Juan Luna’s Spoliarium: A Prophecy?

Juan Luna’s Spoliarium stands prophetic after a netizen artist used it as an inspiration to her work.

Juan Luna is precisely one of the best and most renowned painter in the history of the Philippines. Even the national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal, had held his hand up in the past for the toast of Luna’s masterpiece – Spoliarium.

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Juan Luna’s Spoliarium depicts victory of the slaves against their rulers – gladiators were dragged out in court.

The famous painting which gained first gold medal in Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes in 1884 is currently placed in the National Museum of the Philippines.

Spoliarium is a common term that every student gets to encounter within the portals of the school and even by word of mouth, there is a chance that everyone has already heard about this.

Many heard about it, got amazed by Luna’s fascinating painting skills, and learned about Spoliarium’s history but one person dug deeper into it – Patricia Ramos.

She used Luna’s painting as her inspiration when she joined the #CarboardJustice Movement in social media.

(Click the next page to see Patricia’s own painting…)

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