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To consider that painting is part of fine arts, we must first define the fine arts and its purpose. According to Britannica, the fine arts, or the arts, is a mode of expression that uses skill and imagination to create objects and environments that are aesthetically pleasing. Not only that the arts affect the senses of the person but also his inner world. The outer appearance of the arts affect our senses and it is processed in our brains and let us formulate an idea regarding the piece. Once the meaning or story behind the piece is obtained, we are able to relate ourselves and finally see the true beauty of the object. Thus, leading to the fact the fine arts is part of the humanities because it helps in giving enlightenment to man. (Britannica, n.d.)

Painting is defined as a picture, in a solid surface that is covered with different colors through the use of different mediums and techniques. It is governed by elements: line, color, value, space, shape, in order to become a guide for the formation of the whole painting. These elements create different moods in order to help the artist give emphasis on certain aspects in the painting (ex: thick lines signify strength). On the other hand, we do not only see the painting but also we have the ability to interpret it because most paintings are created with stories behind them, it may be through the artist's experience, influence or inspiration. (Owen, 2000)

Then we come to the main subject of this part of the paper: how is painting part of fine arts? Since the main purpose of the fine arts is to appeal to the senses and influence the inner world of the person, painting does exactly the same thing. Through the use of the different elements, painting appeals to the eyes and we appreciate it for its mixture and variation and presence of unique figures. But behind every painting, like I said above, there is a story that influences the individual that views or studies a painting. Even with the title of the painting, we are drawn to discover the story and the reason why it was created. Once we discover the story, these artistic creations relate to and gives our humanity value. (Britannica, 2002)

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THE RAPE AND MASSACRE OF ERMITA BY LORENZO DIOSDADO

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THE RAPE AND MASSACRE OF ERMITA BY LORENZO DIOSDADO

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I first saw this painting during my first visit to the Philippine National Museum of Fine Arts where I was so amazed at how big this painting was. However, during my second time, I began analyzing the painting and I was left speechless. The Rape and Massacre in Ermita not only portrayed the horrendous killings, abuses of the Japanese occupation in the Philippines but it was also a portrayal of the traumatic effect that the Filipinos, especially young children during that period, experienced and the lifelong effect that these had. As for the form of the painting, we can divide the group of figures into three: the dead woman, the woman being raped with her baby watching and the soldier killing a man with a woman looking back. The figures are arranged where the baby watching and crying, the woman about to be raped or harassed together with what follows it (the man being killed while a woman glances over) are placed in the middle ground of the picture. As for the background, the only figure is the woman looking behind her shoulder with a cross on the upper left side of the picture and a window that gives us a glimpse of chaos, which dominates the right side. Meanwhile, the dead woman dominates the whole of the foreground.

It can also be observed that the figure of the woman to be raped and her soon-to-be rapist are taller, due to them standing up, than the other figures which are seen either crouching or lying down.

As for the elements, we can see that the green color is used in almost the whole of the piece.. This technique that Lorenzo uses coincides with the representation that the color green might actual mean the invasion of the Japanese or the militants. Lorenzo uses a mixture of orange, brown and green to represent such desolation caused by the Japanese. It can be seen in the "fire" behind all of the figures. The artist gave the colors more intensity. On the other hand, the artist used lines to represent tension in the scene. Thick and hard lines are used to express the emotion of the people and to give emphasis through outlining their figure (ex: the lines in the soldiers' clothing). While for smooth lines, these are used in outlining the "view" of the desolation behind them, that not only serve as a backdrop but also a scenery that connects with the "war" that is going on inside the house.  As for the value, the artist used sort of a chiaroscuro style because the picture did not look too dark nor too light. We can say that the source of light came from the windows where the desolation (fire) have happened. And this later on had an effect on the figures, in which they seemed to dark and rigid compared to the scene behind them. (Caruncho, 2019)

Before going to my actual interpretation of the painting, we must first discuss the figures and how it came to be that way. The whole picture is a cycle wherein the woman about to be raped while a baby watches signifies the first step of the cycle of the picture, it is followed by the killing of a man, ending with a woman dead on the floor. The first step signifies the beginning of struggle and suffering when war came to the place. The baby, representing children or the youth have a secondhand experience of what suffering is all about: having no freedom to fight at all (portrayed by the rape of the woman). We can say that this baby have grown and that is why we go to the second step of the cycle where the actual killing happens with a woman simply looking at the scene without any remorse in her eyes. This then represents the youth that have been used to the fact that suffering is actually part of their lives and nevertheless, they don't have any power or weapon to go against it. So they only look at suffering, waiting for the day when death will come pick them up. Lastly, followed by this, is the actual death of a woman (representing the baby and the woman in the previous steps). This signifies that in war or suffering, life inevitablely ends. The woman have been living her whole life seeing suffering in another person's perspective and now that she has experienced it firsthand, is actually tragic. However, above all of this, the love of Christ will always prevail. This is seen through the image of the cross on the top left of the picture, looming down on the whole fiasco that has been going on. This represents that God is always watching over us, He knows what we are going through. And some people may ask,  "Why does God allow people to suffer under His rule?" God does not let us suffer but He wants us to understand the open door He held for us in order to reach out to Him and doing something to resolve the kind of problem that is similar to suffering. This painting may depict the destruction the Japanese in the Philippines but I think Lorenzo also wants to be vocal about the faith of the Filipinos to God and how it is sometimes the only thing that would take us away from war.