Paquil Laguna de Bay, Manila
signed and dated 'C.W.Andrews/1857' (lower right); bears inscription 'L.R Bell (H.V.B's father)/& Georgina Bell " Aunt/Seated/Paguil Lagunade Bay/Manila - Dec. 25th 1857' (verso)
watercolor on paper
7 1/4" x 11 3/4" (18 cm x 30 cm)

PROVENANCEBonhams London, Travel & Exploration, London, 2 March 2022, Lot 22


The present lot depicts two Filipinas performing a traditional folk dance for their Scottish guests, Laurence Robert Bell (the current owner's great grandfather) and his sister Georgina Bell, which is thought to have taken place on Christmas Day in 1857.The two women swirl energetically in the center of the tableau, arms raised, in the graceful motions of the habanera. ‘L.R. Bell' and friends are suitably intrigued. As are an entire room of indio men. A Filipino capitan de barangay, distinguished by a broad salakot decorated with a silver finial and florets that catch the light is on the left. (There are two more of these village chieftains in the crowd as well.) A band plays and the air of festivity if palpable.Andrews had only just moved to Hong Kong from Sydney in 1857, visiting Manila in the same year. He worked for the press in Hong Kong and the Philippines from 1857 into the 1860s, and was the main artist for the short-lived Ilustracion Filipina in Manila in 1859-60.