Mama Mia! selfie
Standing beside the 1921 “La Madre Filipina” (The Philippine Motherland) by Manileño sculptor Ramon Lazaro Martinez (1869-1950) at the Luneta Park in Manila.
The “La Madre Filipina” was part of a set of similar monuments that were first installed atop the entry columns of the Art Deco 1919-1920 William A. Jones Memorial Bridge, which was designed by Juan Arellano (1888-1960). The bridge was named after the American legislator William A. Jones (1849-1918), who had penned the U.S. control Act of Congress of August 29, 1916 that would grant the Philippine independence. The four “La Madre Filipina” sculptures were originally allegories to Gratitude, Democracy, Progress, and Justice.
The Jones Bridge was severely damaged during the 1945 Battle of Manila, and reconstructed in 1946. Two of the Martínez sculptures were completely obliterated; hence the remaining two were removed and left in storage. By the early 2000s, the statues were brought out of storage and exhibited in Luneta Park.
In 2019 the Martínez sculptures were returned to the Jones Bridge along with the installation of the Beaux-Arts-styled lamp posts by Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar craftsmen under the supervision of José Rizalino Larion Acuzar (born 1955).
Ramon Lazaro Martinez (1869-1950) completed his artistic training at the Escuela de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado in 1898. Originally a painter, Martinez won a bronze medal for his painting “Coming from the Market” at the 1904 Universal Exposition held in St. Louis, Missouri. Soon he started focusing on sculpture and has been noted to create the “La Madre Filipina” found on top of the Jones Bridge, and the ornamental sculpturing of the Legislative Building prior to World War II.
This picture was taken circa 2015, during my regular explorations to document local historical landmarks around the Philippines.
