Querubin, Nelfa

Born in the coastal town of Concepcion, Iloilo, Nelfa Querubin's early visual memory was profoundly shaped by the maritime topographies of her youth. She initially pursued fine art foundations in Manila, quickly establishing her place as an elite prize-winning graphic artist during the golden era of the Philippine Association of Printmakers (PAP).

In 1973, a random encounter with pliable raw earth completely reoriented her professional timeline, transforming her into a tireless self-taught studio potter. In 1985, Querubin migrated to the United States after marrying Michael Tompkins, establishing an active home and kiln studio in Golden, Colorado. Settled at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, her environmental shift sparked an expansive, internationally recognized era of multi-fired abstract sculptures. Dividing her creative presence between North America and Southeast Asia, she remains an essential matriarch of archipelagic craft development.

Education & Academic Underpinnings
Institutional Studies: Formalized her early creative capabilities at the Iloilo School of Arts and Trades before entering advanced visual training at the Philippine Women’s University (PWU) in Manila.

The Printmaking Cradle: Completed foundational graphic training under Manuel Rodriguez Sr. (the "Father of Philippine Printmaking"), whose rigorous focus on structural plates heavily informed her later approach to ceramic surfaces.

Major Institutional Awards & Career Distinctions
2015: Monograph Milestone – Publication and launch of her definitive aesthetic textbook, A Passion for Clay, co-authored alongside preeminent historians Dr. Patrick Flores and Imelda Cajipe-Endaya.

1980: Inducted Vanguard – Thirteen Artists Award, Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). Conferred for her monumental contributions to the country's indigenous-led contemporary wave.

1971: First Prize (Intaglio Category) – Philippine Association of Printmakers (PAP) Annual National Art Competition.

1970: First Prize (Etching Category) – PAP National Art Competition (For her breakthrough modern graphic plate Power Beyond Human Power).

1969: Grand First Prize (Mixed Media) – PAP National Competition.

International Laurels: Recipient of top honors at North American fine arts festivals, including First Prize in Ceramics at the Castle Rock Art Festival in Colorado, USA.

Exhibition & Institutional Legacy
Selected Milestone Individual Showcases
2023: Gindáp-ung: Querubin's Ceramic Art – Comprehensive Solo Loan Exhibition, UPV Museum of Art and Cultural Heritage (UPV MACH), Iloilo City.

2013: The Homecoming Trilogy – A simultaneous, multi-venue national retrospective framework staged across the Ayala Museum (Desertscape series), Izukan Gallery (Holding Together porcelain suites), and Liongoren Gallery (Harvest earthen pieces).

2008: Retrospective Survey – Staged as an elite career-tracking exhibit at the Museo Iloilo, archiving four decades of transcontinental fine prints and pots.

Selected Group Curations & Transnational Surveys
2019: CONTRADISTINCTION: Gelvezon-Tequi & Nelfa Querubin – Dual Master Exhibition tracking printmaking history and female identity, hosted by the UPV Chancellor’s Committee on Culture and the Arts, UP Visayas.

2018: TIRADA: 50 Years of Philippine Printmaking (1968–2018) – Landmark historical retrospective, Cultural Center of the Philippines, Pasay City.

Permanent Institutional Collections
Her rare early-career intaglios and rugged clay items are permanently preserved within premier public archives and modern art repositories across the globe:

The Cultural Center of the Philippines (Pasay City, PH)

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Collection (Manila, PH)

The University of the Philippines Visayas Museum Collection (Iloilo, PH)

The Design Center of the Philippines (Manila, PH)

The Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art (Denver, Colorado, USA)