Juan Luna: A Painter or A Murderer

Juan Luna: A Painter or a Murderer

It is from Jose Rizal’s own words and wisdom that “Genius has no country; genius

bursts forth everywhere; like light and air; the patrimony of all”, which simply indicates

that intelligence, talent, and capability is recognized by anyone, anywhere, regardless of
race, origin, or skin color. Juan Luna was known to be very ambitious, determined to
create a name that will represent the greatness of his fellow indigenous peoples of the
Philippines, and it is his aptitude in painting that supported his ambition.
Juan Luna y Novicio is described as a maestro in the field of arts who achieved
leaving a mark of great impression; how good Indios are, and that they can keep up
with other races. He is also a hero, someone who carries with him the honor, self-
respect, bravery, strict self-discipline, and an unusual style of fighting which is through
his artworks that address political issues in his stance as a political activist, together
with Jose Rizal in their propaganda movement, during the Philippine revolution. But
behind these positive descriptions and commentary of Luna, lies negativities. I learned
that behind his romantic, realistic, and impressionistic styles of painting is a jealous,
womanizer (high-probability), and a hot-headed man.
Among all his paintings, I am shameful to say that Spoliarium, España y Filipinas,
and The Parisian Life are the only creations of Luna that I am familiar with. And with
the documentaries that I watched, I was honestly left with great shock and amusement.
Who would have thought that this national painter who a lot of modern artists look up
to had not only been famous with his artworks but infamous with his proven crime as
well?
The moment that I learned about his crime, my first thought was that the hands
he uses to make the brushes work were the same hands he used to pull a gun’s trigger
and murder his wife and mother-in-law – how fascinating, not the murder part though.
After this revelation, I foretold that he would be in prison, but what I did not expect is
the insult that the Crime of Passion brought. According to an expert, the Crime of
Passion may be interpreted as a plea of insanity, that Filipinos are Sauvage, making all
Juan
Luna’s effort of proving that Filipinos are intellectually capable and talented go
uncertain.
With all these pieces of knowledges, I want to go back to what modern art
promoted, had changed, and influenced in our perception or way of determining the
aesthetics of art. At present time, I believe that the aesthetic relativism mentality had
been unconsciously shaped, honed, and adapted by many. We can all be geniuses and
different at the same time in our thoughts of what is aesthetic and what is not. And in
all honesty, I still perceive Juan Luna’s artworks as aesthetically pleasing; nothing
changed, it was still the same brush marks, colors, figures, visuals, tone, composition,
texture, mood, lighting, subject matter, and style.
There is a big difference between how one should judge another based on
personal and professional status. The crime he committed is something personal, and
his creations don’t have anything to do with it. Aesthetics is seen from how we try to
perceive the painting and not from what we attach to it. It is nonsensical to make use
of his crime just to invalidate what he worked hard for, just to deny the significance of
his creations’ message and purpose. And Aristotle can support my judgment because he
once said that “The aim of art is not to represent the outward appearance of things, but
their inward significance.” This proves that the essence of his paintings, his talent, of
what he is been fighting for, his views and perspectives that he pours into a canvas will
not change just because he committed a crime, did the bullet changed the story of
Spoliaruim? Of the concept of España y Filipinas? Of the meaning of Parisian Life? It did
not.
I am not normalizing that artists are fine to kill or commit any crime because it
would not give reflection to any of his/her paintings, instead, I am trying to point out
that it is the painting that we look upon, how it was created, how it tells us a story, how
it gives us motivation and inspiration, how it affects our way of perceiving things, how
we see social issues, and how we see within our preferences its beauty. Artists like Luna
are geniuses, they are producers of what we judge as either aesthetically pleasing or
not, and they do not force us to do so. Their only desire is to make their audience see
how expressive and impactful art is, to let us know their emotions and stand on a
particular matter.
To end this, Juan Luna is both a painter and a murderer; but when I see his
paintings, he would only be a painter to me – a creator of majestic, aesthetic, and
powerful artworks.
Sources:
Afinidad-Bernardo, D. (2017, September 08). Filipino artist Juan Luna to be honored in

Singapore exhibit. Retrieved December 16, 2020, from
https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/arts -and-
culture/2017/07/28/1722351/filipino artist-juan-luna-be-honored-singapore-exhibit
Mary. (2019, September 28). 101 quotes about Art if you need some Inspiration.
Retrieved December 16, 2020, from https://cravepainting.com/blog/quotes -about-
art
GMA Public Affairs. (2016, October 10). I-Witness: ‘Savage: Juan Luna in Paris,’ a
documentary by Howie Severino (with English subtitles) [Video]. YouTube.
https://youtu.be/54R1nWALZFw
GMA Public Affairs. (2017, April 18). Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho: Misteryosong obra?
[Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/HamkbmW7iEY
CNN Philippines Life. (2018, August 30). Juan Luna’s boceto for “Spoliarium” [Video].
YouTube. https://youtu.be/cCp_3G7gZdw
Defensor, T. (2020, August 13). From The Archives: The Tragic Life And Legacy Of
Filipino
Painter Juan Luna. Retrieved December 16, 2020, from
https://ph.asiatatler.com/society/the -tragic-life-and-legacy-of-filipino-painter-
juanluna

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Juan Luna: A Painter or a Murderer

that intelligence, talent, and capability is recognized by anyone, anywhere, regardless of

Philippines, and it is his aptitude in painting that supported his ambition.

womanizer (high-probability), and a hot-headed man.

texture, mood, lighting, subject matter, and style.

paintings, he would only be a painter to me – a creator of majestic, aesthetic, and

Afinidad-Bernardo, D. (2017, September 08). Filipino artist Juan Luna to be honored in

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