CAPIZ FLASHBACKS

The “Institute Capiz” In 1907 And Its Founder

by BIENVENIDO P. CORTES

There used to be a school in the early history of Capiz town (now Roxas City) which was founded by Telesforo Sucgang in 1907 which existed until 1911. The location of this school in Roxas City could not be determined because this short-lived educational institution left no record of achievements except the interesting and brilliant anal of its founder, Telesforo Sucgang.

Who is Telesforo Sucgang? Sources from the National Historical Commission (1973) states that he is a native of Banga, Capiz (now Aklan). He could also trace his roots to Sapian, Capiz where his mother, Matea Alayon, hailed.

His artistic talents led him to the Academia de Dibujo y Pintura where he met Jose Rizal, and became his classmate in the sculpture class.

In the 1879 Liceo Artistico-Literario contests, Sucgang bested Rizal in the field of sculpture. His bust of Cardinal Cismeros earned award over Rizal’s bust of Cervantes. Rizal’s poem “A la Juvintud Filipina” won first prize , however,  in the literary category.

Sucgang was a painter, a propagandist, a composer, and a revolutionary.

It was in the early 1900’s when his prolific mind thought of bringing education to his province. He formed Institution Aklan in 1905 and then established one in Capiz in 1907. Short lived, but the institution was one of the great legacies of Sucgang to the Capiceno people and the entire nation.

TelesforoSucgang 

(1855 – 1916)

Telesforo Sucgang was a painter, sculptor, musical composer and educator. Born to  Eusebio Sucgang and Matta Alayon  on January 5, 1855, in Banga, Capiz (now Aklan). He attended the College of San Jose, took up music lessons and then transferred to Letran where he received his A.B. degree. Thereafter, he enrolled in the Academia de Dibujo y Pintura and studied painting under Lorenzo Rocha and Agustin Saez. He also studied sculpture. In 1879, in a contest sponsored by the Liceo Artistico-Literario, his entry, a bust of Cardinal Cisneros, won the prize in sculpture together with Glicerio Janson’s entry.

He went to Madrid in 1884 as a government pensionado for four years with Esteban Villanueva. In 1893, after nine years, he returned to Manila, accepted a royal appointment in the Esscuela de Artes y Oficios in Iloilo where he taught modeling and engraving.  During the second half of the revolution he joined the rebels.

At the establishment of the American sovereignty, Sucgang turned to education. He founded the Instituto de Visayas in Jaro, Iloilo in 1900, the Instituto Aklan in 1905, and another one in Capiz in 1907. Then he taught in the U.P. School of Fine Arts. Finally, he founded the Colegio de Minerva in Manila in 1912. He died on December 16, 1916. He had 12 children by his wife Manuella Mateo y Villanueva, a native of Madrid, Spain.

Sucgang’s painting consisted of historical canvasses: “El Desembarco de Magallanes,” and “La LLEGA DE Legaspi y Urdaneta”; marine paintings like “estamos Salvados” and “Steamship Buenaventura’; and portraits, notably that of  Jose Rizal’s, said to be one of his finest, having the closest resemblance to the patriot. His sculptures were religious in nature, like “La Purisima Conception” and “El Despojamiento de la Sagrada Tunica.” Two of his musical compositions, copies which are unavailable at present, were “La Bahia de Manila” and “La Rosa Temprana.”

(Sources:  Notable Personages of Aklan, Antique, Capiz and Iloilo, National Historical Commission, 1973.) /MP