Hermes Alegre paints the Filipina

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Multi-awarded artist Hermes Alegre is renowned for his women – on canvass that is. His
paintings are mostly beautiful dusky women depicted in a fantasy of foliage. Alegre’s women
are prized and avidly awaited by art collectors, making him one of today’s best-selling
artists.

Pinay beauty
Art critics have described his works as “portrait-like renditions of women with an uncanny
sense of movement.” Looking at his paintings, one gets the impression that the figures are
actually alive. Other words used to describe his women were “seductive”, “alluring”,
“shrouded with a quiet sense of mystery” and “erotic.”

While Alegre is a versatile artist who is also known for his abstracts, women are still his
favorite subjects. “I’m inspired by the beauty and behavior of the Pinay with their dusky
features, pouty lips and their mystical smile,” he explains. In another interview, he further
expounds on his subject of preference. “I can’t escape it. There are so many mothers and
wives, more women to render than men. There’s something about the beauty of women
that you’ll never see in men. And men are not even nice to look at in the first place!”
His dream project, fittingly, is to create “a mural painting for every embassy depicting
Filipina women.”

Career milestones
Alegre has had at least 10 major solo exhibits to his credit, including one major show in
Singapore and group shows in New York, Belgium and Germany. A graduate of Fine Arts from
the Philippine Women’s University, he was recognized as a “Provincial Treasure Awardee of
Daet, Camarines Norte. He has also illustrated three children’s books.

Despite all the accolades his works has received, what Alegre considers as his greatest
milestone so far is, surprisingly, part of his book illustration work. “I was able to be a part of
a book project for children with National Artist Francisco Arcellana which won the “National
Book Award” for children. It’s the best legacy I could share to my children and to
our kababayans,” he says humbly.
Alegre has indeed gone a long way from his early days when, leaving Bicol to pursue his
studies at PWU, he experienced selling his works dirt-cheap to whoever cared to buy them.
He prefers to be philosophical about those early times. “It was really hard work because I
had to peddle my paintings door to door. But I consider myself lucky because I was able to
experience those hard times. It’s a part of the learning process not only for a visual artist but
also for everyone. It helped me to enhance my art and my craft.”
Returning home
Even though he has made a name for himself in Manila, and even in different parts of the
world, Alegre decided to return to his native Daet to raise his family. He has three kids:
Adanjose 9, Awit, 5, and Malvar, 3. His wife Helena is an artist herself, creating beautiful
hand-crafted jewelry as a hobby. Hermes shares that it is daughter Awit who may have
inherited his talent. “She loves to paint and she’s always hanging out in my studio,” he says
proudly.

He sees life in the province as ideal for his family. “I want my children to experience

a simple way of life. I want them to learn how to value and appreciate the place where their
parents came from. It’s also a nice and healthy place to live in because of the beaches,
mountains and the rivers. These are all serene and very relaxing.”
Alegre’s art likewise finds a positive influence in Daet. He visits Manila twice a month but
confesses that he still feels comfortable and more relaxed working in his Daet studio with his
family. “I feel great and more focused because of the environment,” he says. There are also
plenty of inspirations in his native province. “I often go to the market and fishing villages to
be able to capture the smile and calm gestures of Daetenos. Going around also helps me
come up with good compositions for my painting,” he explains.

A proud Bicolano to the core, Hermes Alegre has this to say to aspiring artists in the region:
“Just stay focused and consistent with your art. And be proud you are Oragon.”
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Multi-awarded artist Hermes Alegre is renowned for his women – on canvass that is. His
paintings are mostly beautiful dusky women depicted in a fantasy of foliage. Alegre’s women
are prized and avidly awaited by art collectors, making him one of today’s best-selling
artists.

Pinay beauty
Art critics have described his works as “portrait-like renditions of women with an uncanny
sense of movement.” Looking at his paintings, one gets the impression that the

figures are actually alive. Other words used to describe his women were “seductive”,
“alluring”, “shrouded with a quiet sense of mystery” and “erotic.”
While Alegre is a versatile artist who is also known for his abstracts, women are still his
favorite subjects. “I’m inspired by the beauty and behavior of the Pinay with their dusky
features, pouty lips and their mystical smile,” he explains. In another interview, he further
expounds on his subject of preference. “I can’t escape it. There are so many mothers and
wives, more women to render than men. There’s something about the beauty of women
that you’ll never see in men. And men are not even nice to look at in the first place!”

His dream project, fittingly, is to create “a mural painting for every embassy depicting
Filipina women.”

Career milestones
Alegre has had at least 10 major solo exhibits to his credit, including one major show in
Singapore and group shows in New York, Belgium and Germany. A graduate of Fine Arts from
the Philippine Women’s University, he was recognized as a “Provincial Treasure Awardee of
Daet, Camarines Norte. He has also illustrated three children’s books.

Despite all the accolades his works has received, what Alegre considers as his greatest
milestone so far is, surprisingly, part of his book illustration work. “I was able to be a part of
a book project for children with National Artist Francisco Arcellana which won the “National
Book Award” for children. It’s the best legacy I could share to my children and to
our kababayans,” he says humbly.
Alegre has indeed gone a long way from his early days when, leaving Bicol to pursue his
studies at PWU, he experienced selling his works dirt-cheap to whoever cared to buy them.
He prefers to be philosophical about those early times. “It was really hard work because I
had to peddle my paintings door to door. But I consider myself lucky because I was able to
experience those hard times. It’s a part of the learning process not only for a visual artist but
also for everyone. It helped me to enhance my art and my craft.”

Returning home
Even though he has made a name for himself in Manila, and even in different parts of the
world, Alegre decided to return to his native Daet to raise his family. He has three kids:
Adanjose 9, Awit, 5, and Malvar, 3. His wife Helena is an artist herself, creating beautiful
hand-crafted jewelry as a hobby. Hermes shares that it is daughter Awit who may have
inherited his talent. “She loves to paint and she’s always hanging out in my studio,” he says
proudly.

He sees life in the province as ideal for his family. “I want my children to experience

a simple way of life. I want them to learn how to value and appreciate the place where their
parents came from. It’s also a nice and healthy place to live in because of the beaches,
mountains and the rivers. These are all serene and very relaxing.”
Alegre’s art likewise finds a positive influence in Daet. He visits Manila twice a month but
confesses that he still feels comfortable and more relaxed working in his Daet studio with his
family. “I feel great and more focused because of the environment,” he says. There are also
plenty of inspirations in his native province. “I often go to the market and fishing villages to
be able to capture the smile and calm gestures of Daetenos. Going around also helps me
come up with good compositions for my painting,” he explains.

A proud Bicolano to the core, Hermes Alegre has this to say to aspiring artists in the region:
“Just stay focused and consistent with your art. And be proud you are Oragon.”
The artist and his self-portrait. Below, the abstract work on Mamasapano and one of his
paintings featuring women, which he has become known for.

Multi-awarded Hermes Alegre celebrates his 25 years as an artist with an exhibit in Intramuros
that includes self-portraits and abstracts. His works are currently on display at Galeria de las
Islas in Silahis Center.

Among his paintings is an abstract work about the tragic Jan. 25 incident in which 44 police
officers were killedin a firefight with rebels in Mamasapano, Maguindanao. "What happened in
Mamasapano is wrong. Everything is wrong," said Alegre.

Alegre's works also capture women’s charms and beauty, depth and mystery on canvas. The
artist says that there is something in women’s beauty that continues to inspire him to render
them in art, represented in oils and pastels and drawings. More importantly, painting them is one
way for him to pay tribute to women and celebrates their contributions to life and society.

Also on exhibit are stunning new abstract paintings—provocative, deeply sensual, in muted
colors. One can imagine the women in his paintings reduced in wonderful abstracts as lines,
shapes and vague impressions of raw sensuality.
Born and raised in Daet, Camarines Norte, Alegre studied under Ibarra dela Rosa and Mars
Galang as a student at the Philippine Women’s University
. — BM, GMA News

The show will run from March 7 to 28, 2015 at Galeria de las Islas, Silahis Center, 744 Gen.
Luna St., Intramuros, Manila