Christina Alpad

Emiliano “Emil” Santos, a polio survivor from the Cordillera Region, did not allow physical challenges to keep him from pursuing his dream of becoming an artist. From being physically carried by family and friends to school because of his condition, he now brings decades of experience and wisdom as a teacher to young and aspiring creatives. It was May 1963 when his mother, an elementary school teacher, and his father, a humble security guard, found him — then six years old — burning with fever.

Emiliano “Emil” Santos, a polio survivor from the Cordillera Region, did not allow physical challenges to keep him from pursuing his dream of becoming an artist. From being physically carried by family and friends to school because of his condition, he now brings decades of experience and wisdom as a teacher to young and aspiring creatives. INSIDE PHOTO 5: Sketch by Santos INSIDE PHOTO 8: ‘Fruit,’ pastel on ingres paper. INSIDE PHOTO 7: ‘Munia,’ acrylic paint on canvas.