Rendering my signature metallic gel pen art with a portrait of “Hara Humamay y Santo Niño”, who are the key figures of the performances of Cebú’s Sinulog Festival.
The Sinulog (established 1980) is a festival dedicated to the Santo Niño (Christ Child), specifically the image created in Belgium, and brought to the Philippine archipelago in 1521 by the Fernão de Magalhães (Ferdinand Magellan, 1480-1521). Upon arriving in the island of Cebú, Magella encountered its chieftain Rajah Humabon who converted to Christianity along with his wife Hara Humamay.
It is believed that when Hara Humamay received the gift of the Santo Niño from Magellan, she started dancing. Hence the performance of the Sinulog festival reyna (queen) with the Santo Niño.
I actually started this artwork in March 2024, but due to my many commitments and my stroke I got delayed. It was only this March 2025 did I finally finish this opus.
The photo was taken in 2025, inside my classroom at the School of Design and Communication (sd+c) of the Southwestern University PHINMA (SWU).