“Splurging” on painting tools .
Through painting, Sofia Pablo found a way to tap into emotions that she doesn’t get to explore, even in the many roles she plays on television.
“Sometimes, there are feelings that you still don’t know what to make of after acting, or confiding in other people. For some reason, you’re still not at peace, like there’s something missing. But I found that painting relaxes my mind and eases my worries,” the teen star told Lifestyle.
Her interest in arts and crafts started in childhood. When she was 6, she made bracelets and different knickknacks like paper roses. Later, she tried her hand at drawing using colored pencils and markers. At 10, she felt she was finally ready for watercolors.
“In my past show ‘Oh, My Mama!,” I saw my costar, Ate Teri (Therese Malvar) painting using watercolors. And she was like, ‘You love drawing, right? Why don’t you give it a try?’ I did and I really enjoyed it. That’s when I started buying watercolor sets and watercolor paper,” she related.
Sofia Pablo stars in the afternoon soap “Prinsesa ng City Jail.” —SOFIA PABLO FACEBOOK
New materials
Now 18, she has grown more invested in her hobby, picking up new materials like canvas and acrylics. There’s not one specific theme or subject that inspires her to paint. But whatever it is, she will likely paint it using mainly pastel colors, because she finds them calming.
She also loves sharing her works with family and friends, including her screen partner, Allen Ansay, whom she gifted with paintings on his past birthdays. “I do it for fun, as a pastime. But I think I have been expanding my horizon. Wow!” she said, laughing.
Pablo doesn’t force herself to paint when doesn’t feel like it. But once inspiration strikes, she can busy herself tinkering with colors for hours on end. “I usually get the urge to paint when I’m feeling super happy or kind of sad, because it helps me express myself,” she said. “But there’s no stopping when I get into a groove. I don’t leave a painting unfinished. Sometimes, I work until 2 or 3 a.m.”
In 2020, the GMA 7 talent put up a separate Instagram account for painting, because she needed an outlet for all the work she had been producing while stuck at home during the pandemic. “I had nothing else to do, so I would come up with something almost every week. I created another page since my main feed was starting to look like an art page! I also wanted my fans to see what I had been busying myself with,” she said.
“Chaos on my palette”
Paintings and pouches
Pablo commands a sizable social media following: 10.3 million on Tiktok, five million on Facebook, and 2.1 million on Instagram. Before long, her fans were asking if they could also get their hands on a painting by their idol. But she knew that the idea wouldn’t be feasible given her show biz schedule.
And so, Pablo struck a compromise—pouches. “Some fans wanted paintings, but I mostly do requests from friends. And I can only work on them when I have time. So we thought, why not make painted pouches, stuff that fans can also use,” she said.
The young enthusiast harbors no illusions about her skill level. She will be the first to admit she’s just someone who learned how to paint by way of mimicking—someone who simply enjoys its simple joys. But schedule permitting, she would love to have formal training so she could hone her talent.
“I never took classes. I just search for pegs and try to replicate those. I’m self- taught. I don’t know anything about techniques—I don’t even know the right way of blending!” Pablo admitted. “But yes, if I have time, or get a longer break, I would definitely love to have some formal training.”
“Dancing Partner,” a gift for Pablo’s screen partner Allen Ansay.
As much as she wants to bring her tools on the set, she knows better not to. “I will get too distracted!” Besides, the filming location for her new afternoon drama series, “Prinsesa ng City Jail,” is in an actual provincial jail in Rizal. Needless to say, the facility imposes strict rules for visitors. “We can’t really bring our own stuff in,” she pointed out.
In the show, Pablo plays Princess, a woman raised near a prison by her adoptive guard father (Keempee de Leon). But despite the environment, she finds love and happiness among people in jail. But still, she yearns to find her long-lost mother. And Xavier (Ansay), an angsty young inmate, could very well be the key.
“My character is mature and takes matters into her own hands. She’s the kind of person who’s willing to give up her own dreams, so she could take care of her father,” Pablo explained, adding that the series has been especially challenging for her and Ansay because it’s their first venture into heavy drama.