published in Korea.net

She greets friends and acquaintances with a demure smile and disarms with her wit.

Madame Ana Algabre-Hernandez made little effort in charming her all-women audience during the Women’s Month Celebration at the Philippine Embassy in Seoul last March 31, 2019 and at the Seoul International Women’s Association (SIWA) Working Women Networking Event in April 2019. Self-aware and confident, she would unpredictably blurt out self-deprecating humor that made the women pause before laughter escaped their mouths. But there’s more to her eloquence.

She authored two books, “Binibining Stewardess: Mga Kwento ng Flight Attendant at Iba Pa” (Ms. Stewardess: Stories of a Flight Attendant and many more) and “Welcome Aboard! The Ultimate Flight Attendant Guide for a Successful Sky-High Career”. Her experiences as a Flight Attendant, Crew Resource Management Facilitator, Cabin Crew Counselor and Inflight Service Manager with Cathay Pacific make her a credible resource person and book author on the subject. She is also a published poet and children’s story writer. To top it all, she is a painter whose collection of work had been the highlight of a painting exhibition at the Philippine Embassy during the Women’s Month celebration. These and more from a woman who graduated Cum Laude from the University of Sto. Thomas (Manila) with an A.B. Behavioral Science degree. She also has a diploma in Child Psychology and Teacher Aide Program at Thomson’s Education Direct.

As the wife of the former Philippine Ambassador to Korea, Ambassador Raul Hernandez, whose five-year stint ended last month, April 2019, she has generously given tribute to the Korean women and Filipino marriage immigrants here in Korea through her paintings, particularly the painting series “Koreana: Korea in the Eyes of a Foreigner”.

The Koreana series started with “Beauty is Universal”. She was inspired by Korean women’s femininity, elegance and grace. The painting shows a tall and slim woman in Hanbok with lime green top, a yellow canary bow and magenta skirt. This is her brave interpretation of women in Korea while bringing home the message that “no woman is neither too skinny or too big, too much or too little, too dark or too light.” This is her best way to encourage Korean women to be empowered, both by their physical beauty and their beauty from within. She accompanied this painting with a special poem titled “Sparkle” that she penned:

“Sparkly, sparkly night

A woman in her might

For what is good and bright

The universe conspires to light”

Madame Ana recognizes how Filipina immigrants have adapted to Korea and its culture. She has high respect towards their resilience. Despite the challenges married immigrants encounter, they surround themselves with positivity. This is what the painting,“The Color of Joy”, embodies.The woman in purple Hanbok is a Filipina married immigrant surrounded by a dominant pink color. The intentional color scheme is putting a highlight on the romance found by the Filipina immigrants in Korea and it is with the artist’s wish for the women to be surrounded with the colors of joy and “build a family founded on love and fidelity with their Korean spouses and raise beautiful bi-cultural children.” This artwork was donated to the Korea Times a week before the Ambassador and Madame Ana finished their tour of duty here in South Korea.

The Asean Culture House in Busan is another lucky recipient of Madame Ana’s painting with the title “It’s Christmas Everyday”. The Philippines is known to celebrate the longest Christmas so this is an apt tribute to every Filipina immigrant who has embraced the culture and tradition of their Korean spouse. Harmonizing this acceptance of the Korean culture, “It’s Christmas Everyday” reminds the immigrant women of their roots. The artist is wont to express herself in poetry so for this painting, she wrote:

“For what the eyes can be mistaken,

The heart knows for certain.

Is it dusk or dawn,

I need not know,

For each is a promise of the other,

Dusk or daw.”

The Ambassador’s favorite among his wife’s painting is “The Joy of Spring” which also happens to be part of the Koreana series. It held a most special place in the Ambassador’s office here in Seoul. A few days before they left for their new assignment in Ankara, Turkey, they gifted the painting to the embassy. It’s a lovely reminder of the Hernandez’s. Madame Ana offered to explain, “My husband agreed with me that when we give, we give our best.”

Asked if she is selling her paintings, she readily answered “No”. With conviction, she said her artworks are priceless. She decided to donate some of her paintings instead as this is her sincere way of “thanking Korea for the people I met, the country that I have I lived in, and the memories that I will bring.”

She ends with the assurance that she will continue to paint and add to the Koreana series she has started. After all, she has a five-year memory bank of her stay here in Korea to rely on and draw inspiration from.

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