gloss. This work comes in the transitional phase between his “drips and flicks” and minimalist gloss period. In 1973, Cid Reyes asked Lee Aguinaldo: How important is it to have a distinctive Philippine look in art? Lee Aguinaldo answered: “I don’t think it is really that important. The important thing is for Filipinos to create an art that can hold its own — in quality — to the art of all other countries.
Untitled hand-signed and dated 1979 (lower left) 10/250 photograph with acrylic varnish 10 1/2" x 13 1/2" (27 cm x 34 cm) Accompanied by a certificate issued by Atelier Aviado confirming the authenticity of this lot
The Metaphysics Building (Stage III) signed and dated 1983 (verso) transfer with pencil, ink and acrylic on paper mounted on plywood 20 3/4” x 24 1/4” (53 cm x 62 cm) PROVENANCE: Private collection WRITE UP Lee Aguinaldo, a pioneering figure in Philippine modernism, was among the first generation of Filipino abstractionists, renowned for his mastery in oil and acrylic works characterized by gestural and linear compositions. Born into an influential family with ties to Emilio Aguinaldo, the first president of the Philippines, Lee’s upbringing was marked by privilege, but his passion for art set him apart. Self-taught yet immensely talented, Aguinaldo earned a revered place among Manila’s elite and in both national and international art circles from the 1950s to the 1970s. Aguinaldo’s connections with prominent figures like Arturo Luz, Roberto Chabet, and Fernando Zobel—his friend and mentor—further enriched his artistic journey. Even from a young age, Lee displayed a deep passion for art, which was evident in his early participation in the annual exhibit at the Philippine Art Gallery (PAG). His involvement in the first non-objective group art exhibit, alongside luminaries like Zobel, Vicente Manansala, H.R. Ocampo, and others, cemented his place in the avant-garde movement. Over the years, PAG would host several of his exhibitions, showcasing his evolution as an artist. One of Aguinaldo’s most iconic contributions to the art world is his “Linear Series,” a collection that defied conventional Filipino perceptions of beauty through its distinct color sensibilities and minimalist approach. These works, characterized by planes of solid colors and simple geometric forms, were painted on tough marine plywood—a departure from the more traditional canvas or lawanit. The “Linear Series” gained international recognition when it was exhibited at the 1971 São Paulo Art Biennale in Brazil. Decades later, in September of last year, a diptych from this series, “Linear 98” and “Linear 99,” was sold at Leon Gallery’s major auction for a recordbreaking PhP42 million. The auction catalogue praised the pieces for their “powerful chromatic contrasts and genius geometric articulation.” Aguinaldo’s artistic evolution didn’t stop with the “Linear Series.” He later entered what is known as his “Galumph phase,” inspired by Robert Motherwell’s vibrant mixedmedia collages. Drawing influence from Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg, Aguinaldo began incorporating lines, symbols, and numbers into his works, experimenting with techniques like frottage—where he would transfer photocopied magazine images onto art paper using butane and then enhance them with pencil or ballpen to create a hand-drawn effect. This piece titled The Metaphysics Building (Stage III) serves as a transitional piece between Aguinaldo’s earlier “Linear Series” and his later, more figurative works. It captures the essence of his artistic journey—a blend of abstraction and a move towards more complex, layered compositions that challenge traditional notions of form and meaning. (Jed Daya)
Linear No. 46 signed and dated 1966 (verso) acrylic (aqua-tec) on wood 38" x 38" (97 cm x 97 cm) PROVENANCE The Luz Gallery EXHIBITED The Luz Gallery, Makati, August 16, 1967 WRITE UP: Descended from an influential family linked to Emilio Aguinaldo, the country's first president and military leader, Lee Aguinaldo, a largely self-taught artist, gained prominence within Manila's elite circles from the 1950s to the 1970s and achieved recognition in both local and international art communities. During this period, he formed close connections with Arturo Luz, Roberto Chabet, Eric Torres, and found a mentor in Fernando Zobel. Lee Aguinaldo's affinity for art was evident from childhood, and he made his initial foray into the art scene through the annual exhibit at the Philippine Art Gallery (PAG). Notably, he participated in the inaugural non-objective group art exhibit alongside notable artists such as Fernando Zobel, Vicente Manansala, H.R. Ocampo, Arturo Luz, Victor Oteyza, and Nena Saguil. His works, including the popular Linear series, challenged conventional Filipino perceptions of beauty, showcasing distinctive color sensibilities and perspectives. The Philippine Art Gallery (PAG) became a recurring venue for exhibiting his art, emphasizing his calculated and precise application of acrylic pigments to achieve surface smoothness. This particular piece follows the usual naming convention that Aguinaldo has adopted not only for the aforementioned series, but also for his other explorations as well. Though exhibiting a sense of uniformity, each entry in the series unveils to us a different aspect in Aguinaldo’s sense of order; a testament to his dedication to the core tenets of Modernism. Linear No. 46 brings attention to the relationship of not only shape and line, a familiar approach to those fond of Aguinaldo’s work, but the effects of seemingly fractional divisions between them. Such a method shifts the perspective and size of the forms of the artist’s figures, effectively questioning what portion of our experience of the work is real or genuine; or even perhaps such a concept exists in the realm of representation in the first place. (Jed Daya)
Painting in Green No.2 signed and dated 1963 (verso) oil on canvas 32” x 31” (81 cm x 79 cm) PROVENANCE: Acquired directly from the artist LITERATURE: Taft, Ron. My World: Reflections on My Life and Times. Langwarrin, Victoria: Milestones Books, 2015. Painting mentioned on page 114. WRITE UPIn 1950, I was strolling past Washington Square in Manhattan when I noticed a sign outside New York University building advertising an art exhibition, ‘Admission Free,’” Taft writes. “When I entered, I was shocked by the canvases that appeared to me to be meaningless daubing and shrieking colors with no obvious meaning. ‘Any child could do that!’ I said to myself, angry at what I thought was a ‘con.’” “I happened to be looking at the work of American non- figurative Expressionism, perhaps the work of such eminent painters as Kline, de Kooning, Pollock, and Rothko...I do know that many years later, I learnt to appreciate abstract art and consider ‘Blue Poles,’ the Jackson Pollock painting in Canberra’s National Gallery of Australia, to be worth every cent that the Whitlam Government spent on it.” Taft also had the privilege of meeting Mark Rothko in his studio through his friend Ken Rabin, Rothko’s nephew. “Although we had never heard of him, Ellen and I contacted him in 1961, and he immediately invited us to his studio,” Taft reminisces in writing. “Little did we know that that studio would enter the history of modern art!” Taft further adds: “In the meantime, both Ellen [his wife] and I grew to love Rothko’s work just as we did Pollock’s.” Taft also recounts his fortuitous encounter with Lee Aguinaldo that led to his acquisition of Painting in Green No. 2. “In 1963, I went to Manila from Perth with the main purpose of paying a brief visit to my friend, Ken Rabin, who had just moved there as an American diplomat. He lived in a secure, enclosed community in an upper-class area. After dinner, he invited over his neighbor, a thirty-year-old artist called Lee Aguinaldo, of whom I had never previously heard. “Lee, Ken, and I had a long, warm, and comfortable evening consuming San Miguel beer—Lee’s family had shares in the company—and listening to jazz records. Late that evening, Lee invited me to his unit to see his artworks. I immediately took a liking to his work, which was completely abstract, with the paint laid on heavily, and in a very short time, I bought ‘Painting in Green No. 2’ and arranged for it to be shipped to Perth through Lee’s family shipping company. “I only found out much later that Lee had studied art in New York and was a follower of the New York Expressionism School. He was heavily influenced by Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko. When I met him, he was already regarded as the leading non-objective modernist artist in the Philippines. Considering that, the price of the painting was a real bargain for which I could partially thank the San Miguel brewery and the fact that Ken Rabin was Mark Rothko’s nephew.” “... Postscript: Only today did I discover three interesting things about Aguinaldo: his mother was a Russian Jew; his family had originally sent him to America to become an army officer, but his passion for art prevailed; and his family went spectacularly bankrupt in the 1980s, and Aguinaldo lived the life of a pauper who identified himself with the poverty- stricken artist Rembrandt.” (Adrian Maranan)
Untitled signed and dated 1979 (lower right) photo with acrylic varnish numbered 10/250 10 1/2” x 13 3/4” (27 cm x 34 cm) Accompanied by a certificate issued by Atelier Aviado confirming the authenticity of this lot
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Green Circulation No.24 signed and dated 1975 (verso) acrylic (aqua-tec) 24" x 24" (61 cm x 61 cm) Lee Aguinaldo’s paintings exhibit a distinct quality in terms of color perception and the tactile nature of paint. Color, for Aguinaldo, becomes a tangible presence that stands on its own. Through meticulous arrangement on the canvas, it invites the viewer into an objective and analytical exploration. Emphasizing the removal of brushwork and any trace of human touch, Aguinaldo aims for a uniform and flat surface of pigment, preserving the picture's integrity. The deliberate geometric framing, defined by right angles, establishes an orderly and consciously rational composition. For Aguinaldo, excessiveness in spatial embellishment, color abundance, or narrative overtures could undermine the artwork's potency. The square format, favored by him for landscape paintings, is not coincidental or for convenience. Instead, it imparts a sense of logic and purity, enveloping the subject in a sphere of rationality. His Green Circulation series draws from the influence of his earlier Linear works. The piece titled Green Circulation exemplifies the series' primary objective: to investigate the inherent interplay between the color green and its diverse shades and levels of luminosity within the context of color field painting. At the heart of this artwork, various shades of blue morph into gradients of green. These are complemented by spaces in vivid emerald green. By presenting contrasting variations of the same color, with the center unfolding as a spectrum and the flanking sides as a solid mass, Aguinaldo brings forth the essence of visual experience. This effectively underscores the notion that singular elements often attain full appreciation when juxtaposed with their counterparts. (Jed Daya)
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) All Blue signed and dated June 21, 1992 (verso); dedicated 'For Ding' (verso) acrylic on marine plywood 29" x 19" (74 cm x 48 cm) As per Lee Aguinaldo, color possesses a radiant presence that, when blended in planar compositions, would engage its perceiver in an objective and analytical state. The color field sensibility of the visual artist allows him to paint surfaces that are ethereal — revealing at the edges, under layers of the same color, a rich density and hue that seems to allow the painting to glow from within. His luminous canvas is deceptively direct, yet it provides an extraordinary impact on the viewer. There is no attempt to create more than the bare essentials of picture space; the geometric quality of the frame, with its right angles, makes for order, hence, conscious rationality. For Aguinaldo, an elaborate spatial framework or excessive use of color, decoration, or narrative could detract from the picture’s power. As evident in this particular piece, All Blue, the approach lets the audience to freely and fully engage with pure form, pure color, and pure arrangement because they are less diverted by incidental interests. (Isabella Romarate)
I Don’t Give a Shit No. 4 signed and dated 1980 (verso) photo transfer and graphite 16” x 14” (41 cm x 35 cm Accompanied by a certificate issued by Mr. Virgilio “Pandy” Aviado confirming the authenticity of this lot
Untitled dated 1979 photograph painted with acrylic emulsion (either liquitex or aquated) 11 1/2” x 15 1/2” (29 cm x 39 cm) Accompanied by a certificate issued by Mr. Virgilio “Pandy” Aviado confirming the authenticity of this lot
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Green Circulation No. 23 signed and dated 1975 (verso) acrylic (aqua-tec) 24" x 24" (61 cm x 61 cm) Lee Aguinaldo’s paintings are often spare and distinctive in terms of color sensibility and paint quality. For Aguinaldo, color is a palpable and sufficient physical presence. When compounded in planar arrangements, it would engage its perceiver in an objective and analytical exercise. Aguinaldo places great emphasis on eliminating brushwork and all visible evidence of handling, aiming for a totally flat and even skin of pigment that maintains the integrity of the picture plane. There is no attempt to create any more than the bare essentials of picture space; the geometric quality of the frame, with its right angles, makes for order, hence, conscious rationality. For Lee Aguinaldo, elaborating a spatial framework as much as excessive use of color, decoration, or narrative could detract from the picture’s power. Aguinaldo favored the square format for his landscape paintings. Not by chance and not for convenience. This format makes it possible to bathe the subject in an atmosphere of rationality and purity. Aguinaldo’s Green Circulation series is influenced by his earlier Linear works. This piece, titled Green Circulation, emphasizes the core purpose of the titular series, which is to explore the inherent relationship between the color green and the different hues and levels of lumination often linked to it through a color field painting. At the very center of the piece are various iterations of blue that gradually shift to shades of green. Emerald green spaces then supplement these elements. By presenting two iterations of the same color, with the center acting as a spectrum and its flanking sides acting as a solid mass, Aguinaldo presents us with the reality of the visual experience, effectively suggesting that singular elements are often only fully appreciated when presented alongside their opposites. (J.D.)
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) All Blue signed and dated 1992 (verso) acrylic on marine plywood 29" x 19" (74 cm x 48 cm) As per Lee Aguinaldo, color possesses a radiant presence that, when blended in planar compositions, would engage its perceiver in an objective and analytical state. The color field sensibility of the visual artist allows him to paint surfaces that are ethereal — revealing at the edges, under layers of the same color, a rich density and hue that seems to allow the painting to glow from within. His luminous canvas is deceptively direct, yet it provides an extraordinary impact on the viewer. There is no attempt to create more than the bare essentials of picture space; the geometric quality of the frame, with its right angles, makes for order, hence, conscious rationality. For Aguinaldo, an elaborate spatial framework or excessive use of color, decoration, or narrative could detract from the picture’s power. As evident in this particular piece, All Blue, the approach lets the audience to freely and fully engage with pure form, pure color, and pure arrangement because they are less diverted by incidental interests. (P.I.R.)
a) Shapes No. 1 b) Untitled a) signed and dated 1956 (verso) a) oil on canvas b) oil on masonite board a) 36" x 12" (91 cm x 30 cm) b) 36" x 12" (91 cm x 30 cm) PROPERTY FROM THE LEOPOLDO L. CORONEL JR. COLLECTI ON PROVENANCE Acquired from the Artist by Archite ct Leopoldo “Leo” L. Coronel, Jr. The alliance between architecture and the arts go back to the beginning of time when bisons were painted on the walls of man’s first home, the cave. Moving to the Quattrocento, Leonardo da Vinci was not only a painter and sculptor, he was also an architect, engineer and city planner. He would draw incessantly great cathedrals and castles as well as their elaborate portals and staircases. In the Philippines, the first Filipino architect was Félix Roxas y Arroyo — a glorious testament to his design, the lost goddess of the Escolta, is also a highlight of this auction. Manila would continue this grand tradition that married architecture and the arts, from Juan Arellano (with Fernando Amorsolo and Francesco Riccardo Monti) and Juan Nakpil (with Victorio Edades, Galo Ocampo, and Carlos “Botong” Francisco.) It would come even more to the fore after World War II when the city was overtaken with the zeal for reconstruction to re-build what had been burned to the ground in the Battle of Manila. Fernando Zóbel, in the essay ‘Modern Art in the Philippines’ (1953) remarked on how “perhaps the most curious feature of the post-war period in the Philippines had been how painting had suddenly flourished — and how painting in the modern style flourished most of all.” Zóbel thought that the necessary re-building of so many houses and buildings had created a demand for art. Certainly, he said, the exhibits were always peopled; there was a new generation of art critics and press coverage. In truth, the explosion of art was not just because something was needed to paper over blank walls. It was a new era, requiring an entirely new way of expressing reality. Two figures were proto-typical of the time : the dashing architect Leopoldo L. Coronel Jr and the equally charismatic artist Lee Aguinaldo. Both were young men in a hurry, scions of well-established families who exuded a certain zest for living and the sophisticated pursuit of happiness. Leo was described as “a chip of the old block”, his father being an architect himself and a graduate of George Washington University in DC. He was born and raised in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija and went on to study in the University of the Philippines and the Mapua Institute of Technology. He was a consistent scholar throughout his education so it was not a surprise that he would be among the top-notchers in the architecture professional licensure exams. Coronel would quickly make a name for himself with his trademark “functional architecture.” He would describe this as “injecting into all his projections conservative lines, (which was) his trademark, and with all the angles utilized to full function, eliminating superfluous designs of no practicable use.” He would marry into the family of Don Tomas Geronimo of El Porvenir (El Po) fame who established the country’s first rubber company and monopolized the manufacture of rubber shoes. Leo would be the architect of the homes of Carlos Moran Sison, Sotero Laurel, and Bienvenido Tantoco among others. Coronel would be an active member of the Manila Junior Chamber of Commerce or the Jaycees, which had just been newly established in the 1950s, an enthusiastic graduate of the Dale Carnegie course, and equally important, a patron of the Art Association of the Philippines and the Philippine Art Gallery, the country’s first champion of abstract art. The architect was a recognized collector of not only Anita Magsaysay-Ho (the magical “Egg Vendors” would hang in his offices at the ELPO Compound) but he is documented as having loaned a special work from HR Ocampo for the modernist master’s landmark exhibit at the PAG to mark his 45th year. Lee Aguinaldo, on the other hand, was an intense visionary as cosmopolitan as his background. Born in New York in 1933 to the logging tycoon Daniel R. Aguinaldo and his Russian-American wife, Lee became quickly well-known in Manila’s art circles. He would be invited to be the youngest member in the landmark “First Exhibition of Non-Objective Art, in 1954, featuring 28 works by 11 artists curated by Magtanggul Asa (Aurelio S. Alvero.) Lee would show three works and would rank alongside Hernando R. Ocampo and Fernando Zóbel. Zóbel, in particular, was a thoughtful mentor who would critique and guide his talent. Aguinaldo’s being entirely self-taught did not deter him from having his first solo show at the legendary Philippine Art Gallery (PAG) in 1956 at the ripe old age of 23. The orbits of these two young mavericks would intersect many times over. The 1950s for Lee Aguinaldo may be regarded as his seminal period, or that which would influence all his later works. Indeed, it would be a watershed period for the entire abstract movement in the Philippines, which had begun only a handful of years before. Thus, at the age of just 20, Lee would come to the attention of one of the most influential art critics of the time : Magtanggul Asa (aka Aurelio S. Alvero.) Alvero would invite him to be one of 11 artists to be featured in the culturally important “The First Exhibition of Non-Objective Art in Tagala” which took place in 1953. In this show, Aguinaldo would be considered on equal footing as Hernando R. Ocampo — who Alvero described as “the father of non-objective art in the Philippines” — and the widely respected Fernando Zóbel, as well as the other leading lights of the modernist art. Included in the exhibit were José Joya (two years older than Lee but accorded with only a single entry), Nena Saguil, Manuel Rodriguez Sr. and Victor Oteyza who Alvero likewise considered a prime mover of this new impetus. Lee exhibited three works, “Composition in Burgundy”, “Composition in Blue” and “The Blue Square.” It was decided at the last minute, however, that “The Blue Square” would be excluded from inclusion in the blackand-white plates in the catalogue “because of the great unfairness it would occasion both the painting and the painter.” This momentous occasion would take place in what Alvero himself described as a “little art shop on one of the side streets of Ermita”, none other than the now-legendary Philippine Art Gallery. The PAG would THE ASIAN CULTURAL COUNCIL AUCTION 2022 160 complete the golden trifecta that co-joined the artists with a single-minded gallery, and the support of critics and the media. Intriguingly, Alvero would quote Hans Hofmann on the opening page of the exhibit catalogue from his essay, “Search for the Real.” Hoffmann was regarded as the man who both preceded and influenced Abstract Expressionism, the dominant force in art of the time. Lee would have his first one-man show at the Philippine Gallery in April 1956 and these works, if not exactly from that very show would certainly have been part of the same series. On the reverse of the first work, Aguinaldo has signed, and dated the piece “Jan 1956” as well as given it its title “Shape No. 1.” Architect Leopoldo “Leo” Coronel Jr. would have acquired the paintings directly from the artist or from the Philippine Art Gallery, having been on friendly terms with both. (Coronel’s biography notes that he was also involved with the Aguinaldo Development Corp, which belonged to Lee’s family; while Lee Aguinaldo himself was a frequent visitor to Leo’s various parties and festivities at the ElPo Compound in Grace Park.) In these works at hand, one can glimpse the influence of that path-finder Hofmann in the works of Aguinaldo as they experiment with the power of color in the “push and pull” of the eye. “Shape No. 1” would foretell his obsession with the clean geometry of squares and windows that he would return to again and again in his career. The second work, ‘Untitled’ appears to be in the vein of ‘psychic automatism’ begun by the Surrealists and that became an important facet of abstract expressionism, in particular of Jackson Pollock. It is unclear if Aguinaldo ever saw Pollock’s paintings first hand while he was in school in the United States, but the American artist’s influence was impossible to escape, when the immensely popular Life Magazine put the question, “Is Jackson Pollock the greatest living artist in the United States?” in 1949. Lee Aguinaldo would certainly outlive Pollock; and despite his penchant to be troubled and troublesome, Aguinaldo would live up to his early promise and become one of the most significant voices in Filipino modern art.
Retablo signed and dated 1952 (lower right) watercolor on paper 16" x 13" (41 cm x 33 cm) PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF A VERY DISTINGUISHED HISTORIAN PROVENANCE Acquired as a gift from Arturo Luz In 1952, Lee Aguinaldo returned to the Philippines after a threeyear study period in the United States. Resolute on his quest to further hone his artistic flair, Aguinaldo crossed paths with Fernando Zóbel, who had also just returned from the U.S. the preceding year. Aguinaldo's and Zóbel's paths were seemingly carved from the same stone; both studied in the U.S. at around the same time and were expected to take on their respective family businesses. However, Zóbel's interest in literature and the visual arts became the catalyst that drew Aguinaldo closer 9to the former, forging an enduring friendship entwined by a shared devotion to the arts. It is in this context that Zóbel became a major influence in many of Aguinaldo's early works. This is most evident in this 1952 watercolor work, which is evocative of Zóbel's Pink House created during the same year. In this piece, Aguinaldo shows exceptional skill in manipulating watercolor as a medium. The uninhibited application of brushstrokes indicates his confidence in his creative finesse and his apprehension of harnessing spontaneity to produce a harmonious flow of colors. He renders the retablo in warm, striking, and flat colors akin to illustrations in children's books where vibrancy and dynamism proliferates. A sublime aura radiates from the composition, transcending beyond the sacredness attributed to the retablo. Arturo Luz may have acquired this work from Aguinaldo around the same time frame. Coincidentally, Aguinaldo, Zóbel, and Luz were cited by Rod. Paras Perez as a prominent triumvirate within Zóbel's clique. Combining Zóbel's influence on this work and Luz's subsequent acquisition, this piece comes to a full circle, as it symbolizes the camaraderie cultivated by the three artists.
Brown Circulation No. 2 signed and dated July 14, 1975 (verso) aquatec (acrylic) 24" x 24" (61 cm x 61 cm) PROPERTY FROM THE DOÑA NENE QUIMSON COLLECTION Aguinaldo’s Circulation series is often seen as the logical evolution of his earlier Linear works. This piece, titled Brown Circulation #2, emphasizes the core purpose of the titular series; which is to explore the inherent relationship between the color brown and the different hues and levels of lumination often linked to it though a color field painting. At the very center of the piece are various iterations of blue painted in a spectrum. These elements are then supplemented by two distinctly brown spaces. By presenting two iterations of the same color, with the center acting as a spectrum, and its flanking sides acting as solid mass, Aguinaldo presents us with the reality of the visual experience; effectively suggesting that singular elements are often only fully appreciated when presented alongside their opposites. This piece emphasizes the often understanded yet revolutionary genius inherent to the practice of Lee Aguinaldo.
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Untitled signed and dated 1979 (lower right) pen, ink, pencil on photo transfer on paper mounted on plywood 23 1/2” x 16” (60 cm x 41 cm)
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Green Circulation No. 15 signed and dated 1973 (verso) acrylic (aqua-tec) 36" x 36" (91 cm x 91 cm) PROVENANCE Private Collection, USA Lee Aguinaldo’s paintings are often spare and distinctive in terms of color sensibility and paint quality. For Aguinaldo, color is a palpable and sufficient physical presence and, when compounded in planar arrangements, would engage its perceiver in an objective and analytical exercise. Aguinaldo places great emphasis on eliminating brushwork and all visible evidence of handling, aiming for a totally flat and even skin of pigment that maintains the integrity of the picture plane. There is no attempt to create any more than the bare essentials of picture space; the geometric quality of the frame, with its right angles, makes for order, hence, conscious rationality. For Lee Aguinaldo, too elaborate a spatial framework as much as excessive use of color, decoration, or narrative, could detract from the picture’s power. Aguinaldo favored the square format for his landscape paintings. Not by chance and not for convenience. This format makes it possible to bathe the subject in an atmosphere of rationality and purity. Aguinaldo’s Green Circulation series is influenced by his earlier Linear works. This piece, titled Green Circulation #15, emphasizes the core purpose of the titular series; which is to explore the inherent relationship between the color green and the different hues and levels of lumination often linked to it though a color field painting. At the very center of the piece are various iterations of white that gradually shift to shades of green. These elements are then supplemented by two emerald green spaces. By presenting two iterations of the same color, with the center acting as a spectrum, and its flanking sides acting as solid mass, Aguinaldo presents us with the reality of the visual experience; effectively suggesting that singular elements are often only fully appreciated when presented alongside their opposites.
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Untitled pen, ink, pencil on photo transfer on board 22 1/2" x 25" (57 cm x 64 cm Private Collection, Switzerland Acquired directly from the artist in the 60's Aguinaldo was born in New York in 1933 to logging Tycoon and former Magsaysay campaign manager Daniel R. Aguinaldo, and his Russian-American wife. Aguinaldo discovered his passion and love for the arts after encountering the works of Rembrandt and the other Dutch masters at the Metropolitan Museum. But it was the eclectic oeuvres of the famed abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock that eventually influenced his early works as a bona fide artist. Raw and real, these pieces were characterized by their energetic composition fueled by an impromptu methodology that is undoubtedly similar to Pollock’s own practice. Aguinaldo then went beyond his Abstract Expressionist Flick paintings and then began to dabble into the controlled simplicity of his relatively more minimalist and linear works. These pieces feature a heavy emphasis on color, seemingly echoing the works of Rothko and Albers. But, it is Aguinaldo’s use and command of light and gradation that make his works true masterpieces. In 1971, Aguinaldo, along with other local artists, represented the Philippines in the Sao Paolo Biennale. His work has since been exhibited in renowned spaces, from the Fukuoka Art Museum in Japan to the Museum of Art in Singapore. These elements give Aguinaldo’s work a sense of space and physicality that, in turn, engages the viewer to ascribe a certain meaning. This particular piece is more akin to Aguinaldo's later style rather than his Linear or Flick works. The work features the use of frottage, or a technique in which the artist takes a rubbing from an uneven surface to achieve the desired effect. This is evident in this work in which Aguinaldo’s process creates a seemingly ethereal layer that partly obscures a much more detailed work behind a wall of paint and material. Aguinaldo would eventually incorporate this technique into his mixed-media and image-based pieces.
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) The Room #1 (Hotel Frederic's, Manila, PI) signed and dated 1979 (verso) marker pen on photo mounted on plywood 9" x 6 1/2" (23 cm x 17 cm) Though he wouldn’t have regarded himself as a lensman, the relatively novel art of photography was pivotal to Lee Aguinaldo’s groundbreaking mixed media works. Lee’s foray into image-based art was partly inspired by the 1970s’ interest in frottage and image transfers given the advancements in darkroom technology. Though Aguinaldo’s mixed media pieces required less stability in terms of brushstrokes, they demanded more pressure and quicker strokes given the nature of both the medium and the chemicals involved in the process. Though these pieces were relatively smaller, they undoubtedly required pinpoint precision and technical prowess. These works featured a variety of photographic media, from magazine cutouts to raw negatives and even archival reproductions. Aguinaldo would then mold and shape the base piece in order to achieve his desired effect. This particular piece titled The Room #1 (Hotel Frederic’s Manila, PI) showcases Aguinaldo’s emphasis on certain effects and moods that are only possible through photographic manipulation. His black and white works exemplified the unique perspective that only monochromatic celluloid can provide. In this particular work, Aguinaldo’s unique process heightens and exaggerates both the highlights and the shadows of his chosen photographic subject, giving the work an other-worldly glow, imparting upon the viewer a mysterious and almost prophetic effect. This certain look would not have been possible with colored film given that black and white images do not only have a certain look that is unique to them, but they also carry with them a certain context; one that Aguinaldo himself is undoubtedly familiar with.
PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Homage to Rembrandt No. 1 signed and dated 1990 (lower right) pen and ink on paper 11” x 9” (28 cm x 23 cm)
PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Untitled signed and dated 1951 (lower right) ink and watercolor on paper 20” x 15” (51 cm x 38 cm)
PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Geography (Metro Manila) signed and dated 1983 (verso) acrylic on collage 28” x 22” (71 cm x 56 cm)
PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Linear No. 55 signed and dated 1967 (verso) aqua-tec acrylic on marine plywood 20” x 24” (51 cm x 61 cm)
PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Water, Fire, and Sky signed and dated 1979 (verso) acrylic on marine plywood 11 1/2” x 10” (29 cm x 25 cm)
PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Untitled signed and dated 1979 (lower right) pen, ink, pencil on photo transfer on paper mounted on plywood 23 1/2” x 16” (60 cm x 41 cm)
Lee Aguinaldo(1933 - 2007) The Forest During a Blizzard (Hotel Frederic, Manila, PI) signed and dated 1979 (lower right and verso) graphite on paper (frottage) 9” x 24 1/2” (23 cm x 62 cm)
Lee Aguinaldo(1933 - 2007) The Freeze Freak signed and dated 1979 (lower right) pencil, printer ink, acrylic on paper (frottage) 12” x 27” (31 cm x 69 cm)
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Untitled signed (verso) with dedication to Melba Arribas in 1997 ca 1950s oil on canvas 12” x 16” (31 cm x 41 cm) PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Lee Aguinaldo comes from a family of entrepreneurs related to Emilio Aguinaldo, a military leader, and politician who is considered to be the first President of the Philippines. From a young age, Lee showed an inclination towards the arts and resisted the expectation to eventually take over the management of the Aguinaldo family business. After attending the United States military academy and briefly working for his father’s company, he became enamored with the development of American modern art. During his stay in New York as a young boy, Lee Aguinaldo frequented the Metropolitan Museum, where he was exposed to the works of Titian, Rembrandt, and other masters. Fascinated by the emerging influence of the New York School, Aguinaldo sought to produce his own works similar to those of Pollock and de Kooning. Thus, his earlier works were characterized by their inherent spontaneity born out of quick gestural strokes and erratic splashes of paint. But, much like Pollock who once dabbled in surrealism and primitivism, Aguinaldo also experienced a shift in style, practice, and subject matter. This particular piece, despite its year of creation, showcases Aguinaldo’s aesthetic choices from his transitional phase. In it, one can see vestiges of his earlier works through an outer layer of erratic gobs of paint and color. Yet the more solid and recognizable patterns seemingly point towards an epochal shift from traditional Abstract Expressionism to a style that is completely his own.
Lee Aguinaldo (1933 - 2007) Untitled signed and dated 1953 (verso) oil on board 16” x 20” (41 cm x 51 cm) PROPERTY FROM THE MELBA ARRIBAS COLLECTION Literature: Herrera, Ma. Victoria, et al. The Life and Art of Lee Aguinaldo. Vibal Foundation, Inc. and Ateneo Art Gallery. Quezon City. 2011. p. 117. The insistence on veering away from the orthodox paradigm of painting has always been the driving force for abstraction, and this is where Lee Aguinaldo stood out. Lee Aguinaldo had always ventured towards abstraction. Leonidas Benesa stated that “if appreciation of a painting requires a prior understanding of the work in question, then Lee is an extremely difficult artist to appreciate.” Aguinaldo’s experimental artistry and visuals were influenced by techniques and processes that strayed away from the conventional standards of painting. An aspect of this abstraction is the perception of light and its circulation. Aguinaldo’s paintings are paintings of light. As pointed out by Alice M.L. Coseteng, his “two-dimensional surfaces reflect light as they glow in brilliant tones or opaquely subdued. In this particular piece, the harmonious intermingling of the complementary hues of red, yellow, and orange produces expressive flicks of brushstrokes that showcases the refined artistry of Aguinaldo. His “color field” passages of intense colors emit a cosmetic atmosphere. Aguinaldo’s manner of highlighting the subject elicits a response that is only generated by discerning his avant-garde virtuosity. His style has to be acknowledged for his ability to encapsulate “the glow, the reflection, and the change of light as if on the slick and glossy surface of a car fender.” Nevertheless, it is a cautious effort to rescind all undertakings to see Aguinaldo’s art as a representation of anything. His works have always been concrete creations void of any explanation. Any attempt to expound on the innate implications of Aguinaldo’s works will be deemed pointless.
