The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Gallery in celebration of the National Heritage Month presents “Panublion: Scenes and Stories,” an exhibition by Negros-based artist Anthony Fermin.

Born in 1976, Visayan artist Fermin has exhibited in Negros, Cebu, Manila, Malaysia, Germany, Austria, and the United States.

He paints the everyday lives of Filipinos with playful yet confident strokes. Each canvas, exuding vibrant hues and colors, depicts life filled with hope. His animated renditions of common scenes express his pragmatic views of culture and heritage.

“Panublion” is Hiligaynon for heritage and in this exhibit, Fermin renders scenes and stories from Silay, Negros Occidental, his wife’s hometown that he has come to love as his own. Out of this fondness grew a passion to capture the city’s long-running love affair with cultural heritage.

Although he is known for his naif works with strokes reminiscent of Russian-French modernist Marc Chagall’s expanses of swirly dark splashes, viewers will also be treated to Fermin’s mastery of impressionism as he renders in watercolor some of Silay’s ancestral houses. —CONTRIBUTED

“Panublion: Scenes and Stories” is on view until May 31 at NCCA Gallery, 633 Gen. Luna St., Intramuros, Manila. The gallery is open daily, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; tel. 5272205; e-mail [email protected]. Admission is free. Guided group tours are available by appointment.