A FISHERMANS' son from Mindanao who painted the official portrait of President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacañang will be joining the President for dinner on Thursday.
Macky Bongabong, 31, still could not believe that one of his works was appreciated by President Duterte, who even invited him to the palace in these upcoming days.
"Wala na pud ko'y lain na ikahangyo pa maulaw pud ko magdemand ug lain. Maulaw man gud ko mu-demand nga tagaan mi niya ug bisan unsa kay dili jud na ingon ana ang akong pagkatao. Enough na sa akoa na gi-invite mi niya ug dinner, na naganahan siya sa painting. Akong painting natapad kay Fernando Amorsolo. Kung maghuna-huna ko ato, dako na kaayo to na-achievement sa akong life (I could not ask for more, I also do not want to ask for any favor whatsoever because I am not that type. It is enough for me that the President invited me and that he liked the painting. It is an achievement that my painting is placed beside Fernando Amorsolo. If I think about it, it is really a big achievement in my life)," Bongabong said.
Bongabong said a Malacañang staff went to his shop to commission him for the painting.
He said it took him a month to finish the painting and that he cannot believe that he was chosen since there are many others more skilled than him.
Bongabong said he did not consider himself as excellent in his field since he only started painting professionally in 2007.
"I just considered my materials as something that you can find in the sidelines, the ones you cannot consider the best but I strove hard to create the best," Bongabong said in the vernacular.
"Maybe they saw my work lately as I have also observed myself so focused in creating portraits, in a way that I don't really do anything except making them. It is because I really love to draw and copy faces of people. It is my passion. Painting is my life," Bongabong said.
Bongabong said the achievement is not without hardships, as he recalled back then that as he started his budding career as portrait artist, his clients oftentimes return his work because they did not like it.
This motivated him to give more focus in his work and provide the best masterpieces.
He was inspired to paint in Tagali Elementary School in Zamboanga where he joined many poster making contests and slogan making contests.
"I did not study to paint. I was only inspired and tried to read books, and observe other people," he said, adding that his skills using charcoal, pastel, watercolor, acrylic, and oil were self-taught.
"So it was through my curiosity and my eagerness to learn, I really worked hard to build my passion in painting," he said.
Bongabong was born to a poor family in San Vicente, Barobo in Surigao del Sur.
His father was taking on any available jobs, but later concentrated on fishing to provide the needs of their family.
He has five other siblings.
His family moved from Barobo to Zamboanga City when he was two years old. He grew up in the fishing village of Sangali in that city.
His father, Alberto Bongabong, taught him to sew fishing nets, which became a part-time job when he was in high school.
He would also join the "hulbot-hulbot" (illegal trawling for fish) with adults to fish in the sea for weeks, Bongabong wrote in his Facebook page.
When his mother Evelyn passed, they moved to Pagadian, where he finished high school.
It was also there when he was inspired to paint after emerging as champion in the National Poster Making Contest by the Philippine Association of Water District held in Bacolod city 2003.
He went on to college but could only go as far as second year, after which he dropped out to find greener pastures.
He went to Davao bringing nothing with him but his dreams and slept on the sidewalk of Uyanguren (R. Magsaysay Avenue).
"It was my first experience of a peaceful sleep on the street," he wrote.
"I started dreaming of having a small shop inside the mall. Little by little, from one client and to another, I saved money and was finally able to afford a 1x3.5 meters space inside Victoria plaza beside Kodak. I started my shop in January 2013 and expanded by March that same year, but this time, inside a prestigious mall, Abreeza," he said.
Bongabog said the painting of President Duterte is his biggest project so far.
He said he is really excited to have dinner with the President, a wish that will soon come true.