JOSE TANIG JOYA
(June 3, 1931-May 11, 1995)
Jose Joya was a Philippine artist whose career was marked by versatility. He was a painter, ceramicist, printmaker and mixed-media artist who began his career as a representational artist. Following exposure to Philippine modernism and studies in the United States, he created a significant body of abstract work. Joya later returned to figuration, demonstrating his skill in depicting the human figure. A gifted and sensitive artist, Joya’s wide-ranging talents brought him considerable acclaim both during and after his lifetime.
Born in Manila on June 3, 1931 to Jose Joya Sr. and Asuncion Tanig, young Joya grew up making sketches and showed an early aptitude for architecture. He entered the University of the Philippines to study painting. His student works echoed those of his professor Fernando Amorsolo, the leading artist of the time. Although Joya would later develop into an avant-garde artist, his drawing ability and technique was grounded in the excellent traditional education he received during these years.
Joya graduated from the UP in 1953, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art, the department’s first student to graduate Magna Cum Laude. He also participated in a show of Non-Objective Art in Tagala at the Philippine Art Gallery during the same year. This pivotal exhibition, curated by Aurelio Alvero included works by Hernando Ocampo, Fernando Zobel, Nena Saguil, Fidel de Castro, Conrado V. Pedroche, Lee Aguinaldo, Leandro Locsin, Victor Oteyza, and Manuel Rodriguez Sr. Joya’s two abstract entries, Something and Composition in Red, marked Joya’s public debut as an avant-garde painter.
After his first solo show in 1954, Joya left Manila on a Spanish government scholarship to study painting in Madrid. During his eight months in Spain, Joya was exposed to the works of the rising Spanish modernists including Millares, Saura, and Tàpies who were creating a new artistic language in the shadow of Franco’s dictatorship. He also traveled to museums in London, Rome and Paris and saw works by American Abstract Expressionists and European modernists including Jackson Pollock, Graham Sutherland, Lucio Fontana, Francis Bacon, and Henry Moore.
Next, Joya briefly returned to Manila to complete his Master’s degree before traveling to the United States on a Fulbright Smith-Mundt grant to study at the Cranbrook School of Art in Michigan. At the Cranbrook school, where there were no scheduled classes, Joya pursued his creative work under the guidance of artists-in-residence and was exposed to a wider range of Abstract Expressionism. His mentor at Cranbrook was Zoltan Sepeshy, an enthusiastic exponent of abstraction who had also taught Anita Magsay-say Ho in Michigan.
Upon his return to the Philippines, he began painting with Hubock White—an inexpensive alternative to white oil paint—and worked with a palette knife to create dynamic and exciting textures. Joya’s work increasingly developed canvases that hinted at deep emotions and psychological associations unleashed in paint. In 1964, when his work was on display at the prestigious Venice Biennale, Joya described his working methods:
"What incredible joy enamors me upon realizing the imagery I wanted to convey—the graphic concoction taking the shapes of joy, violence, turbulence, aspirations, and poetic ideas running in my mind. I squeeze my paint tubes directly, throw my paints in calculated gestures with spatulas and practically hurl my canvas in a wild attempt to depict the onrushing tempo of the present jet-age modernity."
In 1970, Joya became the Dean of the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts, a position he held until 1978. While mentoring his UP students, he stayed active in the studio painting large scale canvases in acrylic, a new medium. He also made collages and mixed media sculptural works that incorporated ceramic elements. During sketching tours in the Philippine countryside, he met and worked with local artists in areas including Malolos, Bulacan; Bacolod City and Cebu City. Joya was a natural organizer who also encouraged the formation and development of local arts organizations.
Drawing remained essential to Joya throughout his career and while teaching he employed nude models, sometimes in couples. Particularly interested in male models, he executed numerous sketches and pastels of young men, endowing them with vitality and sensual appeal. Joya also made many pastels on the theme of mother and child, reinventing a central image of Catholicism in Philippine form.
His later works included series of mixed media pieces that consisted of handmade paper, acrylic paint, and glue. These works were based on landscape themes and often included the hovering orbs of moons or suns over gauzy horizons. Appointed Chairperson of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts in 1987, he served for eight years until his death in 1995. Joya was posthumously declared a Philippine National Artist in 2003, recognized for his long and productive career and his seminal role in shaping the future of Philippine art and culture.
(June 3, 1931-May 11, 1995)
Jose Joya was a Philippine artist whose career was marked by versatility. He was a painter, ceramicist, printmaker and mixed-media artist who began his career as a representational artist. Following exposure to Philippine modernism and studies in the United States, he created a significant body of abstract work. Joya later returned to figuration, demonstrating his skill in depicting the human figure. A gifted and sensitive artist, Joya’s wide-ranging talents brought him considerable acclaim both during and after his lifetime.
Born in Manila on June 3, 1931 to Jose Joya Sr. and Asuncion Tanig, young Joya grew up making sketches and showed an early aptitude for architecture. He entered the University of the Philippines to study painting. His student works echoed those of his professor Fernando Amorsolo, the leading artist of the time. Although Joya would later develop into an avant-garde artist, his drawing ability and technique was grounded in the excellent traditional education he received during these years.
Joya graduated from the UP in 1953, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art, the department’s first student to graduate Magna Cum Laude. He also participated in a show of Non-Objective Art in Tagala at the Philippine Art Gallery during the same year. This pivotal exhibition, curated by Aurelio Alvero included works by Hernando Ocampo, Fernando Zobel, Nena Saguil, Fidel de Castro, Conrado V. Pedroche, Lee Aguinaldo, Leandro Locsin, Victor Oteyza, and Manuel Rodriguez Sr. Joya’s two abstract entries, Something and Composition in Red, marked Joya’s public debut as an avant-garde painter.
After his first solo show in 1954, Joya left Manila on a Spanish government scholarship to study painting in Madrid. During his eight months in Spain, Joya was exposed to the works of the rising Spanish modernists including Millares, Saura, and Tàpies who were creating a new artistic language in the shadow of Franco’s dictatorship. He also traveled to museums in London, Rome and Paris and saw works by American Abstract Expressionists and European modernists including Jackson Pollock, Graham Sutherland, Lucio Fontana, Francis Bacon, and Henry Moore.
Next, Joya briefly returned to Manila to complete his Master’s degree before traveling to the United States on a Fulbright Smith-Mundt grant to study at the Cranbrook School of Art in Michigan. At the Cranbrook school, where there were no scheduled classes, Joya pursued his creative work under the guidance of artists-in-residence and was exposed to a wider range of Abstract Expressionism. His mentor at Cranbrook was Zoltan Sepeshy, an enthusiastic exponent of abstraction who had also taught Anita Magsay-say Ho in Michigan.
Upon his return to the Philippines, he began painting with Hubock White—an inexpensive alternative to white oil paint—and worked with a palette knife to create dynamic and exciting textures. Joya’s work increasingly developed canvases that hinted at deep emotions and psychological associations unleashed in paint. In 1964, when his work was on display at the prestigious Venice Biennale, Joya described his working methods:
"What incredible joy enamors me upon realizing the imagery I wanted to convey—the graphic concoction taking the shapes of joy, violence, turbulence, aspirations, and poetic ideas running in my mind. I squeeze my paint tubes directly, throw my paints in calculated gestures with spatulas and practically hurl my canvas in a wild attempt to depict the onrushing tempo of the present jet-age modernity."
In 1970, Joya became the Dean of the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts, a position he held until 1978. While mentoring his UP students, he stayed active in the studio painting large scale canvases in acrylic, a new medium. He also made collages and mixed media sculptural works that incorporated ceramic elements. During sketching tours in the Philippine countryside, he met and worked with local artists in areas including Malolos, Bulacan; Bacolod City and Cebu City. Joya was a natural organizer who also encouraged the formation and development of local arts organizations.
Drawing remained essential to Joya throughout his career and while teaching he employed nude models, sometimes in couples. Particularly interested in male models, he executed numerous sketches and pastels of young men, endowing them with vitality and sensual appeal. Joya also made many pastels on the theme of mother and child, reinventing a central image of Catholicism in Philippine form.
His later works included series of mixed media pieces that consisted of handmade paper, acrylic paint, and glue. These works were based on landscape themes and often included the hovering orbs of moons or suns over gauzy horizons. Appointed Chairperson of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts in 1987, he served for eight years until his death in 1995. Joya was posthumously declared a Philippine National Artist in 2003, recognized for his long and productive career and his seminal role in shaping the future of Philippine art and culture.