Philippine school of the late 19th-early 20th century.

Philippine school of the late nineteenth-early twentieth century.
"Young man with amphora".
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 101 x 123 cm.

In this portrait of a self-absorbed young woman, the local beauty becomes a vehicle for the universal, thanks to the extemporaneous cadence that emanates from the composition. Dressed in light white garments, the female figure radiates a timeless purity. Her auburn skin, black hair and face with refined features (arched eyebrows, slanted eyes, high cheekbones and shaped lips) are reminiscent of a Filipino woman, a countrywoman of the anonymous Filipino artist. But the large amphora and the pensive countenance introduce a symbolic dimension that transcends the everyday. The container could allude to the myth of Pandora, the first woman according to Greek tradition, the bearer of an amphora that contained all the evils of the world and that, when opened, let hope escape as the only consolation. Although the young woman portrayed is evidently contemporary to the painter, not a mythological character, the amphora and the general stillness introduce a second layer of reading.