LOOK: Butterfly wings used to make portrait of pope, president

 

A collection of mosaic portraits - including those of a pope and a president - is turning out to be one of Cebu City's major artistic attractions.

 

What sets these portraits apart is that they are made from butterfly wings, GMA Cebu's Alan Domingo reported Thursday.

 

 

The works by lepidopterist Julian Jumalon are called lepido mosaics - butterfly wings arranged to form the portrait of a prominent personality.

 

Personalities depicted by such mosaics include Saint John Paul II, former President Sergio Osmeña, and Don Vicente Sotto.

 

Jumalon, who also made water color paintings, was a multi-awarded artist.

According to the Jumalon Butterfly Sanctuary website, he was the first Cebuano Fine Arts graduate of the University of the Philippines in 1936.

 

But the Jumalon family particularly values one mosaic started by their patriarch Julian - who died before he could finish it.

 

"He was painting until the end of his life. In fact, ... itong painting ginawa niya ito a few months before he died. Tapos hindi ito na tapos, itong bandang ito ang aking brother na ang tumapos nito," said Professor Jumaida Jumalon, president of the JN Jumalon Foundation.

 

Another mosaic depicting St. John Paul II had been placed near the head of the late pope when he died.

 

"This is the gift of the city to the pope so the pope brought two mosaics. Ang iyang portrait (at) ang Black Madonna of Poland," Prof. Jumalon said.

 

Each lepido mosaic can fetch a price of $5,000 - but the elder Jumalon had made clear his masterpieces were not to be sold.

 

"Si Papa nagsulat ng kanyang will, sabi niya na ang aking mga original pagkamatay ko, huwag ninyong ibenta. You can make a reproduction, puwede ninyong gawing postcard posters so we have postcards na sampu pero naubos na rin ang aming postcard," said Prof. Jumalon. — Joel Locsin/JDS, GMA News