HERNANDO RUIZ OCAMPO | Torso

Luz Gallery, Manila, The Philippines
Private Asian Collection
Thence by descent to the present owner

This work is in good overall condition as viewed. There is evidence of very light wear along the edges of the work due to abrasions with the frame, but this does not affect the overall image as it is covered by the frame itself. There is evidence of very light craquelure at darker pigments. All other inconsistencies are inherent to the artist's working method. Examination under ultraviolet light reveals very small and minor spots of restoration along the edges of the work and a few small and minor spots at the background and at upper left area of the torso. Framed.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
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The most salient features of Hernando Ruiz Ocampo’s works lie in his relentlessly intellectual search for a truly Filipino abstract language that expresses his inner visions and convictions about the natural world. Exuding an ebullient spirit and arresting chromatic complexity, Ocampo’s Torso manifests the strident achievements of the artist’s inquiry into abstraction – an investigation that reached new heights surrounding the period of this work’s creation. Executed in 1963, this truly rare and significant exemplar of Ocampo’s transitional period showcases his idiosyncratic use of intuitive shapes, rendered in a vibrant yet sultry palette. Articulated in a unique manner that oscillates somewhere between anthropomorphic and geometric, Ocampo illustrates the frame of a human figure, simplifying its features into a mosaic of organic forms and nuanced patterns. This captivating work bears the marks of the artist’s contemplative process and his bravura for composing wondrously harmonious works rooted in nature.  In a bold yet sophisticated manner, Ocampo showcases not only the acuteness of his abstract vernacular but also his distinctive flare for devising spirited compositions. As one of the original members of the Philippine Art Gallery (PAG), Ocampo was committed to reinventing the tone of Filipino art and was among the country’s leading avant-garde artists who formed new painterly expressions and fresh idioms that diverged from the predominantly pastoral and classical styles of academic art. He was a core member of the revolutionary “Thirteen Moderns” who pioneered the Neo-realist movement in the Philippines, alongside senior artists such as Vicente Manansala, Cesar Legaspi and Carlos ‘Botong’ Francisco. Ocampo was one of the few from the group that remained in the country throughout his life, drawing inspiration from the ever changing and richly laden Filipino culture and landscapes.

“The strongest influence on my paintings are, of course, the things that I see around me everyday – the flora and fauna, the sunshine, the rain, the flowers and the birds and the bees, the shells and fish of the Philippines…”¹ - H.R. Ocampo

A self-taught artist whose dedication to painting grew from an early love of literature and writing, Ocampo discovered a deep affinity with the theories of the Bauhaus artists, who aimed to bring fine art into the realms of everyday life. Reading extensively, he was particularly inspired by the writings of Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Mondrian, Moholy-Nagy and the architect Walter Gropius, and sought to develop his own original aesthetic that would bear relevance in a fast modernizing Philippines. The present work not only reveals Ocampo’s shift to abstract painting, it also brings essential principals of the Bauhaus school—design, balance and color—to the fore. By cultivating a unique abstract process, Ocampo paved his individual direction and legacy in Filipino modern art history.

The 1960s saw Ocampo’s main interest move into non-objective painting, during which he produced some of his strongest works. Torso is an outstanding example of this pivotal period, offering a glimpse of the artist’s evolving oeuvre. While the artist depicts a more distinctly figurative subject matter  in Torso, there are elements of the painting that serve as a precursor to his ‘visual melodies’ motifs which came into full swing in the 1970s. Torso serves as an important testimony to Ocampo’s artistic development as he deviated from mutant-like compositions towards other organic forms of abstraction. In an outburst of creativity and innovation, he began dramatically simplifying the figures and natural objects that populated his canvas, reducing them into simple, irregular shapes that embodied the very essence of his subject matter. In Torso, Ocampo’s ability to develop a highly personalized dialogue delivers a coherent yet fresh aesthetic experience of tension, harmony and color.

“Ocampo possesses an unlimited palette that is solely his own which he relates on the canvas to arrive at intuitively-conceived compositions”²

Spread across the vertical composition is a biomorphic figure in purple, outlined in a vivid green and thick black. Evocative of broad shoulders and outstretched limbs, the shape of the body appears to twist and extend across the canvas. The lines that form the bodice of the work undulate with a slow and seductive elegance, their dramatic bends and contours suggest a sense of movement and immediacy. While Ocampo’s interest in the simplification and flattening of forms lends this work a geometric quality, the softness of his lineation conveys elasticity in the overall composition. This graceful quality demonstrates Ocampo’s arrival at a sophisticated abstraction of the human figure – a subject that would continue to explore in later works such as Dancers.

Beaming with a rich yet unconventional palette, this masterpiece exudes an allure that is at once otherworldly and innately beautiful. The vibrancy of Torso’s electric combination of striking colors with darker hues displays the artist’s ability to construct a melodious aesthetic encounter. The artist melds two types of shapes which are either painted in warm tones of brick-red, tan and cream, or in green with an intricate dotted pattern. Drawing from the world around him, Ocampo distills natural phenomena and renders them in their purest form. The background emanates a pinkish yellow glow that appears to embrace the figure, as if it were emerging from a deep tropical sunset or warm earth. Subtle gradients of rosy yellows, blushed pinks and burnt reds lend depth to the amorphous shapes that fill the interior frame. Against the plum background and dark purple, their luminous shades  radiate with lucid effervescence.

The complexity of Torso’s surface displays the artist’s remarkable ability to engage the viewer. The artist utilizes a palette knife when painting the background and the irregular shapes, adding a sense of texture to the work. He directly applies touches of pigment in subtle strokes, creating a plush yet lively quality to the canvas. On the other hand, small speckles of dark brown arranged in random yet concentrative patterns with the green formations suggest the intricacy of lacework. Together they deliver myriad of sumptuous effects and accentuate the dynamic interactions between all elements within the painting.

These bodily fragments carefully placed between passages of negative space, hint at the internal functions and tensions that exist within every human being. At the same time, the overall flatness of image could be read as a meandering topographic landscape. Torso’s balanced composition is a result of Ocampo’s deliberate yet instinctive creative process. Highly meticulous and intentional, Ocampo would have planned this work by cutting out the motifs, arranging them into different orientations, before transferring them onto the canvas and filling the areas with color. While the artist’s thoughtful maneuvering of simplified shapes is reminiscent of Matisse’ cut-outs, his attention to tonal variations situates this painting more closely to the works of Paul Klee. As such, the irregular shapes mold together to perfectly fit and compliment each other within the larger encompassing silhouette.

The artist explains his endeavor into abstraction as a forge between formalistic concerns and external stimuli: “In my pictures, I am more interested in how shapes, hues, values, textures and lines interact with one another in space rather than capturing a photographic semblance of nature. I am more preoccupied with the creation of new realities in terms of stress and strain, rather than with the portrayal of such conventional emotions as hate, love, anger, jealousy, etc.”³

An enchanting yet elusive work of form and fantasy, Torso exemplifies the kaleidoscopic vivacity, visual complexity and unbridled creativity that defined the very best of Ocampo’s celebrate oeuvre. The artist invested an extensive amount of time on each painting, ensuring that each piece lived up to his personal standards. Those he deemed unsatisfactory would be destroyed. As a result, works by the Philippines National Artist are highly treasured even during his lifetime when collectors would seek after these prized paintings. With it’s compelling palette and compositional dynamism, Torso is a special and rare work that marks the brilliant inception of Ocampo’s esteemed journey into abstraction.

¹ Angel G. De Jesus, H.R. Ocampo: The Artist as Filipino, Heritage Publishing, Philippines, 1979, pg.54

² Angel G. De Jesus, H.R. Ocampo: The Artist as Filipino, Heritage Publishing, 1979, p. 54

³ Refer to 1, pg.58