To usher in 2012, here are five things from/about/in the Philippines that make me smile. They definitely do not have the same weight of significance for me, but these are the first five things that came to mind (in order of their appearance in my head), thinking about all things Pilipinas that are, to put it simply, good.

BenCab

Benedicto Reyes Cabrera, more famously known as BenCab, is a Filipino National Artist who is a painter and a printmaker. When I think of BenCab, I think of Sabel, his muse. From his bullet biography on the BenCab Museum website:

1964

Observes and sketches from his window in Bambang a bag lady/madwoman/scavenger named Sabel. To him she is a symbol of dislocation, despair& isolation – the personification of human dignity threatened by circumstances. Undergoing numerous transformations over the coming years, she becomes a landmark for every stylistic painting transition.

The lobby of one of those condominiums in Rockwell is graced by a BenCab painting. And a home somewhere in Negros has artist proofs from the master printmaker himself. Nothing quite like his work, especially these days of modern conceptual art. As he himself puts it in this Wall Street Journal feature, “Skill: That is what is missing now. A lot of modern art now is mostly conceptual. It is sloppy. I’m old school. I look for good composition… and I like artists who are innovative.” I tend to agree.

BenCab is also one of the many reasons a trip to Singapore is so enticing.

Philippine Development Foundation or PhilDev

For full disclosure, I’ve worked (and still work every now and then) for PhilDev (formerly Ayala Foundation USA). I loved the work that I did there, connecting the Filipino diaspora to worthwhile development initiatives in the homeland. Now, their focus is more strategic - zeroing in on science and technology and the field’s impact on the Philippines’ economic growth and development. All the same, I respect the work that they do and look forward to the coming years as they carry out their new mission.

You can read about PhilDev’s work on their website, but here’s a video of Filipino/Filipino-American artists, Lea Salonga included, talking about the concert they held for PhilDev:

Panlasang Pinoy

I’m pretty sure I featured Panlasang Pinoy on this tumblr already, but when you talk about the good things in the Philippines, you cannot - just cannot - leave out food. And when I thought of Filipino food, Panlasang Pinoy popped into my head. Just look at his list of Top 10 Filipino Christmas Recipes. I know Christmas is done, but hey, with this menu, it’s never too early to practice for Christmas 2012.

Interaksyon | TV5-MMDA Traffic Monitoring System

Yes, I’m including this one. Because it is pretty cool to have this system in place, updated every five minutes or so. My husband and I are guilty of checking this even if we’re not driving anywhere, just because it’s so nifty.

Pilipinas-loving Tumblrs

And of course, my fellow Tumblrers who post about the Philippines. A few that I enjoy:

I Write As I Write: History. And Stuff.

The Wolf: A thirty-something writer who has mellowed down from the broadcast news industry. After that, he taught high school kids history and economics. Using the skills acquired in journalism, he gets involved once in a while with farmers, environmentalists, and human rights activists.

Pag-aral at Pag-ibig… Lessons & Love: newly married lit phd trying to figure out life, love and the future.

Love that the artist shared the process of creating this fantastic album cover.

rosarioko:

It’s my second time to be commissioned to work on album cover. I’ve always wanted to do this. The first one happened around the same time last year for The Camerawalls. 

This year, Japs Sergio asked me to make one and allowed me to do WHATEVER I WANT!!! Hahaha best job ever!

I’m no expert at this but I’m really thankful these musicians have trusted me enough to take a chance at this sort of thing. As much as possible I want it to be an actual photograph. 

The environment above is from an ACTUAL PHOTO. Thank you to Gelo Lagasca of the Lowtechs for helping us out with layout and graphic design. 

Check out the larger, square version of the cover design below and also how the photo was made. 

Read More

(Source: rosarioko)