Lito Balagtas’ Ani
Perhaps there is no imagery more evocative of prosperity than a bountiful harvest. And to Lito Balagtas, it’s a theme that evokes timelessness, and one that he inherited from his uncle, the equally-immortal Fernando Amorsolo. Ani is the golden stalks of wheat and lush vegetation that fill the expanse of Balagtas’ canvas. Ani is also a community of farmers, fisherfolk, children, gathering together with woven baskets and threaded nets, bringing in their freshest hauls.
Balagtas sees both art and agriculture a lost and dwindling practice in the face of modernism; but his skilled hands would always remember, painting and celebrating our storied past.