03 Contemporary Arts in the Philippines 2

• Folk Architecture - these are simple structures built of local materials and available tools to provide shelter for its inhabitants.
• Folk Architectures:

  • Bahay Kubo or Nipa Hut (AKA Kamalig)
  • Bale or Ifugao House
  • Ivatan House in Batanes
  • Torogan or Maranao House
  • Badjao's Stilt Houses and Houseboats
• Bahay Kubo - it serves as an icon to Filipino lowland and rural culture. It is a stilt house with walls usually made up of bamboo rods and bamboo mats or sawali, and a thatched roof made up of anahaw or nipa.
• Bale - It is a one-room house with an attic for storage. Located at the contour of the rice terraces, the exterior of the house looks like a pyramid resting on four posts, while the interior is enclosed by slanting walls and ceiling that appears to be spherical that are formed by the loft.
• Ivatan House - are built with limestone walls, and cogon roofs, strong enough to withstand the typhoons and earthquakes that visit the province.
• Torogan - literally means “a place for sleeping,” torogan is a stately house for the elite members of the Maranao tribe in Mindanao.
• Badjao's Stilt Houses and Houseboats - Badjao, the sea gypsies of the Philippines, cruise along the islands of Sulu. Their unique ecological setting and fishing economy compel the Badjao to adjust to the limited space of their lepa or floating homes.
• Maritime Transports:

  • Wooden Banca
  • Vinta
• Wooden Banca - the outrigger canoe is a small wooden boat used for transport in daily activities by people near the coast. It is sometimes highly decorated.
• Vinta - it is a traditional boat made by Sama-Bajau (Badjao) and Moros living in the Sulu Archipelago, Zamboanga peninsula, and southern Mindanao. The assorted vertical colors in its sail represent the colorful culture of the Muslim community. These boats are used for inter-island transport of people and goods.
• Weaving, Textile making, and Fabric Art:

  • Piña Fabric
  • T'nalak Woven Cloth
  • Tingkep Baskets
  • Hinabol
  • Yakan-Weaved Cloth
  • The Tapis of the Kalinga Tribe
• Weaving, Textile making, and Fabric Art - early Filipinos weaved using fibers from abaca, cotton, pineapple and, bark.
• Piña fabric - Piña weaving is the oldest industry of Aklan. Piña cloth is soft and looks delicate but it is durable and long-lasting.
• T'nalak Woven Cloth - woven by the T’boli women of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, Mindanao, it represents the tribe’s culture and tradition.
• Tingkep Baskets - It serves both practical and spiritual purposes in the Pala’wan community life. It is used as a storage container for rice, salt, and personal belongings.
• Hinabol - weaving is a happy activity for the Higaonon hinabol weavers of Bukidnon. Their ancestors have used abaca as a raw material for their clothing, footwear, blankets, and for their fishing gear.
• Yakan-Weaved Cloth - Made by the Yakan tribe from Basilan, it features elaborate geometric designs and patterns that are inspired by nature. The fabrics produced by the weavers are used for religious and ritual purposes, bartered for daily necessities, given as gifts, and used for peace offerings in times of conflict.
• The Tapis of the Kalinga Tribe - the tapis is a costume indigenous to the Kalinga and Apayao. It is a rectangular cloth woman wear as a wraparound skirt.
• Carving - from the northern part of the country down to the south, there is always a wood carving province that will amaze us.
• Paete in Laguna - the woodcarving capital of the Philippines.
• Performing Art - These may be folk dances and music which are developed by an individual or groups of people that reflect their traditions and culture.
• Literature - It refers to the traditional oral literature of various ethnic groups of the country. It includes the story of “Malakas at Maganda” and epics such as “Hudhud ni Aliguyon,” “Darangan,” and the likes.
• Graphic and Plastic Arts - graphic arts are mainly two-dimensional (2D), like sketching, painting, photography, and calligraphy. Plastic arts include sculpture or ceramics which have three dimensions (3D).
• Ornament - It is used to embellish parts of a building or object.
• Anito Figures or Bulul - which represent their ancestral spirit and granary gods. The bulul is placed in the rice granaries to guard their harvest.
• Parol - an iconic symbol of the Filipino Christmas.
• Pottery - Native Filipinos created pottery since 3500 years ago. These potteries serve as a secondary burial jars to hold the deceased. Some of these were decorated with anthropomorphic designs.
• Pottery:

  • Manunggul Jar
  • Maitum Anthropomorphic Potteries
• Manunggul Jar - It is a secondary burial jar found in the early 1960’s in Manunggul Cave, Lippun Point, Palawan.
• Maitum Anthropomorphic Potteries - Earthenware pots resembling human figures were found in Ayub Cave in Pinol, Maitum, Saranggani Province.
• GAMABA - Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan
• R.A. No. 7355 - GAMABA is awarded to a citizen engaged in any traditional art uniquely Filipino whose distinctive skills reached such a high level of technical and artistic excellence and have been passed on to and widely practiced by the present generation in his/her community with the same degree of technical and artistic competence.