Fernando Q. Kabigting

Last night I met Fernando Q. Kabigting, a painter from the Philippines who gained moderate following in Manila and a bigger following in Negros. I first heard of Kabigting back in 1995 when my mother in law commissioned him to paint the wedding portrait of my wife and me. He worked off a picture of us, as he lived in Flushing, New York City. I was first awestruck by his attention to detail. The lines were so true, he even painted the bend in the glasses I was wearing in the picture, a bend that occurred years before. He gained some moderate fame in the Philippines, having pioneered painting on antique Batya bowls from the late 1800s to the early 1920s that Filipinos used to wash their clothes in. In the 1970s, he had a collection of 13 Batya bowls showcasing various Philippine scenes on display at the Rustan's departments stores, scenes of woman playing guitar, children in the cane fields, in the classic Spanish style balconies. He wasn't sure what would become of them until the owner of Rustan's notified him that the then first lady, Imelda Marcos, had came and picked up all of them. On top of this, he was surprised that Imelda, known as the master of mine, mine mine, paid for all of them.

I had always wanted to know what this man was like. My father in law's late wife had a collection of Kabigtings in her apartment in Los Angeles. They were water colors. I always thought that perhaps she had water colors because the oils and acrylics that he worked with, including our painting created in 1995 were considerably more expensive. She had informed me, erroneously, because of a stroke that paralyzed him in 1999, that he didn't have full control of his painting hand and arm, and the watercolors were easier for him to work with. Only when I met him did I find out how wrong she was. Not only was he still painting with acrylics, in addition to his water colors, of which he can do one water color painting each day, but he was creating his art with his left hand now, as his right hand and arm, his first painting arm, is totally paralyzed. On top of all this, his remaining good eye cannot focus, so he must paint virtually with his nose to the canvas.

We ate dinner at la Taverna Kyclades, a Greek restaurant in Astoria, Queens that is hugely popular with New Yorkers, many whom travel from Manhattan just to sample the restarant's excellent Greek food. Kabingting, who invited 10 of us to dinner at Kyclades, sat across from me. The stroke that felled half his body, but not his mind, caused deafness in his left ear and blindness in his left eye, was very quiet at the dinner table, speaking mostly to my father in law to his left side and his wife, Menchu, to his right. Only later did Fernando explain to me that because of the stroke, his hearing is limited to his good ear, and he wasn't trying to snub me at the dinner table. This was after dinner when we went to his home to take coffee and dessert. Because I am not a coffee drinker and had eaten enough sweets for the day, I spent the great majority of my time conversing with Fernando on his artwork, which is absolutely spectacular.

Because it is often rare to meet the artist, I was absolutely awestruck by this man. Half his body is crippled, yet his mind, which is free to visualize his art, is as sharp as a tack. Kabigting will become big. It is really an honor to have met this man who overcame a serious debilitation and continues to inspire all those who meet him.