Romblon cathedral, ancient Hispanic forts declared National Cultural Treasures

TAMAWAN artist grades mosaic entry in the art competition held at Fort San Andres.

EVEN LOCAL government units must acknowledge the necessity of having scholars in the conservation and rehabilitation of our cultural heritage, said Commissioner Regalado Trota José of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), during the recent declaration of Casa del San Fernando, a colonial-era house on Sibuyan, Romblon, as an Important Cultural Property.

“The NCCA, whose seat is in Manila, can only help as much. Localities must have their own group of researchers and specialists,” José said.

‘Siete Palabras 2013’ adapts ‘new media,’ reaches out to Filipinos abroad

Cultural presentation during the Siete Palabras program

A KEY Lenten program on Philippine TV, “Siete Palabras”—the communal recitation of the Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ, which are accompanied by reflections from priests and testimonies from lay people—is an experience  Filipinos overseas surely miss during the Holy Week, said a Dominican priest who had directed the program for half a decade now.

“In the past years, we have received requests from Filipinos abroad to make the program available to them because, even if they are no longer in the Philippines, they still desire to be one with us in celebrating the Holy Week,” said Christopher Jeffrey Aytona, OP, assistant director of the Social Communications Division of the Institute of Preaching.

Dipolog international fest fetes gong, bamboo music

Vietnamese duo of Ho Khac Chi and Hoang Ngoc Bic. Lord Norven Namoc

THE MUSIC BORNE out of playing gongs and bamboo instruments cannot simply be dismissed as an obfuscated form of entertainment, for it has always been a mirror of “a life of spirituality, subsistence, and of communing with nature in this part of the world,” said National Artist-designate Ramon P. Santos during the first international gongs-and-bamboo music festival, held Feb. 19-22 in Dipolog City, Zamboanga del Norte.

“There’s a need to trace the roots of these musical traditions in Southeast Asia to fully appreciate and explore their significance,” he added.

Jane Arrieta Ebarle’s ‘Hibla’ series off to New York

Hibla 44

IT IS SAID that when an artist paints, she seems to go through a trance, one that brings her to an abyss of colors, forms and shapes, where thoughts do not exist.

Time may stand still but the hands move. The eyes would follow them while the body gestures according to the form that is slowly creating itself on the canvas.

When Jane Arrieta Ebarle starts to paint, she does not live in this world anymore. She seems to transcend from a mind of chaos to the silence of some place where even she doesn’t  know herself.

“It is only the viewer with an open-ended understanding of art who can appreciate abstract art,” said Ebarle.

University of San Agustin, oldest university in Western Visayas, promotes cultural heritage

University chapel

AT OVER 100 years old and Western Visayas’ first and oldest university, the University of San Agustin (USA) in Iloilo is focusing on heritage and history, especially the conservation of the cultural patrimony of the Augustinian institution and of the Church and people of Panay island.

The focus will be evident in USA’s celebration of the 60th anniversary of its declaration as a university on March 1. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, the president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), will be the main celebrant of the thanksgiving Mass at 9 a.m. at the university gymnasium.

Fr. Harold Rentoria, OSA,  vice president for academic affairs and former commissioner of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, said the festivities would  be “a commemoration of the past, a celebration of the present, and a commitment to the future.”

USA was declared a university such by the Philippine government on March 1, 1953. As a memorial, USA will construct the Garden of Firsts, a gallery of leaders, events, and innovations that have contributed to the welfare of society.

Historical markers will also be mounted near the Urdaneta Hall, built in 1939, the oldest intact building inside the  campus, which survived World War II.

Business and other sectors rush to save Manila Cathedral

SAN MIGUEL Properties, Inc. vice president and general manager Karlo P. Estavillo and San Miguel Corporation president Ramon S. Ang hand over the P50-million donation for the restoration of Manila Cathedral to Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle and Tita de Villa.

THE HISTORIC MANILA Cathedral, located at the heart of Intramuros, is now set to undergo a multimillion retrofitting process to preserve its physical structure and to ensure the safety of those who will use it after its restoration.

According to Henrietta de Villa, who was appointed to the Manila Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica Foundation for the renovation and restoration project, the overwhelming support from the faithful is drawing their purpose’s fulfillment nearer and probably earlier than expected.

“With the support from our donors, we don’t have to worry about chasing funds. Because of that we are able to focus more on planning the actual restoration and repair work of the church in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible,” De Villa said.

Collaborating for the cathedral’s redevelopment are De Villa, a former ambassador to the Holy See and a champion for voter education; Cardinals Gaudencio Rosales and Luis Antonio Tagle; retired Chief Justice Artemio V. Panganiban; and Ramon S. Ang, president and chief operating officer of the San Miguel Corporation, who already donated P50 million for the project.

Photos capture facets of a religious shrine and National Cultural Treasure

"La Naval de Manila--Sailing on with Faith," FoTOMASINO

ON THE OCCASION of the formal installation of the National Cultural Treasure marker at Sto. Domingo Church, a group of young photographers is mounting “La Naval, Mother of Faith” at the Museo de Sto. Domingo, which runs Dec. 14-Jan. 31.

Composed of 54 frames capturing the various facets of devotion to the Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario, La Naval de Manila, and of her shrine at the Quezon City church, it is the first exhibition of Fotomasino, the official guild of photogaphers of the University of Santo Tomas founded by award-winning lensman Paul Allyson Quiambao.