“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but
have eternal life.”
Too often we see artists sloshing buckets of pigments or colors in canvas with little skills and with less
intentions beyond the purely decorative. Tabuena’s neo-realistic paintings don’t possess any of these. To
characterize his vivid paintings, let’s borrow from Robert Frost’s “it’s like playing tennis without a net.” And
that’s what he really did in order to succeed with his passion which is art. The nets were woven from his
Filipino ethnicity and geography, and the results were intense personal outputs whose ambitions far exceed
that of the generically pretty slatherings we see on so many homes, hotels, and office walls. Very far from
those art, Tabuena produces luscious, abstract, and edible-looking oil paintings in which his Filipino
heritage emerges and sometimes collides with his adopted Mexican culture. Somehow he struggles to
reconcile his Pinoy precepts with seasonal materiality of his medium.
Romeo Tabuena’s connection with his long-lost native country is very visible in his works. The images of
carabaos, Philippine country scenes and pretty Filipino women and children, and sabong (cockfight) are so
distinct showing the deep imprints in his heart. There is confident groundedness and beneath it, subtlety or
a subterranean love for the Philippines, his native motherland. He still retains his Filipino citizenship, after
having been a residence of Mexico for over 50 years now.
He was born in Iloilo, Philippines in 1921. He studied architecture at the Mapua Institute of Technology, and
later transferred to the University of the Philippines School of Fine Arts. He continued his studies in New York
at the Art Student League and in Paris, France at the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere and Academie
Ransom. His work is internationally distributed in both museums and private residences. He was
commissioned by the Philippine government to produce a stamp, which was entitled “Moral Values Series III
in 1992.
Tabuena is listed in “Who’s Who in American Art,” “International Who’s Who in Art,” and “International Who’s
Who of Intellectuals.” He also appears on “History of International Art-Italy,” “History of Contemporary Art-Italy,
and on the International Book of Honor, America’s Biographic Institute. He is included in “5000 Personalities
of the World,” Cambridge, England. His major works include, to name a few: Art Expo in New York City; One-
man show in Gallerie Bleue in Manila, Philippines one-man show at the Palace of Fine Arts in Mexico City;
participation in the VII Biennial Sao Paolo as the official Filipino artist and art commissioner from the
Philippines, and in Galeria Tere Haas in Mexico City; Institute of Fine Arts in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico;
and 10-year Retrospective Show at the Philippine Art Galley with Publishing of Illustrative Monographs
appraising his work of that period. In October 1995, he was honored with a major exhibit sponsored by the
Instituto de Bellas Artes, Centro Cultural Ignacio for his 40 years of residency and dedication in the artistic
life of Mexico in the Mexican artist’s colony in Guanajato. A similar exhibit in his honor was launched in
November 1996 in Mexico in cooperation with the Philippine Embassy. One of his major works since 1957 is
a government commissioned mural, Filipiniaa, exhibited at the Philippine Embassy inWashington, D.C. He
was also involved in the exhibit El Nigromante of the Mexican Institute of Fine Arts in celebration of 30 years
of artistic life in Mexico. He is the recipient of various awards and citations, including the Golden Centaur
Award from the Accademia Italia, Master of Painting honoris cause from the International Seminar of Modern
Art, Bannierre Europeanne des Artes, and Medaglia al Merito from the International Parliament. He is also an
elected fellow of the International Biographical Center (IBC) in Cambridge, England and the American
Biographical Institute (ABI). In 1987, ABI awarded him Medal of Honor, World Decoration of Excellence Medal
in 1989, and Man of the Year Award in 1991. IBI elected him to the Center’s 1991 International Order of Merit,
and in 1993, conferred him the Medal of Excellence for the 20th Century.
Romeo Tabuena reaps these awards not only for himself, but also for his beloved country, the Philippines.
He is Philippines’ “national treasure,” and his works undoubtedly, stand out among the finest artistic
legacies of the Philippines and possibly the whole world, an environment that is committed to excellence.
Thanks!
have eternal life.”
Too often we see artists sloshing buckets of pigments or colors in canvas with little skills and with less
intentions beyond the purely decorative. Tabuena’s neo-realistic paintings don’t possess any of these. To
characterize his vivid paintings, let’s borrow from Robert Frost’s “it’s like playing tennis without a net.” And
that’s what he really did in order to succeed with his passion which is art. The nets were woven from his
Filipino ethnicity and geography, and the results were intense personal outputs whose ambitions far exceed
that of the generically pretty slatherings we see on so many homes, hotels, and office walls. Very far from
those art, Tabuena produces luscious, abstract, and edible-looking oil paintings in which his Filipino
heritage emerges and sometimes collides with his adopted Mexican culture. Somehow he struggles to
reconcile his Pinoy precepts with seasonal materiality of his medium.
Romeo Tabuena’s connection with his long-lost native country is very visible in his works. The images of
carabaos, Philippine country scenes and pretty Filipino women and children, and sabong (cockfight) are so
distinct showing the deep imprints in his heart. There is confident groundedness and beneath it, subtlety or
a subterranean love for the Philippines, his native motherland. He still retains his Filipino citizenship, after
having been a residence of Mexico for over 50 years now.
He was born in Iloilo, Philippines in 1921. He studied architecture at the Mapua Institute of Technology, and
later transferred to the University of the Philippines School of Fine Arts. He continued his studies in New York
at the Art Student League and in Paris, France at the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere and Academie
Ransom. His work is internationally distributed in both museums and private residences. He was
commissioned by the Philippine government to produce a stamp, which was entitled “Moral Values Series III
in 1992.
Tabuena is listed in “Who’s Who in American Art,” “International Who’s Who in Art,” and “International Who’s
Who of Intellectuals.” He also appears on “History of International Art-Italy,” “History of Contemporary Art-Italy,
and on the International Book of Honor, America’s Biographic Institute. He is included in “5000 Personalities
of the World,” Cambridge, England. His major works include, to name a few: Art Expo in New York City; One-
man show in Gallerie Bleue in Manila, Philippines one-man show at the Palace of Fine Arts in Mexico City;
participation in the VII Biennial Sao Paolo as the official Filipino artist and art commissioner from the
Philippines, and in Galeria Tere Haas in Mexico City; Institute of Fine Arts in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico;
and 10-year Retrospective Show at the Philippine Art Galley with Publishing of Illustrative Monographs
appraising his work of that period. In October 1995, he was honored with a major exhibit sponsored by the
Instituto de Bellas Artes, Centro Cultural Ignacio for his 40 years of residency and dedication in the artistic
life of Mexico in the Mexican artist’s colony in Guanajato. A similar exhibit in his honor was launched in
November 1996 in Mexico in cooperation with the Philippine Embassy. One of his major works since 1957 is
a government commissioned mural, Filipiniaa, exhibited at the Philippine Embassy inWashington, D.C. He
was also involved in the exhibit El Nigromante of the Mexican Institute of Fine Arts in celebration of 30 years
of artistic life in Mexico. He is the recipient of various awards and citations, including the Golden Centaur
Award from the Accademia Italia, Master of Painting honoris cause from the International Seminar of Modern
Art, Bannierre Europeanne des Artes, and Medaglia al Merito from the International Parliament. He is also an
elected fellow of the International Biographical Center (IBC) in Cambridge, England and the American
Biographical Institute (ABI). In 1987, ABI awarded him Medal of Honor, World Decoration of Excellence Medal
in 1989, and Man of the Year Award in 1991. IBI elected him to the Center’s 1991 International Order of Merit,
and in 1993, conferred him the Medal of Excellence for the 20th Century.
Romeo Tabuena reaps these awards not only for himself, but also for his beloved country, the Philippines.
He is Philippines’ “national treasure,” and his works undoubtedly, stand out among the finest artistic
legacies of the Philippines and possibly the whole world, an environment that is committed to excellence.
Thanks!
Washington D.C. Since 1987
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