‘BIRDMAN’ BY VICENTE MANANSALA (1973)

Rendered in his signature Cubism style, “Birdman” was created by master modernist and National Artist Vicente Manansala in 1973, and in recent years came to light again because of a case of forgery that roused local art collectors.

The oil on canvas shows a man with a pole on one shoulder carrying the weight of several birdcages in geometric patterns. The Cubist masterpiece is owned by prominent art collector Judy Araneta Roxas, which she acquired from Mang Enteng, as he was fondly called, the same year it was finished.

In 2012, the painting was the talk of the town in art circles after auction house Christie’s Hong Kong offered an oil on canvas called “Bird Seller,” purportedly signed by Manansala in 1976. The painting shown in the online catalog of Christie’s was eerily similar to “Birdman” in terms of the styles and techniques used. The forged Manansala was later pulled out from sale just before the start of the auction, thanks to art patrons, including the elite group Friends of Manansala, who filed a complaint with Christie’s.

The forgery incident prompted a Senate resolution that called for the creation of a National Registry of Fine Art, which will act as a watchdog against forgeries and other fraudulent activities involving artworks.

The first Kapampangan to be declared a National Artist for Visual Arts, Manansala depicted contemporary Filipino life in his work. He is known for introducing “transparent Cubism,” which showed different aspects of his subjects through transparent planes.