Elmer Borlongan

(b. 1967, Santa Mesa, Manila, Philippines)

Elmer Borlongan, also known as Elmer Misa Borlongan, is a Filipino artist born in 1967 in Santa Mesa, Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines. He is known for his work in figurative expressionism and often depicts urban and rural settings. “It was the painter Fernando Sena who introduced me to the art world,” Borlongan recalls. “While I was studying under him at the Children’s Museum and Library, Inc. (CMLI) in 1978, he would open the pages of the encyclopedia and show in class the works of his favorite Dutch painters Rembrandt and Frans Hals. [Fernando Sena…] taught me the basics of drawing and painting. It was a solid foundation to prepare me to the direction of where I want my art to proceed. All of his students imitated his style to understand the techniques he was teaching. It was up to the individual to find his own identity.” He studied at the University of the Philippines’ College of Fine Arts in Diliman and currently resides in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. His works have been exhibited at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, the Asian Art Museum, the Houston Art Museum, the East-West Center Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum, and he is a recipient of the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Thirteen Artist Awards. Notable peers include Joy Mallari, Karen Flores, Manny Garibay, Mark Justiniani, and Federico Slevert, while his influencers are Fernando Sena, Rembrandt, and Frans Hals.