May 1, 2010

An offering

THEME DAY: STATUES • In 1935, the fourth President of University of the Philippines, Rafael Palma, commissioned sculptor and professor Guillermo Tolentino to create a monument based on the second stanza of Philippine National Hero Jose Rizal's "Mi Ultimo Adios" (My Last Farewell) which would be the identifying landmark of the university. The result was the Oblation (noun, something offered in worship or devotion), a naked figure of a young man with face tilted heavenward, eyes closed, arms outstretched, hands open and chest forward—a grand pose of self-offering. The original statue, made of concrete painted to look like bronze, is now kept in the university's main library. The statue in front of Quezon Hall, the administration building, is a bronze replica recast from the original and unveiled in the Diliman campus in 1958.

the Oblation in the University of the Philippines - Diliman

See more statues in the virtual global museum that is City Daily Photo on this first day of May. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

35 comments:

LV said...

Love hearing the story of the building and the statue. Very interesting.

Stefan Jansson said...

To the point. It really says self offering. Good one for the theme day.

Anonymous said...

Looks to me like a promise in the making. Amazing statue.
Please have a wonderful weekend and new month as well.

daily athens

Jim said...

Great statue.
Sydney - City and Suburbs

brattcat said...

What a powerful image this makes.

Lowell said...

Very impressive creation and I appreciated your commentary which helped me understand what it was all about!

Marie-Noyale said...

A beautiful landmark for the University

T. Becque said...

A perfect pose for a self offering.

DeniseinVA said...

It is magnificent and I enjoyed learning its history. Thank you!

Tussy said...

Freedome belong to me!

Perfect!

You Got A Posty ~ PFF
All Little Things I Like

Mary Ann said...

The statue and its base provide an interesting juxtaposition--the rough pile of stones with the refined, finished metal.

magiceye said...

magnificent!

Jilly said...

Interesting to read about self-offering. We have a sculpture in front of the swimming pool in Monaco of a diver about to dive. This reminds me of that somewhat and when you think about it a diver is offering himself to the air and then the water. Well, alright perhaps not quite the same thing! Put the stance and feeling is the same. Your photo is super, Hilda.

Dina said...

Very poignant.

Interesting that the concrete was made to look like bronze.

Cezar and Léia said...

What an impressive work, very meaningful!
God bless you!
Cezar

Bergson said...

this statue will fly after this tehme day

VP said...

A beautiful and impressive statue. Are we sure he's not an Olympic diver?

B SQUARED said...

It's very 'Christ-like.' Interesting choice for a university.

Halcyon said...

I like this statue. To me he looks like he's offering up his heart. Maybe he was a yogi? ;-)

Nice choice for the theme day!

Julie ScottsdaleDailyPhoto.com said...

very dramatic statue and background. great perspective

cieldequimper said...

Extremely impressive Hilda.

Kaori said...

Wonderful statue for theme day, Hilda! I love how you shot the photo, too :)

Judy said...

This is such a moving sculpture. Amazing.

GreensboroDailyPhoto said...

So much symbolism. I love the idea of using concrete!

Jan
GDP

Clueless in Boston said...

Wonderful choice for theme day.

Chuck Pefley said...

Happy May Day, Hilda!

I like this pose created by Tolentino.

Leif Hagen said...

It's a great statue! I just wish we had statue in front of our schools here in Eagan! Not one!

Bill said...

Great statue and such interesting information. From the thumbnail I thought it was a diver.

EG CameraGirl said...

The statue is exquisite!

Lois said...

A beautiful choice for theme day Hilda!

Mo said...

The stories associated with statues are so interesting. Yours especially so.

Carraol said...

Impressive sculpture and very well spotted, full of energy and significance!

Unknown said...

This is perfect, Hilda! Well done.

lewi14@gmail.com said...

I know that I’m late. It was a busy weekend. But let me say that I like your shot and your realization of the theme very much. I like the symmetry of your shot. Thank you for your comment.

James said...

I don't usually find naked men beautiful but I'll make an acception this time. I really like the way this statue looks against the great background.