Performing Art Centers, Theaters, Museums, and Galleries

[bagel]

This thread will, I hope, contain a lot of useful information about where to find museums in the Philippines. I will start with museums in the Metro Manila area. In the future, maybe people will add information about museums in other cities.

So if you have any pertinent info about museums, temporary exhibits, etc. Please post them here.

Museums of the Philippines

Metro Manila

Lopez Memorial Museum
G/F Benpres Building,
Exchange Road corner Meralco Avenue,
Ortigas Center, Pasig City

8-5 Monday to Friday,
7:30-4 Saturdays
Collections: visual arts, Pre-Spanish artifacts, maps, rare books
Admission Fee: PHP70 for adults; PHP60 for highschool students; PHP50 for elementary school students


Ayala Museum
Makati Avenue cor. De La Rosa Street
Greenbelt Park, Ayala Center
Makati City

9-7 Tuesday to Friday
10-6 Saturday and Sunday
Collections: Dioramas of Philippine history, boat gallery, 19th century painting, Fernando Amorsolo, Fernando Zobel de Ayala y Montojo, ethnographic collections
Admission Fee: PHP350 for adults; PHP250 for students, seniors, children


The National Museum of the Philippines
Old Congress Building
Padre Burgos Street cor. Taft Ave.
Ermita, Manila

9-5 Tuesday to Sunday
Collections: Exhibits are categorised in five divisions: art, botany, zoology, geology and anthropology. Among the many archaeological exhibits is the skull of ‘Tabon Man’; the oldest human remains found in the archipelago.
Admission Fee: Free


National Museum - Museum of the Filipino People
Old Finance Building
Agrifina Circle, Rizal Park

9-5 Tuesday to Sunday
Collections: Among the many displays here, the galleries devoted to the San Diego galleon merit special mention. Porcelain plates, coins, jewelry, armaments and other artifacts recovered from the sunken battleship present revelatory glimpses of 17th century life. The Story of the Filipino People is another must-see for all visitors.
Admission Fee: PHP100 for adults; PHP30 for students with ID; Free on Thursdays

[bagel]

That's all I have time for right now.

To do: (and feel free to do this yourself if you have time )
Metropolitan Museum of Manila
Museo ng Maynila
Museo Pambata
San Agustin Church Museum, Intramuros
Casa Manila, Intramuros
Fort Santiago, Intramuros

What's the museum in Binondo about the life of Spanish-era Chinese Filipinos?

Any more?

Also, if you can post special exhibits here that would be cool.

[JudeD]

Reposting this from Samahan. The exhibit is still ongoing so you can still catch it.

The Shape of Things Spanish

For most architects, fame remains elusive, and immortality impossible. That’s why those who do pass into legend grow even more mythical with time. And in Spanish architect Antonio Gaudí’s case, bonafide sainthood might even be in the offing, the process for his beatification has already been started at the Vatican. Gaudi is one of very few architectural superstars whose name needs little introduction. He has almost single-handedly defined Barcelona's cityscape with his playful spires and towers, undulating tiled roofs, and writhing chimneys that loom like fantastic creatures atop commercial and apartment buildings alike, and with the sculptures that have become established elements of many of the city's parks and public spaces. His fanciful creations and startling architectural forms have left an indelible mark on the artistic development of the past century and beyond.

A photo exhibit of the legendary architect’s most emblematic works will run from October 5 to 31 at the recently inaugurated Ayala Museum. Organized by the Instituto Cervantes, this will be the first exhibition of works outside the Ayala Museum’s internal collection to grace the new museum building since its inauguration. Spanish photographer Marc Llimargas will be exhibiting 51 exceptional photographs of Gaudi’s creations. Acclaimed for their remarkable technique and artistry, Llimargas’ photos have been exhibited in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. This exhibit aims to facilitate a better understanding of the work of the enigmatic architect. The project also coincides with the reissue of the book “El hombre y la obra” (The Man and the Work) by Joan Bergós, which was first published in 1952. In this book the editor commissioned the photographer to faithfully portray the scope of the Gaudi ouvre.

Also an architect, painter, and writer, Bergós collaborated with Gaudí on some of his works and, after his master's death, continued the monumental undertaking of the Sagrada Familia. Llimargas traveled for a year and a half throughout Spain, photographing all of the buildings constructed by Gaudí and interviewing those who knew Bergós. The collection includes images of great beauty and power, accompanied by a series of passages from Gaudi’s own thoughts, thus serving as a visual manifesto to the magnitude and complexity of this great artist. With remarkable precision and imagination, Llimargas has been able to capture fragments or angles of structures that the human eye could not have normally perceived or might have otherwise ignored.

The Instituto Cervantes, together with the Embassy of Spain, are presenting this exhibition as part of Fiesta, the month-long Spanish Festival for Culture and the Arts, held every October to commemorate Spain’s National Day on the 12th. The Instituto Cervantes’ Deputy Director for Cultural Affairs, Jose Maria Fons, declares that “This year’s edition promises to be a truly spectacular affair, with a variety of cultural events, live performances, Spanish movies, culinary delights, wine tastings, painting and photography exhibits, and even an authentic Basque contemporary dance as performed by Spain’s very own artists”. And so, during the month of Fiesta, Manila’s art and architecture lovers are assured of a sumptuous feast for both the senses and the intellect.

The son of a coppersmith, Gaudi was born in Reus, Spain in 1852. He studied at the Escola Superior d'Arquitectura in Barcelona and designed his first major commission for the Casa Vincens in Barcelona using a Gothic Revival style that set a precedent for his future work.

Although unfinished, the Sagrada Familia is Gaudi's magnum opus. Devoting most of his professional life to the project, his plans for the Sagrada Familia are said to "elude conventional stylistic nomenclature." He envisioned the Church as emerging vertically from the skyline of Barcelona. Its dramatically ornate facade has become the city's main architectural attraction, and has been sketched and photographed ad infinitum. Decades after Gaudi’s death, work continues slowly on the Sagrada Familia.

Another Gaudi gift to Barcelona is Park Guell, which was initially conceived as a garden city by Gaudi's patron, Eusebio Guell. The wealthy Guell purchased a large expanse of property on the slopes of a mountain with plans to construct sixty houses. Though Gaudi worked on the commission for over a decade, this forerunner of the subdivision was never fully realized. After Guell’s death in 1922, the city of Barcelona acquired the area and chose to transform it into a public park. Only two houses were ever finished, one of which now contains a Gaudi museum.

Gaudi's intention was to be both bizarre and playful and yet produce designs that complimented nature. The two pavilions at the main entrance are fancifully surreal masterpieces. Their oval ground plans and whimsical roofs must have baffled prospective homeowners. The upper plaza, called the Greek Theater, is surrounded by a famous snake-like bench that features a multicolored mosaic. In the interest of economy, Gaudi acquired tile, factory remnants and unusable tag ends, then arranged them in pleasing formations. The result is a bench unlike any other and of which much has been written. One artist even studied it for over three years, in an effort to "interpret" the work. It remains a mystery whether Gaudi was making a statement, or if the bench is merely intended to be decorative as well as functional.

Over the course of his career, Gaudi developed a uniquely sensuous, curving, almost surreal design style that established him as the innovative leader of the Spanish Art Nouveau movement. Gaudi's characteristically warped form of Gothic architecture drew admiration from other avant-garde artists. His peculiar concepts and complicated designs juxtaposed unrelated systems and altered the established visual order. From a fusion of Art Nouveau and Gothic influences, he came up with an original architectural genre that he termed 'Mediterranean Gothic'.

The director of the Instituto Cervantes de Manila, Sr. Javier Galvan, who also happens to be an architect himself, holds Gaudi in high regard, both as a master of his craft and as a fellow Spaniard. “Past the Renaissance, it is not easy to put a label on buildings. This is especially true for Gaudi’s brand of architecture. He believed in very modern principles, but his works are quite different from those of the modernists, in particular those who belonged to the German school. His designs incorporated many elements from the landscape and culture surrounding him, which is very lush, warm, sensual and expressive. In this respect, he was very Spanish, very Catalan. But his personal aesthetic is so distinct it deserves to fall under its own classification, and it would eventually become a powerful influence on the emerging Post-modern movement. The Instituto Cervantes is thrilled to be sharing this striking series of words and images examining the work of Gaudi,” states Sr. Galvan.

Displaying a fervent respect for the past, Gaudi believed strongly in the use of color and patterns. He argued that since nature is free from uniformity, this principle should also be applied to architecture. He was opposed to superfluous touches and favored curved surfaces for their adaptability, playfulness, and their pleasing interactions with light and sound. His works express a truly organic quality, with intricately sculpted shapes growing out from sinuous stonework and vibrantly adorned with vivid patterns and tile mosaics. In June of 1926, Gaudi was hit by a tram as he was leaving the Sagrada Familia. He died 3 days later, but his engaging presence continues to loom over Barcelona, Spain, and the worlds of art and architecture.

For more information on the Gaudi exhibit and Fiesta 2004, you can call the Instituto Cervantes at telephone numbers 526-1482 to 85 or visit their website: http://manila.cervantes.es

[XetraDAX]

boybaha: Its Bahay Tsinoy. Its located within Intramuros, not Binondo.

Anyway, try to visit the University museums around Manila. (Vargas Museum, UST Museum of Arts and Sciences, The Museum- DLSU, and the Ateneo Art Gallery.

[ron_guevara]

Outside Manila, in the Gateway Business Park in Gen. Trias, Cavite, is the Geronimo Berenguer Reyes (GBR) Museum. It has a nice cartographic (map) collection dating to Spanish times, and Spanish-era photographs, including one of Rizal being executed in Bagumbayan.

[Thunderflip]

What about Museo Iloilo, I think it also has a unique design.

And the Shoe Museum of Marikina?

[mysaong03]

u can try some of these galleries:

ateneo art gallery, QC 4266001
Artwalk, 4/l Bldg A, SM Mega 6343261
Loop, ECS Ctr, ABS 4100995
Magnet Gallery, Paseo cor. Sedeno 8177895 -> nandon pa ba cya Francis?
Hiraya Gallery UN Ave 5233331
Tael Gallery BSP 5327855
Big Sky Mind, 18th Ave, Murphy, Cubao 6324212
CCP
yuchengco museum rcbc plaza
phil society of health history taft ave 8315131
QCMC- im not so sure now if they still have it ryt under the tower

[renell]

like thunderflip, i'm interested where the Shoe Museum in Marikina is. does is still house Imelda's shoes? if it's not there, where is it then? thanks guys

The National Museum turns 103

Updated 07:53am (Mla time) Oct 25, 2004
By Augusto Villalon
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page D1 of the October 25, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


THE MUSEO-BIBLIOTECA de Filipinas was inaugurated on Oct. 24, 1881 in the abolished Casa de Moneda (The Mint) on Cabildo Street in Intramuros, Manila.

Its Anthropology and Ethnography section exhibited weapons, household objects, costumes, anitos and other specimens from the Northern Tribes. A gallery was devoted to Natural History. Another displayed paintings by scholars of the Escuela de Dibujo y Pintura (School of Drawing and Painting).

The American colonial government established a new and separate museum on Oct. 29, 1901. The "Insular Museum of Ethnology, Natural History and Commerce" later became the National Museum of the Philippines.

Unknown to a majority of Filipinos, each October is "Museums and Galleries Month," marked by the National Museum with a series of events organized for a specific purpose: to introduce the Filipino to the greatness of his culture.

Events to commemorate Museums and Galleries Month include open houses in the National Museum and
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its provincial branches in Ifugao, Ilocos Sur, Bicol, Palawan, Cebu and Zamboanga. In Manila, leading cultural experts and historians deliver lectures.

"Lines Across Time," an interactive photo exhibition focusing on Spanish colonial town planning and infrastructure and also secular architecture in the Philippines presented by Fundaciòn Santiago, opened last Oct. 13. After closing at the National Museum on Nov. 30, the superlative exhibit will tour the country.

On Oct. 27, an Exhibition of Indian Textiles will open, followed by a conference on the cultural and trade links between India and the Philippines.

Fabulous collection

What does the National Museum have? It has the most fabulous collection of objects in the country. Those objects tell the story of how great Filipinos always have been.

Going to the museum is like going to an ancestral house loaded with household objects gathered over the years, where each object tells a part of the family story. To get the entire story, it is necessary to poke around, go through everything and let the collection of objects tell their story.

One part of the broad Filipino story is told by bulols carved from hardwood trees growing in the Ifugao highlands. These prized objects, handed down from generation to generation guard family granaries where rice is stored. During harvest season, priests conduct a ritual invoking the bulol to make the rice stored inside the granary continue to grow as it did in the mountainous rice terraces.

On the Maitum jars dating back to the Metal Age, Maria Elena Paterno writes, "The large secondary burial jars were earthenware and limestone, but what was so amazing was the human figures on the lids, sculpted with childlike simplicity and attention to detail. These were no representative human figures but portraits of people long gone."

Paterno describes the Maranao sarimanok as " ... a bird in poise. Its wings are spread out but it cannot fly. Neither will it ever eat the fish it carries in its beak. Though elaborate in its decorations, the bird figure is spare, not a living breathing bird." Since Islam prohibits portrayal of any living form, the sarimanok is a non-representational symbolic object of prestige.

Dating from 710-890 BC, the Manunggul jar is a national treasure. On the lid of the terracotta burial jar are two human figures in a boat. Their faces show expectancy and wonder as one figure rows the boat from this world to the next and the other figure, arms folded across his chest, looks ahead toward his next life.

Etched on a copper plate dated 900 AD, the Laguna Paleograph (so called because of its discovery in Siniloan, Laguna), records in old Philippine script the payment of a debt incurred by a lady called Angkatan, acquitting her and her descendants from all responsibility.

Vibrant culture

The story told by each object in the National Museum is powerful. They tell of a vibrant culture that existed in these islands that present Filipinos are unaware to being heirs of. The story told by these objects tells of Filipino greatness.

The former Legislative Building and two others form the National Museum complex that includes the two buildings on Agrifina Circle at the Taft Avenue end of Rizal Park. The Museum of the Filipino People (the former Department of Finance) was restored and opened to the public in time for the Centennial of Philippine Independence in 1998. When the Department of Tourism vacates its present building, it will become the Museum of Natural History.

Architect Carmen Punzalan of the National Museum Restoration Department records the architectural heritage of the National Museum, stating that the former Legislative Building was built in 1921 as a Museum-Library. In 1935, it became the Legislative Building housing the offices of the First Philippine Commonwealth.

World War II extensively damaged the structure. After its reconstruction, the Philippine Senate occupied it until the late 1990s when the entire building was returned to the National Museum.

At present, the second and third floors of the former Legislative Building, now the National Museum Building, are in the process of being restored to become the National Gallery of Art. The restoration is a public-private effort, with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts granting some financial assistance and the Museum Foundation of the Philippines raising additional funds from private donors.

The former Department of Finance Building on Agrifina Circle in Manila is now the Museum of the Filipino People. The structure was mainly designed by Architect Tomas Toledo, built in 1940 by the Bureau of Public Works, and first used as the Commerce Building and becoming the Department of Finance after World War II.

Cultural threads

Exhibits in the Museum of the Filipino People tell the Filipino story, starting with an engaging light and sound presentation explaining the geological beginnings of our land from volcanic eruptions, appearance and disappearance of land masses, and the formation of the islands.

The Filipino story continues as fossils record early mammals (elephants, stegodons, rhinoceri) living in the Cagayan River Valley and stone tools that show the existence of human beings. Visitors can listen to recorded stories: Life on an Archaeological Dig, The Mystery of the Angono Petroglyphs, Discovery of the Maitum Caves and the Creation of the Universe.

Threads of our culture weave through exhibits of traditional pottery and weaving, national treasures like the Laguna Copper Plate, the different Filipino communities (Sama of Sulu, Ifugaos, Visayans, Maranaos and others).

The celebrated San Diego wreck, a ship that sank in 1600 off the coast of Nasugbu in Batangas) is the only evidence of Spanish shipbuilding in Asia. The treasures recovered from the sunken ship record the lifestyle of the era.

On Oct. 29 the National Museum turns 103. The best birthday present you can give it is a visit that will turn you into a new Filipino.

Museum of the Filipino People at Agrifina Circle, Rizal Park, Manila, is open from Tuesday-Sunday, from 9 a.m.-12 noon, 1-5 p.m. Admission is free on Thursdays. Call 5271207 or 5271215.

[bagel]

Concept/Working Paper on “NEO-ANGONO”
Art and Cultural Exhibit

November 21-22, 2004

***** “NEO-ANGONO” is both a movement and an organization
amid changing times.
***** It is a movement because it strives to render
modernist visual and artistic language responsive to
the times by articulating and invigorating
contemporary Angono experience, sensibility and
consciousness.
***** It is a movement because it is a celebration in
exploring the possibilities of art and in infusing new
life into Angono art scene by welcoming ideas from
Manila or outside source.
***** It is a movement because it observes the intricate
engagement and interplay of various artistic
expressions wedded in the local community and people.
***** “NEO-ANGONO” is also an organization because it is
non-profit, artist-centered, committed to
experimentation, recognizes the need to contribute to
art research and education, and welcomes support and
advice from colleagues and critics.
***** It is an organization because it is initiated and
founded in November 2004 by independent visual
artists, writers and poets, educators and cultural
workers. The core group is composed of Wire and Keiye
Tuazon, visual artists from Surrounded by Water
Artspace; Richard Gappi, poet and journalist; Chitoy
Zapata, cultural worker and founder of Kalipunan ng
Kultura at Sining ng Pasig; Allan Alcantara, graphic
designer and visual artist; Mideo Cruz, performance
and visual artist from Tupada/ New World Disorder; and
Iggy Rodriguez, visual artist and cultural worker from
Ugat-Lahi.
*****
Activities, Venues and Participating Artists
For its pioneer project, NEO-ANGONO presents a new
possibility and new relationship through programs that
are not restricted by specific type or genre.
***** The events, which will be held on Nov. 21-22, aim to
highlight the richness and diversity of Angono’s
contemporary art through public art presentation and
events situated in satellite areas/venues around
Angono. These include site-specific installations,
public art performances, in-transit or “moving”
graphic/poetry works, studio exhibitions, music-poetry
fusion, and lectures and symposium.
***** Specifically, these are the following:
1.***** The TODA Poetry Project – Poems written on
illustration boards will be posted inside tricycle
units for passengers to read and appreciate;
2.***** Time Machine Tricycle Project – Artist Mael de
Guzman’s ever-trusted tricycle will be converted to a
“moving work of art” to be initiated by various
artists to suggest collective work and action;
3.***** Poster Dikit Project – Chitoy Zapata transforms the
public walls of Angono into an instant public art
forum/education;
4.***** Dress A Hump Project – Artist Jon Santos paints the
road humps of Barangay San Roque, Angono;
5.***** Bandolero’s poetry-music fusion performance at
Nemiranda Café;
6.***** Band Gecko’s acoustic concert at Nemiranda Café;
7.***** Photo exhibits by Keiye Miranda and Allan Alcantara
under Paso or Angono Bridge;
8.***** Art installation by Wire Tuazon on his studio;
9.***** Rembrandt Vocalan’s film showing/wall projection;
10.***** Ian Lomongo’s theater performance/short play;
11.***** Art performance of visiting artists (such as
Tupada, New World Disorder, Ugat-Lahi, etc.) on the
streets of Angono;
12.***** Ferris Wheel Performance – In which various
artists will ride and bring their artworks, recite
poems, play musical instruments or plainly express
their creative juices;
13.***** Other art performances/shows.

The activities will be done simultaneously but a
defined schedule of the programs will be observed for
public guidance.*
***** The venues for these suggested activities have been
initially identified in the previous paragraph. But
other places may be used to attain or send the
artistic message of the artwork/performance to the
public. Other places identified are lampposts, waiting
shed,Fried Itik stores, plaza, open streets of Angono,
boundaries, etc.
***** Meanwhile, the project is open to all local and
visiting artists. Local artists will accommodate
visiting artists in the tradition of “visiting artists
or exchange students” program, in which artists will
be provided space to sleep, food and “other basic
necessities”.
***** A general meeting of participating artists will be
held on Sunday, Nov. 14, 3:00 p.m. at Wire’s Studio.
Here, artists can present their proposal to be
approved and accepted by members of the core group.

What do we hope to achieve?
1.***** Regale Angono audience by contributing to the
livelier celebration of the town fiesta;
2.***** Show that various art forms are on-going in Angono;
3.***** Make this as precedent in the annual event and
eventually get financial support/grant from different
art and cultural institutions;
4.***** Inspire young artists in Angono to explore the
limits of art;
5.***** Bring art to the people by diluting or constricting
the space between the artwork/performer and
viewer/audience;
6.***** Free the artists’ either irrepressible genius or
imaginative eccentricities;
7.***** Intertwine the intellect with emotion and soul;
8.***** Create new perception, which is the true spirit of
art.


contact/cordinator: Wire Tuazon <wiretuazon@yahoo.com>

[jbkayaker12]

--

[ewh1]

I thought we should have a dedicated thread for the Center espcially since we have a bunch of new pictures and also news of the very ambitious plans the CCP is undertaking. Here i have found very detailed articles of the plans which is actually 2 parts from ABS-CBNnews/manila times

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=5301
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=5398

[renell]

Interesting reads, even though it was a bit too much for me to read all. It's quite a lot of stuff. A hell lot.

[amras]

this is really a great news.. im so excited about the prospect of having a brand new ccp complex in 2014... i hope everything goes well and smooth, but with the perennila problems in every developments and projects in our country, I guess this would be very hard to achieve.

anyway, can someone post the pics of the masterplan? hehehe

[Skyblade]

Wow a CCP modernization project! Thanks for the link, Eric! Finally something new to promote the arts in Manila.

[thomasian]

Ok, time for a repost of my CCP complex pics. thanks for the thread ewh1

---------
05.15.05
---------

CCP Main Theater - 5.15.05:





Philippine International Convention Center:


GSIS Building / Senate Building - 5.15.05:



Manila Film Center:


Westin Philippine Plaza:

[absent-minded]

cool pictures!! CCP looks very presentable now... they did some pretty awesome work on the renovations! look at those fat palm trees! so nice...

[dudz]

that first pic, i think it is called the ASEAN park...it has artworks (sculptures) displayed from all the ASEAN member nations...really nice, they also hold mini cultural shows there.
btw, passed by there last night, the grass in the front lawn of the ccp...that part of the grass that grows tall about knee high or even higher...mataas na uli, di na yata pinutol after the parliamentarians summit...and there are 'keep off the grass' signs all over (maliit nga lang pero mapapansin naman when you approach the lawn) but people seem to don't mind...sa damo mga nakaupo (di mo naman masisisi din, nagpapahinga saka mukha na ngang pinabayaan ang damo)...hopefully the redevelopment plans will have green areas where people can laze around

[thomasian]

Thanks, dudz.

Some newly taken pics...

---------
05.22.05
---------

CCP Main Theater









------------------------------------

Philippine National Bank - PNB, HQ:



The u/c half of Harbour view square.

[federal]

you rock thomasian! cool pics.

[thomasian]

Thanks man!