León Gallery opens its doors to treasure-seekers and culture enthusiasts as the Leon Exchange 37th Online Auction on Oct. 25, 2025, 11am.
By virtue of Proclamation 798, October is annually recognized as “Museums and Galleries Month” in the aim to foster the preservation and enrichment of Filipino culture. “There is a need to arouse the national consciousness and pride in our rich culture and national identity,” it says, “expressed in all media of art and culture, historical and religious artifacts.”
PROPERTY FROM THE ALBERT E. AVELLANA COLLECTION, Arturo Luz (1926 – 2021), Notations 7A, 1978, Intaglio, hand-signed (lower right), print 1/20, 28” x 19 1/2” (71 cm x 50 cm)
The collection of the pioneering Albert Evangelista Avellana is something to keep an eye out for. A gallerist, a stylist, and a designer, among others, Albert founded Avellana Art Gallery in 1997, developing a program that cultivates artists of different generations to pursue their artistic voices. This selection of works from his personal collection sheds light on the friends he has nurtured and careers he helped cultivate. The print works of Arturo Luz and Jose Pardo are among the works this illustrious collection brings.
Mauro Malang Santos (1928 – 2017), ‘Woman’, signed and dated 21.12.74 (upper right), charcoal on paper, 15 1/2” x 24” (39 cm x 60 cm)
A wide array of Filipino talents spanning different generations shine their light in this catalogue. Mauro Malang Santos’ Woman reflects the artist’s unique blend of modernist abstraction and figurative memory, an interesting depiction of Filipino women through overlapping shapes and abstract geometry.
Fernando Amorsolo (1892 – 1972), Portrait, signed and dated 1954 (lower right), oil on canvas, 39 1/4” x 29 1/4” (100 cm x 74 cm)
Fernando Amorsolo’s Portrait is a dazzling portrayal of the artist’s magnificent colorism. An excellent portraitist himself, Amorsolo’s profound knowledge and utilization of colors enabled him to place the right amount and location of shadows and highlights, as manifested in this portrait of an esteemed gentleman in a gray suit.
Norma Belleza (b. 1939), Mother and Child, signed and dated 1983 (lower right), oil on canvas, 24” x 30” (61 cm x 76 cm)
Norma Belleza’s Mother and Child is an example of the artist’s polychromatic folk genre painting. Known for her predominantly women-centric paintings, Belleza’s works embody that amicable and comforting rural life.
Augusto Albor (b. 1948), ‘Illumination’, signed and dated 1994 (lower left), oil and acrylic on canvas, 30 1/2” x 30 1/2” (77 cm x 77 cm)
The works of minimalist Augusto Albor provide a glimpse into his exploration of silence and restraint. In Illumination, Albor’s grays and blacks take the center stage, only punctuated by areas of ocher and pale white, a master class of meditative abstraction.
Marcel Antonio (b. 1965), ‘Lost Time’, signed and dated 2023 (lower right), oil and acrylic on canvas, 23 1/2” x 17 1/2” (60 cm x 45 cm)
Marcel Antonio’s Lost Time epitomizes the experimental edge of Filipino modernist and contemporary art. In a captivating mise en scene, Marcel lets the viewers in on the private lives of people hidden behind closed doors, a specialty of this narrative artist.
PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED LADY, Graciano T. Nepomuceno (1881 – 1974), ‘Washing of The Feet’, polychromed hardwood, H: 19 1/4” (49 cm), L: 15 1/2” (39 cm), W: 10 1/2” (27 cm)
PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED LADY, Guillermo Tolentino (1890 – 1976), ‘Dr. Jose Rizal’, marble dust, H: 15” (38 cm), L: 15” (38 cm)
PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED LADY, Isabelo L. Tampinco (1850 – 1933), ‘Marcela Agoncillo Bust’, signed and dated 1925, marble, H: 20” (51 cm), L: 19” (48 cm), W: 14 3/4” (37 cm)
The sculptures of Graciano T. Nepomuceno, Guillermo Tolentino, Isabelo L. Tampinco, and Michael Cacnio also grace this auction.
Large French hand-coloured sea charts of two important ports on the cost of Luzon
○ Plan du port de Subec, en l’Isle de Luçon, D’apres De Mannevillette. Paris, Brest, Demonville, 1775, Hand-coloured. 23 3/4” x 14 3/4” (60 cm x 37 cm)
○ Jean Baptiste De Mannevillette, Plan des Principaux Ports de la Côte d’Ilocos Map, Paris, 1775, Copper engraving with hand-colouring showing a French hydrographic chart of the coastline of Ilocos in northwestern Luzon Island. 20 3/4” x 14 1/4” (53 cm x 36 cm)
Several ephemera from the past serve as highlights for any treasure seekers. Several maps (including French hand-coloured sea charts of two Luzon ports), antique prints, newspaper clippings, and books testify to humanity’s continuous pursuit of knowledge, a feat we continue to this very day.
Luxury rings, fine jewelry collections, exquisite tableware, sturdy furniture, and religious reliefs and sculptures are also on the table.
León Gallery invites everyone to its 37th Leon Exchange Online Auction, from April 20 to 21. To browse the online catalog, visit https://leon-gallery.com/. For further inquiries, email info@leon-gallery.com or contact 8856 2781. Bidding begins at 11 AM and will be online at www.leonexchange.com.
