Filipino artist connects with his “Lola” through collaborative watercolors

Many of us wish we could go back in time to ask our grandparents questions about their life, their family, and what it was like growing up, but Kenneth Tan did not need a time machine. Instead, he used art to connect with his grandmother and preserve her stories before they were lost forever.

In 2014, Tan left his job as a graphic designer in Southern California and returned home to San Jose to help take care of his grandmother – who also referred to by the Filipino term of endearment, “Lola.”

“One day after breakfast at the kitchen table, I asked, ‘What do you want to do today? And Lola said she wanted to do something for purpose,” remembered Tan.

They found that purpose by creating art through paper and brushstrokes. Together, they would form more than just a bond. Instead, Kenneth would get a full picture of a life rediscovered.

“As she was making her watercolor paintings, she would tell me stories about her life in the Philippines,” said Tan. “Stories from WWII, growing up in the Philippines, and I wanted to remember everything.”

To bring those memories to life, Kenneth decided to create his own art on top of his lola’s watercolor creations to complete each story. One of her paintings shows abstract lines of blue and green.

“She said she painted the cape of the knight,” said Tan.

It is a simple painting, that he then used to illustrate and tell the story of a national hero of the Philippines, named Jesús Antonio Villamor.

“So Villamor was an ace pilot of the Philippines who fought for America during WWII,” explained Tan. “And when the war reached the islands, Lola as a child ran for the hills, and when climbing the mountains she talked about seeing planes dog fighting overhead.”

The same watercolor cape turned sideways also becomes the skyline for the dogfight in the sky, with Villamor’s plane intercepting a group of Japanese zeroes from imperial Japan.

Dr. Lily Ann Villaraza, who is a professor and Department Chair of Philippine Studies at City College of San Francisco is a fan of Kenneth Tan’s work. She says he has found a unique way to tell family stories that can help the next generation form their own identity.

“We are not only here in the United States, but we also have these narratives that are in the Philippines,” said Dr. Villaraza. “They come together in our experience, through our families, and it is such a beautiful thing to say.”

The stories are so important, Kenneth curated the art they had created together for two years, and put them into a book titled, “Crescenciana,” the first name of his Lola. He self-published the book in 2022, six years after she passed away at the age of 96.

“For me, it is important to document this, because I don’t want to forget my Lola,” said Tan. “I feel like we live through our stories, and if the stories are gone, then that’s it. Maybe this is my way of grieving. This is my way of keeping her present.”

And this October for Filipino-American History Month, Tan published a second art book titled, “Interwoven” that uses his Lola’s watercolors as the backdrop to tell his family stories through his mother and sister.

“I think we set off on this path together, and I’m still walking it, still trying my best to keep our work going,” said Tan. “I feel like she is still giving me the life that I live. I feel like she is still taking care of me.”

And although his grandmother never had a chance to see the book, her life still lives through her collection of watercolor paintings.

“I’ve kept about 80 pieces from her,” said Tan. “What I love about her work, she didn’t stop to worry if something was correct or out of place. She just painted with a sense of freedom, of wanting to discover. It all came from the heart.”