Johnny E.S.J. Otilano
JOHNNY OTILANO: A FILIPINO PAINTER GAINING RECOGNITION IN THE US by: Robert P. DeTagle,
The child Johnny dreamed of becoming a soldier to help defend his country the Philippines, but his interest changed when he started to dabble with art using the four walls of his home.
With his artistic blood awakened, he channeled his energy and passion for his country through art with a paintbrush and bold, striking colors. Now, the self-taught artist Johnny Otilano has gained a lot of recognition for his ability to summon great emotions and portray a story behind each creation.
An established international artist living in Fresno, California, Johnny still carries that zeal with dozens of works that carry his distinct style and emblem. In addition to visual art, he writes music that relate to his paintings and that are performed at his shows. He is particularly noted for his stirring use of mixed materials, juxtaposing paint with ‘non-art’ pieces to bring immediacy and impact to the finished work.
Last year, at the Pink Show 2010 held at The Cris Sorensen Studio and Art Gallery, Otilano won the People’s Choice Award with his painting entitled “November 25, 1994.“
The Pink Show is an annual art exhibit in Fresno in celebration of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It was founded by Mary Lozano and Cynthia Chapman Manuszak. Cynthia is a photographer who took photos of Mary and other cancer survivors; together they exhibited those photos at the show that was set up to raise money for breast cancer patients.
The painting “November 25, 1994” portrays the death of his mother from breast cancer. In it, Otilano put photos of his mother, as well as of his wife Linda — who is a uterine cancer survivor — and of his daughter on it. It quite simply and starkly symbolizes women fighting for wellness and dignity.
Today, different artists in Fresno, CA participate in the Pink Show; the essential component of their art submission is that it contain pink somewhere on the artwork and be related to breast cancer.
At this year's Pink Show, Johnny won recognition again with his new piece entitled "The Autumn Leaves" not once but twice. On October 6, 2011 at the Sorensen Gallery he received “The Most Inspiring Entry” and “The People’s Choice” Awards with overwhelmingly.
“Autumn Leaves" refers to the song that he wrote after his mother’s death on November 25, 1994 as the US celebrated Thanksgiving Day. Johnny glued to the canvas the photograph of his Mother, stamps that he collected off his mother’s letters, and the Rosary that his mother gave him before coming to the US, then painted autumn colors around it and splashed it with pink paint dripping down the entire piece.
To learn more about Otilano’s art, visit , and check out his interview about the Pink Show at photo.php?v=263019877070804.
