“Sacred Heart”
Acrylic
2021
Reviewing the events of the Diliman Commune, one event impacted me much more than the others — when a professor of the university picked up his gun and intentionally opened fire on students, killing one. In my piece, ‘Sacred Heart,’ I intentionally chose to mimic elements from a famous image in Christian faith, The Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the piece, I chose to depict a Spanish conquistador similarly open firing on an unnamed, dark-skinned individual, showing a parallel with the professor. However, I also chose to depict the muzzle blast of the firearm as the colored rays commonly seen in the image of “The Sacred Heart of Jesus”, a direct metaphor for how the Spanish colonized the archipelago with the Cross and Sword.
Emilio is a Visual Communication student at the College of Fine Arts in UP Diliman. Landscapes in his preferred medium of pen and ink are his favorite pieces to do, but on occasion, he will pick up the brush and his paints if his whim desires him so. Dark, heavy lines in black ink contrasted with bright, gentle colors give his works a rushed, messy, but expressive look. Someday, he hopes to do full scale concept work for ideas he can call his own.