Pacida Abad
Pacita Abad
Philippines 1946-2004
Pacita Abad: A Life of Art, Activism, and Global Inspiration
Pacita Barsana Abad was born in 1946 on the remote island of Batanes in the South China Sea. The fifth of thirteen children, her family was deeply involved in the Philippine resistance. This early exposure to political activism would shape her future endeavors.
She graduated from the University of the Philippines in political science in 1968. The following year, she began law studies at the same institution. During this time, she organized student demonstrations protesting the brutal tactics employed in the 1969 general election. Her activism drew national attention when she and fellow students met with President Ferdinand Marcos after a demonstration near Malacañang. The Abad family home in Manila became a target so her parents encouraged her to leave the country. She arrived in the United States in 1970 where she pursued a graduate program in Asian history at Lone Mountain College. In 1973, she completed a doctoral dissertation on the acquisition of the Philippines by the United States from Spain. After receiving her degree, she was offered a scholarship to attend Law School at the University of California, Berkeley. However, she deferred her enrollment to travel with Stanford graduate student Jack Garrity. Upon returning to California, she relinquished her law school scholarship and took up painting. In 1976, she traveled to Guatemala, where she was inspired by the vibrant Mayan murals and colorful textiles. This trip marked the beginning of her extensive travels, during which she would find inspiration in the cultures and landscapes of various countries.
The couple later moved to Washington D.C. and then to New York City, where Abad took up formal painting classes at the Corcoran School of Art and the Art Students League of New York. Garrity's work as a development economist brought the couple to live and travel to over 60 countries.
In Bangladesh, she became the first foreign artist to live and work in the recently independent country. She was involved with the Shilpakala Academy of Arts and was inspired by the powerful paintings of Zainul Abedin and Rabindranath Tagore. She traveled throughout Bangladesh, painting landscapes and people in cities and villages. Her experiences in refugee camps along the Thai border and in Nepal further shaped her perspective and artistic expression. At the end of the year, she met journalists near the Teknaf Refugee Camp and was shocked to hear about the plight of the Rohingya refugees fleeing from Burma. She also traveled to Nepal and visited a Tibetan refugee camp, where she was intrigued with the painted and appliquéd Buddhist thangka paintings. In Thailand, she initially painted scenes of temples and markets but soon began traveling with international aid groups assisting the Cambodian refugees camped along the Thai border. Here she sketched and painted portraits of the people and their experiences which translated to her paintings. She continued her activism throughout her life and championed support for political refugees.
Pacita Abad exhibited her work in over 200 museums, galleries, and other venues worldwide, including 75 solo shows. Her art is now held in public, corporate, and private collections in over 70 countries. Pacita Abad's life was a testament to the power of art to capture the human experience.
www,pacitaabad.com
We were inspired by Pacita Abad last week. I found her bio one of the most interesting I have ever read of an artist. It would make a great film It was hard to condense it down for this post, so I encourage you to check out her website. She led a life so diverse and full of intrigue that it encompassed several lifetimes. Her work reflected global indigenous cultures and techniques that were perfect for our class.
Comments