Nestor Leynes

His works were exhibited along with other Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Collection paintings in the 2010 exhibit Sulyap, Yugto, Dalipay: Mementos of Philippine Everyday of the Metropolitan Museum of Manila. Although not representative of his work, his oil on canvas piece A Peasant's Funeral (1948) is on display at the National Museum of the Philippines.

Being already married, Leynes never returned to school after the war and thus never graduated. He found work as an illustrator for Ramon Roces Publications. He created illustrations for magazines like Liwayway and Philippine comics. He was hired as a staff artist for the Philippine Advertising Counsel. Later on, he became the executive vice president for the art department of the J. Romero and Associates Advertising Agency. Leynes resumed painting full-time after retiring in 1980 at the age of fifty eight. He died in March 2016 at the age of 94.

Leynes' first contribution was his 1977 work Bigas ('Rice', also known as Pitong Gatang). It was widely acclaimed for its attention to detail. Former first lady Imelda Marcos was so impressed by the work that she brought the entire collection to the Malacañan Palace for the viewing of her then guest of honor David Rockefeller. Marcos bought several paintings, while Rockefeller bought two. The painting Bigas was among those looted from the palace during the People Power Revolution of 1986.

In 1976, Leynes discovered the works of Andrew Wyeth, a realist American painter whose works became popular in the Philippines during this period. Along with several other artists like Ger Viterbo, Jr., Joselito Barcelona, Emmanuel Llado, and Jaime Roque they formed a group known as the "Magic Realists" (not be confused with a separate movement known as Magic realism), after Wyeth's style.

Nestor Garcia Leynes, Sr (February 26, 1922 – March 18, 2016) was a Filipino realist painter. Leynes is regarded as one of the leaders of the "Magic Realist" movement of the Philippines. He was born in Santa Cruz, Manila.

Leynes was born on February 26, 1922 in Santa Cruz, Manila. His parents were Ricardo Leynes, a doctor, and Enriqueta Garcia, a registered nurse. He had three brothers and a sister. Leynes' parents owned several paintings, including some by the Filipino master painter Fabián Cueto de la Rosa, a distant relative of the family. Probably influenced by his environment, Leynes already expressed the desire to be an artist from a young age. His parents discouraged this ambition, fearing a life of hardship for him.