That time in Pintô

Feelings are a funny thing. You go out of your way sometimes to forget about them or, at least, place them so far at the back of your mind with every intention of not ever having to think about them for a long time and yet somehow, they still have a way of pressing so hard that ignoring them becomes an impossible option. This is not to say that Pintô triggered my emotions, no. Thing is, it happened to be where I was when my subconscious decided it was time to process a few neglected ones. Perfect timing right? So, aside from every beautiful thing I saw there, I will always remember the place as a sort of venue for reflection (for obvious reasons). But never mind that for now...

To be honest, my appreciation for contemporary art is amateur at best. If you showed me a canvas full of colorful wavy lines, I probably wouldn't be able to tell that it's supposed to evoke some kind of heavy emotion. But for what it's worth, Pintô, generally, was quite a sight to behold. Everywhere I looked, there was always something that would draw me in and intrigue me and if not, then at the very least, it would spark some interest.

This was too sweet to ignore as I have loved their story from the moment I learned about it. Leonor Rivera was Jose Rizal's greatest love, NOT Josephine Bracken.

If you were like me and you didn't know it, it's actually pronounced as pintô, as in the Filipino term for 'door'.

The museum boasts of five galleries with themes highlighting Filipino culture and tradition. What I like most about them is that they're not afraid to shy away from  parading the typical Pinoy pride. Instead, they actually look at the deeper levels of our culture and criticize them.

I thought this was pretty cool. On the left is a photo of the actual painting, and on the right is a photoshopped (inverted colors) copy. Okay, okay. I am in awe of just how talented the artist is.

To be honest, I wouldn't have minded getting lost in the place. I like to think that if I were a little less hungover from the crazy time I had the night before, I really would have taken on the offer to do just that. I guess one of my regrets that day was that I didn't get to enjoy the place as much as I wanted. But hangover and exhaustion aside, the place was beautiful (as you can see), and truly, it's somewhere I can see myself returning to.