(Processional Float) / 1953 / Polymer on wood / 119 x 59.5 centimetres / Artist: Fernando Zobel / Ateneo Art Gallery Collection

Zobel was among the first artists to use the carroza or karosa, a religious image on a float traditionally paraded during fiestas, as subject in his works. In 1953 his large polymer on panel Carroza won first prize in the Art Association of the Philippines semiannual competition.

Here the subject is the Virgin Mary surrounded by bright yellow lamps on a carriage float. Its composition is flat. Symmetrical scallops adorn the wheels of the float, its scaffolding, the leaves of the palm plants, and the lamps on the upper half of the canvas. Short zigzags on the palm leaves and the Virgin’s robes contrast with the scallops.

Zobel depicted the karosa from a completely frontal perspective. He presented the Virgin as a stern, straight image without facial features. What prevents the entire painting from appearing too stiff is the profusion of brightly colored lamps, whose shapes dominate the painting. Even Zobel’s signature at the bottom left corner of the panel wittily echoes the lamp shape. By playing down the religious aspect of the karosa, Zobel brought into focus its decorative qualities of shape, color, and form.