1909 - 1995. Eduardo Masferre, father of Philippine photography and true cultural hero, was born more than 90 years ago in the Gran Central Cordilleras of Luzon to a Spanish soldier-turned-farmer and his Filipina (Kankanaey) wife. He began his studies in Spain when he was very young but finished school in the Philippines, after which he went to work with American missionaries in Sagada, the town of his early childhood.

In 1933, he bought his first camera (a Kodak Graphlex which his family has kept intact to this day), and taught himself the complicated art and science of photography. With surprising instinct and persevering ingenuity, he learned to develop and paint his own prints, making do with the materials available to him.

After World War II, he opened a studio in Bontok. To support his family (he was married to Nena Ogues, with whom he had six children - Roland, Jaime, Nena, Pancho, Leonor, Elvira), he turned to farming. But photography was his first love. Expecting little or no compensation for his efforts, he continued to persevere in his efforts to capture on film and preserve in print something of the culture that ran in his veins.

The mestizo artist's passion for photography was fueled by his love for the Cordilleras and its people. Over the course of his long career, he continually sought to explore and portray the beauty of the indigenous mountain cultures. In photographs that captured everything from basic daily tasks to local events, Masferre endeavored to reveal the simplicity and the magnificence of local customs and traditions before their inevitable transformation by technology and industrialization.

Sadly, Masferre's work was not fully appreciated by his own countrymen until late in his career. It was only in the 1980s that his work started to attract local buyers and galleries, and the media started to pay attention to his work and cultural contributions. His first Manila exhibit was in 1982, quickly followed by international shows in Denmark and Tokyo. In 1988, a compilation of his work - E. Masferre: People of the Philippine Cordillera, was released. In 1989, he exhibited his work in France, at Les Recontres International de La Photographie - the first and the only Filipino, thus far, to be bestowed this tremendous honor. In 1990, the Smithsonian bought 120 of his prints - replicas of those prints now travel the world in honor of the Cordillera people and their faithful documenter.

Note: The photo above is one of the last known public photos of Masferre. He is standing with fellow photographer Tommy Hafalla.

Photo by WILLY MAGTIBAY

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