34 athletes featured in portrait of heroes, legends by Baguio-Benguet artists

May 26, 2018 Community Billboard

The works of two Baguio and Benguet visual artists hit the walls of newly opened The Podium Botique Hotel, May 25, at 3pm when the Heroes & Legends Portrait of Cordillera Athletes kicks off.
The works of Gladys Anne Laciste-Labsan and Joseph Domirez, Jr. will be featured in the two-month long exhibit of past and present great athletes.
“This will coincide with the hotel’s formal opening,” said Podium owner Melan Ku Marquez, head of the running team that include triathletes Menchi Abahan and JT Gonzales, who are both part of the portrait.
Laciste-Labsan has done the painting of the 11 female athletes including Abahan, former SouthEast Asian Games marathon queen Christabel Martes, who won two golds in the Philippine National Games recently, former SEAG javelin queen Erlinda Lavandia, wushu sanda’s Divine Wally and former Olympics bronze medalist Marianne Mariano, wushu taolu’s Kariz Chan and Natasha Laxamana, long jumper Katherine Santos, archer Kareel Meer Hongitan and Majoy Baron, who helped the De La Salle University Lady Spikers to their third straight UAAP volleyball crown recently.
She will also do the portrait of Gonzales aside from Team Lakay’s Joshua Pacio and Danny Kingad, golfers Mars Pucay (pro) and teen sensation Luigi Paolo Wong and wushu taolu’s Ken Omengan.
The Itogon-based Domirez, on the other hand, will have boxing great Rey Tam, Olympians Hector Begeo (track), Gerry Dino (judoka) and Benjie Rivera of wushu sanda, who won a bronze in the 2008 Beijing Olympics when the sport was a demonstration sport.
Others are Team Lakay’s Mark Sangiao, Eduard Folayang, Kevin Belingon, Honorio Banario, Geje Eustaquio and Eduard Kelly, father and son car racers Carlos and Inigo Anton, wushu sanda player Jean Claude Saclag and cagers Doug Kramer and Gerry Verzosa, who both played with Ateneo de Manila where they led their teams to the title.
Two floors will be utilized for the exhibit of the portrait done on a 24 inch by 24 inch canvass using oil/acrylic. PML / ABN