For the first time in 30 years, some of the artworks of the late Maningning Miclat are now made available to the public through a Silent Auction at Art Circle Gallery, University of the Philippines Diliman, from September 19 to October 5.
Maningning Miclat, a Filipina, published author, trilingual poet, prize-winning artist, translator, and art teacher took her own life at the tender age of 28.
Maningning Miclat’s paintings
Born and raised in Beijing, China for the first half of her life, she grew up to become an accomplished painter in both the Chinese and Western genres, and a poet, fictionist and essayist in English, Filipino, and Chinese.
Maningning had her first solo exhibit of Chinese traditional paintings at the age of 15 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) in 1987. She launched her first book of poetry in Chinese, Wo De Shi (My Poems), that same year. Her poems in Chinese would earn for her a niche in Chinese poetry, counting her as one of the 39 Top-Rated Women Poets in Chinese anthologized in a book published in Beijing.
The prodigiously talented and sensitive artist/poet won the 1992 Art Association of the Philippines (AAP) Grand Prize in Non-Representational painting for her 4 ft x 8 ft oil on canvas, Trouble in Paradise. Her landmark 44 ft x 8 ft mural, Soliloquy, was exhibited at CCP in 1994 and reexhibited posthumously in 2002, and at the GSIS Museum in 2003.
Multi-faceted Maningning sold paintings, wrote for newspapers, designed book covers, taught Mandarin, and even had her second book, Voice from the Underworld, published by Anvil Publishing. At the time of her death in 2000, she was teaching art at the Far Eastern University while taking up her Masters in Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines (UP).
The ashes she left behind are now kept in a quiet sepulcher surrounded by nature’s verdure at the foot of Subic’s hills.
Alma Cruz Miclat with her third book
‘Of Grief and Redemption’ cover artwork by Elmer Borlongan, cover design by Mervin Concepcion Vergara
The auction is part of this year’s event of the Maningning Miclat Art Foundation titled “Ningning sa Dilim,” which awarded the winners of the art competition this year and featured the soft launch of Alma Cruz Miclat’s book, Of Grief and Redemption. Published by the University of the Philippines Press, the collection of essays is the third book by Miclat, author, cultural advocate, and co-founder of the Maningning Miclat Art Foundation. It offers an intimate and powerful reflection on navigating profound loss, memory, and healing.
Maningning Miclat’s rare art collection being auctioned brings together works from two important series in her artistic journey: the Pen & Ink Series and the Lahar Series.
Created between 1993 and 1996, the Pen & Ink Series reflects Miclat’s exploration of movement, space, and the limitless possibilities of the mind. Her early training in Chinese Xieyi painting in Beijing, combined with her formal studies at UP Diliman College of Fine Arts and her appreciation of the Filipino tradition of handmade paper, shaped these works. Through layers of flowing lines and forms, Miclat created a visual language that evokes nature, breath, movement, and the infinite space within the mind and universe.
Maningning Miclat’s ‘Vertigo (Triptych), ‘11.75 x 15.11 inches each, acrylic with Mt. Pinatubo ash, 1993
The Lahar Series, meanwhile, was born from Miclat’s firsthand experience of the 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo. Using ashes she personally collected from Region III and mixed with acrylic paint, she transformed her experience into a deeply personal body of work. The paintings became a means of expressing her emotional response to the loss, upheaval, and human experience brought about by the tragedy, while preserving its memory through art.
Alma Cruz Miclat with Maningning’s lahar and acrylic series and ink-and-brush series
Together, these two series offer a compelling glimpse into the depth and versatility of Maningning Miclat’s artistic expression—from the quiet, meditative movement of ink to the raw and powerful presence of volcanic ash.
‘The Tree is Awakened by the Memory of her Leaves,’ 19.69 x 24.41 inches, pen and ink on handmade paper, 1996
This exceptional collection provides collectors with a rare opportunity to acquire works from an important period in the artistic legacy of Maningning Miclat—an artist whose life and work continue to resonate through her distinctive vision, sensitivity, and enduring creative spirit.
Today, the art foundation named after her carries her legacy forward by serving as a vital springboard for young Filipino visual artists and poets. The annual Maningning Miclat Awards has been featuring poetry on odd-numbered years since 2003 and visual arts on even-numbered years since 2004.
‘Bubble Dream,’ 14.25 x 11.14 inches, pen and ink on paper, 1996
For this year’s art competition, with the theme “Ningning sa Dilim” for artists 28 years old and younger, four outstanding paintings were chosen by the jury composed of eminent and veteran artists Nestor Vinluan, Naomi Banal-Huertas, and Marco Malto. Vinluan and Malto have mentored numerous artists at the UP College of Fine Arts, where Vinluan was former dean and a professor emeritus, and Malto, an associate professor and former department chair. Banal-Huertas is now a much-sought artist after previously concentrating on her home and business.
2026 MMAA Grand Winner Marc Esureña and his painting, with the judges, Alma Cruz Miclat, Julie Lluch, and Banaue Miclat
Kitten Alcantara, judges, Alma Cruz Miclat, Rio Alma, and Banaue Miclat
The 2026 MMAA Top 4, judges, MMAFI trustees, and Art Circle Gallery’s Kitten Alcantara
The grand prize went to Marc Donpol Esureña for his acrylic on canvas titled Puno’t Dulo. First runner-up was Jason Cedric Andres for his mixed media artwork, Musmos sa Sanlaksang Unos. Second runner-up was Mica Collado for her oil on canvas titled Pagpag, while third runner-up was Jayrous Ehmard Vicente for his oil on canvas, Sa Hiram na Liwanag. All four paintings, plus the six other shortlisted artworks, are now on exhibit sale at Art Circle Gallery UP.
The author Alma Cruz Miclat’s book, Of Grief and Redemption, had a soft launch at the Maningning event. It is a rich storytelling of the last five years since the death of her beloved husband, poet, writer, and academic Mario Ignacio Miclat, and her entry into the first half of the seventh decade of her life encapsulated in each of the 59 essays in the book. It is a memoir on grief and loss, a journal on her struggle towards redemption.
It is all memories not only of those five years, which she shared through different publications, but also of the half a century of living with the love of her life, Mario, which echo with grief and pain since their multi-talented firstborn took her own life 26 years ago.
Multi-awarded publisher Karina Bolasco writes in the book’s Foreword: “The entire book is a purposive intimate meditation on love and loss, love as great as sunlight and loss as deep as six feet under. But there are roots that take root and bloom. It is about how on every ordinary day, Alma finds something, someone, somewhere with extraordinary stories to tell and share with others. She takes leaps of faith, and whether or not she seeks it, there is somehow redemption, not only for her and her family and community, but for a nation confronting daily its demons. For with the Miclats, and just by the manner of their past and present, we are certain there is nothing that is merely personal. Even grief and redemption.”
The blurb of Alma’s editor and founder of TheDiarist.ph, Thelma Sioson San Juan, says: “While others write to simply write, Alma Cruz Miclat writes to tell her own life story. In doing so, she bares her pain and tragedy, her happiness and triumph. Her own. Her honesty and bravery distinguish her writings. Her stories go beyond a display of craftsmanship; they bear witness to her own world and beyond it. She knows when to go deep into herself to share her longing for loved ones, and when to venture out to an outside world filled with injustice and untruths. She’s turned her memories—of sadness and joy—into a comfort zone, where even the reader is welcomed. Such is the generosity of this writer.”
The publisher of the book, UP Press director Galileo Zafra, said in his message for the soft launch: “Sa obrang ito, hindi lamang ang personal na trahedya ang naitatanghal; umaalingawngaw din ang ating mga pambansang alalahanin, sákit, at pasakit. Sa kabila ng dilim, ipinapakita ng libro kung paanong ang ating mga manunulat, artist, at manlilikha ay patuloy na humuhubog ng linaw at sinag. Patuloy silang bumubuo ng mga talinghaga at imahen upang salungatin ang kasamaan, bigyang hugis ang katotohanan, at pangarapin ang mas mabuting kinabukasan.” (This book does not only present personal tragedy; it also echoes our nation’s distress, pain and suffering. The book shows that despite the darkness, our writers, artists and creators continue to conceive clarity and light. They continue to create metaphors and images to oppose evil, bring forth the truth, and dream of a better future.)
The book, borne out of a grief of a mother and a wife, seeks redemption, which the Foundation named after Maningning is painstakingly continuing to accomplish. And now, Maningning continues to give back through the sharing of her artworks.
Maningning Miclat Silent Auction
For institutions, museums, galleries or individuals, here are the Silent Auction Mechanics:
Maningning Miclat Silent Auction
Auction period
The Silent Auction officially opened on September 19 and will close on October 5.
Registration
All bidders must register by completing the Registration Form through the link provided: https://form.jotform.com/…/ManingningMiclatxACG-Auction…
Please provide your:
* Full Name
* Contact Number
* Email Address
How to place a bid
a. Click the link provided in the Auction Catalogue.
b. Select the artwork title you wish to bid on.
c. Enter your full name and bidding amount.
d. Submit your bid.
Each new bid must be higher by at least P1,000 than the current highest bid.
Monitoring and bidding
Bidders may monitor the current highest bid through the auction catalogue link and may increase their bid at any time during the bidding period.
* Bidding closes on October 4 at 6 pm.
* The highest valid bid at the close of bidding will be declared the winning bid.
* The winning bidder will be notified by 3 pm on October 5.
Increasing your bid
If you wish to increase your bid, simply send a new email indicating:
* Artwork title
* Your full name
* New bidding amount
The new bid will replace your previous bid, provided it is higher than the current highest bid and is received before the October 4, 6 pm.
IMPORTANT: All submitted bids are considered binding. By placing a bid, the bidder acknowledges their commitment to purchase the artwork should they be declared the winning bidder.
For questions and comments, email maningningfoundation@gmail.com.
