08 July 2014 - Filipino sculptor and painter Toym Imao paid a courtesy call on Consul General Leo Herrera-Lim at the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles on July 2.

In 1994, Mr. Imao donated a 1993 mural entitled "Filipinas-Letras Y' Figuras" to the Consulate General during the term of former Consul General Victor Garcia.  It is a contemporary take on the written history of the Philippines depicting the arrival of the Spanish colonizers first in the Visayas, followed by Luzon and lastly Mindanao.  The mural showcases the various cultural treasures of each region, from its indigenous people, sites and fabrics to its fiestas all woven into a visual collage of the Philippines. 

Mr. Imao will return to Los Angeles in a few months to perform restoration works on his donated mural.  He studied Masters in Fine Arts major in Sculpture at the Maryland Institute College of Art on a Fulbright and William M. Philips ’54 Memorial Scholarship.  He received his degree with distinction and academic awards last May 2012. Currently, he is an artist-in-residence at the Creative Alliance, a non-profit organization for artists based in Baltimore.

Mr. Toym's busts and statues of Philippine national hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal are found in Filipino community-dedicated parks and Philippine embassies and consulates in Europe.  His latest bronze Rizal monument was unveiled in December 2012 in Carson City, California. END