Viva Venice!
Philippine art has a special place at the main exhibition venue of the 2017 Venice Art Biennale
The word "trouper" fits Senator Loren Legarda to a T. For this pictorial, she posed like a pro (well, to Philippine Tatler whose cover she has graced for five times now, she has always been one) in the middle of the Philippine Pavilion of the 2017 Venice Art Biennale, in full view of the exhibition visitors who ogled at her, marvelled at her clothes by Francis Libiran and Len Cabili of Filip + Inna, and even took photos of her like she was part of the Pavilion. Actually, she is. Were it not for this indefatigable senator, the Philippines would never have returned to this major international exhibition (see "Pride of Place," page 164). With nary a concern for her political position or an iota of ego, Legarda gamely changed clothes behind one of the huge paintings of featured artist Manuel Ocampo like it was her dressing room. "Let us not tell Manny," she joked. For the cover photo, she stands before an Ocampo painting in Len Cabili. The trip to Venice was made more special because of another Philippine exhibition, Fernando
Zóbel: Contrapuntos (See "Zóbel's Masterpiece," page 176) in another venue. We were able to meet up with Fernando Zobel de Ayala who toured Legarda and Philippine Tatler's editor-in-chief, Anton San Diego, at the exhibition.
Were it not for Senator Loren Legarda, the Philippines would not be at the Biennale again