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Rich Heirs on Instagram: Heart Evangelista, artist, model and first lady of Sorsogon

Aside from being a beauty and fashion influencer, Heart Evangelista is also a well-known painter and philanthropist.

Joanna Lee

11 Dec 2020

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Heart Evangelista is a woman of many talents, not only is she a successful model, visual artist, and YouTuber with over 2 million subscribers, she’s also a passionate philanthropist and the first lady of the province of Sorsogon.

Born Love Marie Payawal Ongpauco-Escudero, she is the daughter of Reynaldo Evangelista Ongpauco and Maria Cecilia del Gallego Payawal. Her father is a well-known restaurant magnate who’s also a member of a Chinese-Filipino clan that owns and manages the Barrio Fiesta Group of restaurants in the Philippines, while her mother’s family owns a sugarcane plantation in Camarines Sur.

In 2012, she began dating Francis Joseph “Chiz” Guevara Escudero, the current governor of Sorsogon, who was the then senator of the province. They announced the news of their engagement in August 2014 and married a year later in Balesin Island, off the coast of Polilo, Quezon.

So what is it like to be Heart Evangelista? With over 7.1 million followers on Instagram, here’s a sneak peek into a slice of her fashionable life.

As a model, influencer, and frequent guest to international fashion shows, Heart is always dressed to the nines in some of the most glamorous labels and covetable pieces, from Louis Vuitton and Dior, to Carolina Herrera and Chanel.

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A post shared by Heart Evangelista (@iamhearte)

Heart is also known as an accomplished painter, having sold out solo exhibitions from galleries such as the Ayala Museum and Galerie Joaquin. In her paintings, she uses her real name, Love Marie. However, in recent years, she’s more recognised as the artist who created unique paintings on luxury bags, such as the Hermès Birkin. She even revealed in a YouTube vlog on 24 July, 2020 titled “Work from Home: How I Paint on Handbags for My Clients”, showing viewers a six-and-a-half minute look into her creative process.

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A post shared by Heart Evangelista (@iamhearte)

With her wealth and influence, she has also made several contributions to charity work. Since 2006, she’s been running a foundation called “Heart Can” in an effort to help children suffering from respiratory diseases. She’s also a supporter for the passage of the SOGIE Equality Bill, which provides protection on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression. Heart is also an animal lover, being a spokesperson for PAWS (Philippine Animal Welfare Society) to help launch projects such as the “Have a Heart for Aspins (an indigenous mixed-breed dog in the Philippines)” campaign.

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A post shared by Heart Evangelista (@iamhearte)

She also owns a few pets, from her rescue dogs and cats, and encourages adoption by fostering strays she encounters. If you’d like to see more of her famous pooch, a black-and-white Aspin named Panda, the latter has her own Instagram here.

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A post shared by Heart Evangelista (@iamhearte)

Heart is also – like many of us – a beauty addict, who loves playing around with makeup and skincare with some of the biggest luxury beauty brands.

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A post shared by Heart Evangelista (@iamhearte)

So what’s next for Heart Evangelista? Well, you can look forward to her showcasing her musical prowess, as she will soon be releasing a single after re-discovering her recording from 15 years ago.