A man in his rormork (the traditional and bigger version of the tuk-tuk) hovered near us outside the public market early one rainy October morning. We carried heavy backpacks and he asked in English: Need a ride? We actually did. But we had been accustomed to using the PassApp to book these local taxis. With...
Tag: art
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Sisterhood produces sculpture of connections
To mark its 90 years as a sorority of empowered women, the University of the Philippines’ Sigma Delta Phi (SDP) pooled its talents and resources in partnering with the state university to bring into sculptural form the characteristics that make the Filipino woman and the connections that she makes possible. Envisioned as a work by...
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CCP’s ‘Pasinaya’ breaks away from old notions and pandemic isolation
A wristband worth P50 allows a person to experience all the performances, workshops, art exhibits, and film showings being offered on Feb. 3-5 at the “Pasinaya 2023 Open House Festival” of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). The festival, now on its 18th year, has “Piglas Sining” as its theme—a breaking free from the...
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Life as a journey on an iconic two-wheeler
For artist Dominic Rubio, the Vespa, Italy’s iconic scooter, goes beyond being a mode of transport: It is the chariot of the refined, the favored vehicle of a gentleman who manifests an embodiment of the Renaissance. The joy of voyage and bonds formed is a recurring theme in “Dominic Rubio: Life is A Journey,” a...
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Comics: a cultural tonic
That the medium is the message when it comes to storytelling emphasizes that the vehicle is more important than its passengers. But how we cultivate people to become empathetic to our cause is significant to social transformation. During the last election campaign, the urgency to reach different publics required creative ways of transmission and communication....
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Savoring the last morsel (as though on ‘Pakaskas’)
How does one desperately savor the last morsel when our planet stands on the brink of global disaster? But do not we savor the morsel on the pretext of absolute disappearance of plenitude? Is the savoring of a morsel always portentous to the irretrievable end of wealth, fertility, and resources? Savoring the last morsel of...
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Meditations in cathedrals of our own
They say that these are not the best of times but they’re the only times I’ve ever known. And I believe there is a time for meditations in cathedrals of our own.” – Billy Joel (“Summer Highland Falls”) Veronica Peralejo’s installation of concrete cement cubes titled “Empty Rituals” at Finale Art Gallery in Makati City...
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Pio Abad helps us remember
London-based artist Pio Abad’s recently concluded exhibit at the Ateneo Art Gallery was a most unusual one because while he focused on the plunder, excesses, ostentatious lifestyle, and insatiable greed of the Marcos dictatorship, he succeeded in his portrayal entirely through his art, with little need to have the actual objects presented for gawking. The...
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Dancers rebound with Alice Reyes Dance Philippines
Because the dance world operates on rather lean subsidies provided through donations by private entities or local governments, shifts in operations depend highly on socioeconomic situations. The pandemic just about crushed this art form, with theaters and other performance venues closing down, even curtailing dance companies’ additional sustenance from ticket sales, aside from denying dancers...
