(First Letters) / 1890 / Oil on canvas / 86.5 x 60.9 cm / Artist: Simon Flores / University of the Philippines Jorge B. Vargas Museum collection

Primeras Letras is a painting of a mother and child reading a book together inside their home. Seated on a chair, the woman holds a young girl close to her, the girl leaning upon her lap. The woman appears to be guiding the child as she learns to read the book. The scene portrayed opens up reflections on the role and status of women in Philippine society in the 19th century. Primeras Letras translates to “first letters” in English, and was a common title for books introducing the Spanish alphabet and language to beginners, implying that the woman in the painting is teaching the rudiments of reading and writing to a new learner. That an activity such as this takes place in a domestic setting underscores the limited access of women to formal education in Spanish colonial Philippines. The image provides a glimpse of how women responded to such constraints, claiming as they did a space traditionally identified as mere women’s domain as a site of their own empowerment, in this case through the transfer of knowledge and acquisition of literacy. In addition, the crucial role of the woman as a child’s first mentor is stressed in the composition. The artwork also presents a common theme found in Philippine art: the mother and child. The recurring image of woman as maternal figure indicates a culture’s privileging of the mother, and thus suggests that Philippine society is matriarchal in character (Fajardo 1998). With the onset of Christianization in the Philippines, a strong devotion to the Virgin Mary emerged, intensifying the presence of the mother figure in both social and artistic spheres.

This painting marks a transition from the 19th century miniaturismo style to genre painting that achieved its peak in popularity with Fernando Amorsolo in the first half of the 20th century. It bears the diligent manner and painstaking attention to detail of the 19th-century miniaturismo style, as seen in the evenly spaced nails of the slatted wooden flooring, the crisscrossing frame of the sawali wall, and the delicate lines and embroidery of the clothing. The rendering of minute details attempts to capture the physical or material environment where the subjects are situated. However, in contrast to miniaturismo portraits commissioned by the ilustrado (educated) patrons who wished to play up their intricate clothing, furniture, or fine jewelry and ornament, this work focuses instead on the activity that the subjects are engaged in. This subtle shift demonstrates a rising interest in a moment of everyday life as opposed to a mere representation of elite lifestyle indicators.