Abdulmari Asia Imao (14 January 1936 – 16 December 2014) was a Filipino painter and sculptor. Imao was named

National Artist of the Philippines The Order of National Artists of the Philippines ( Tagalog: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the President of the Philippines on Philippine nationals who have made significant contributions to ...

for Visual Arts in 2006. A Tausūg, Imao is the first Moro to receive the recognition. Aside from being a sculptor, Imao is also a painter, photographer,

ceramist Ceramic art is art made from ceramic materials, including clay. It may take varied forms, including artistic pottery, including tableware, tiles, figurines and other sculpture. As one of the plastic arts, ceramic art is a visual art. While ...

, cultural researcher, documentary film maker, writer, and a patron of

Philippine The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

Muslim art Islamic art is a part of Islamic culture and encompasses the visual arts produced since the 7th century CE by people who lived within territories inhabited or ruled by Muslim populations. Referring to characteristic traditions across a wide ra ...

and culture.

Early life

Imao was born on 14 January 1936 in

Siasi, Sulu Siasi, officially the Municipality of Siasi ( Tausūg: ''Kawman sin Siasi''; ), is a municipality in the province of Sulu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 81,689 people. Geography Barangays Siasi is political ...

. Imao spent most of his childhood in the town of Pata, also in Sulu. His family came from a generation of or boat makers dating back to the precolonial era. At the age of nine, Imao began to show interest for the arts. Imao etched trophies with the shape of a swimmer atop a pedestal for the swimmers in Sulu. At that time, swimmers from Jolo were the best bets of the country for the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competit ...

. Imao finished high school in 1956. During the same year, the Philippine Navy held a floating exhibit named LST which hosted works of Filipino artists,

Fernando Amorsolo Fernando Amorsolo y Cueto (May 30, 1892 – April 24, 1972) was a portraitist and painter of rural Philippine landscapes. Nicknamed the "Grand Old Man of Philippine Art," he was the first-ever to be recognized as a National Artist of the Philip ...

Botong Francisco Carlos Modesto "Botong" Villaluz Francisco (November 4, 1912 – March 31, 1969) was a Filipino muralist from Angono, Rizal. Early life Francisco was a most distinguished practitioner of mural painting for many decades and best known for his ...

and

Vicente Manansala Vicente Silva Manansala (January 22, 1910 – August 22, 1981) was a Filipino cubist painter and illustrator. One of the first Abstractionists on the Philippine art scene, Manansala is also credited with bridging the gap between the city and ...

. Imao conversed with Tomas Bernardo, who was in-charge of the exhibit, about painting and asked if Imao was into the discipline. Imao presented Bernardo some of his works who later took Imao to Manila.

Career and education

Imao wrote to then President

Ramon Magsaysay Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay Sr. (August 31, 1907 – March 17, 1957) was a Filipino statesman who served as the seventh President of the Philippines, from December 30, 1953, until his death in an 1957 Cebu Douglas C-47 crash, aircraft disast ...

to seek a study grant. Jose Maria Ansaldo, aide to the President, helped Imao enter college at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

in Diliman,

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read and pronounced in Filipino language, Filipino as Kyusi), is the richest and List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 c ...

. Imao entered as a pensionado of the Commission on National Integration. Among his mentors at the university were

Guillermo Tolentino Guillermo Estrella Tolentino (July 24, 1890 – July 12, 1976) was a Filipino sculptor and professor of the University of the Philippines. He was designated as a National Artist of the Philippines for Sculpture in 1973, three years before his ...

and

Napoleon Abueva Napoleon "Billy" Veloso Abueva (January 26, 1930 – February 16, 2018) was known as the "Father of Modern Philippine Sculpture" Through Proclamation No. 1539. He was proclaimed National Artist for Sculpture in 1976 when he was 46, making him ...

, who preceded him as National Artists. Imao graduated from the university with the degree Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture. In 1960, Imao entered the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

in the United States as a Smith Mundt and Fulbright Scholar. Imao was able to qualify for the top 20 slots of the scholarship. In 1962, Imao earned his Masters of Fine Arts in Sculpture, major in Metal Brass Casting. From 1962–1963 at the

Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase th ...

, Imao honed his craft as a scholar taking Creative Sculptor in Ceramic Technology. Imao also entered the

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in New York City under the Columbia Faculty Scholarship in the tuition of Dr. Lloyd Burden. who developed the first color processing for Kodak. Imao studied documentary motion picture and photography at the university. In 1963, Imao received the

New York Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, and includes over 200,000 works of arc ...

Grant to Europe and Scandinavia becoming the first Asian recipient of the grant. On 9 June 2006, Imao was named with the

for Sculpture. Imao was also recognized as a brass-making consultant of the United Nations.

Style and technique

Imao is known for using the

okir Okir, also spelled okil or ukkil, is the term for rectilinear and curvilinear plant-based designs and folk motifs that can be usually found among the Moro and Lumad people of the Southern Philippines, as well as parts of Sabah. It is particu ...

sarimanok The Sarimanok (Pronunciation: sá·ri·ma·nók), also known as papanok in its feminine form, is a legendary bird of the Maranao people, who originate from Mindanao, an island in the Philippines, and part of Philippine mythology. It comes fro ...

and the

naga Naga or NAGA may refer to: Mythology * Nāga, a serpentine deity or race in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions ** Phaya Naga, mythical creatures believed to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong River ** Naga, another name for Bakunawa, an ...

as motifs in his artworks and is credited for popularizing the motifs to the Filipino national consciousness. Imao draws inspiration from Tausūg and

Maranao The Maranao people ( Maranao: ''Bangsa'' ''Mëranaw''; Filipino: ''mga'' ''Maranaw''), also spelled Meranaw, Maranaw, and Mëranaw, is a predominantly Muslim Filipino ethnic group native to the region around Lanao Lake in the island of Mi ...

art. Imao's

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic faith is also a source of inspiration in his art as evidenced in his sculptures composed of elements of

Allah Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...

's name through

Arabic calligraphy Arabic calligraphy is the artistic practice of penmanship, handwriting and calligraphy based on the Arabic alphabet. It is known in Arabic language, Arabic as ''khatt'' (), derived from the words 'line', 'design', or 'construction'. Kufic is the ...

Personal life

Imao was married to Grace Bondoc de Leon, an art dealer from

Santo Tomas, Pampanga Santo Tomas, officially the Municipality of Santo Tomas (; ), is a municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 42,846 people. It is a mainly agricultural and fishing community. Local ...

. They had four sons, including

Toym The Ten Outstanding Young Americans (TOYA) program is an annual award given by JCI USA (formally known as the United States Junior Chamber or the Jaycees). It is given to ten Americans between 18 and 40 years old who "exemplify the best attribut ...

Death

Imao died on 16 December 2014 at the age of 78 at his home in

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 4 ...

. Imao was suspected of dying due to heart attack but his family later released a statement through Imao's daughter-in-law, Cielo Imao, that he died in his sleep. A traditional state necrological service and tributes, which is usually given to National Artists, was accorded to Imao on 21 December at the

Cultural Center of the Philippines The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP; ) is a government-owned and controlled corporation (GOCC) established to preserve, develop and promote Arts in the Philippines, arts and Culture of the Philippines, culture in the Philippines.Presid ...

' Main Theater. Imao was later interred at the

Libingan ng mga Bayani Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB, , ) is a national cemetery within Fort Bonifacio (formerly Fort William McKinley) in Barangay Western Bicutan, Taguig, Philippines. First established in May 1947 as a fitting resting place for Philippine mili ...

at noon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Imao, Abdulmari Asia 1936 births 2014 deaths People from Sulu Imao, Abdulmari University of Kansas alumni Filipino sculptors Filipino painters Filipino photographers Filipino writers Filipino Muslims National Artists of the Philippines Burials at the Libingan ng mga Bayani Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)