Significant Contemporary Arts from the regions: d.

d.) Folk art tradition – The candidate must have engaged in a folk art
tradition that has been in existence and documented for at least fifty (50)
GAWAD SA MANLILIKHANG BAYAN
years; and
In April 1992, the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan or the National Living
e.) Character and integrity – As a precious treasure of the country, the
Treasures Award was institutionalized through Republic Act No. 7355.
candidate must command the respect and admiration of the country for his
Tasked with the administration and implementation of the Award is the
character and integrity;
National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), the highest policy-
making and coordinating body for culture and the arts of the State. The Award and other Incentive. – The award given to the Manlilikha ng Bayan
NCCA, through the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan Committee and an Ad Hoc shall be called Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan.
Panel of Experts, conducts the search for the finest traditional artists of the
In addition, the following incentives shall be enjoyed:
land, adopts a program that will ensure the transfer of their skills to others
and undertakes measures to promote a genuine appreciation of and instill a.) Plaque/Medal – The Awardee shall each receive a commemorative plaque
pride among our people about the genius of the Manlilikha ng Bayan. and/or medal, a duplicate set of which is to be donated to and permanently
displayed in the pertinent provincial museum or largest cultural center in
REPUBLIC ACT 7355
order to broaden community awareness of the significance of our traditional
As envisioned under R.A. 7355, “Manlilikha ng Bayan” shall mean a citizen folk arts and to accord them the recognition they richly deserve;
engaged in any traditional art uniquely Filipino whose distinctive skills have
b.) An initial grant of One Hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00) and Ten
reached such a high level of technical and artistic excellence and have been
Thousand peso (P10,000.00) a month thereafter for life, shall be given,
passed on to and widely practiced by the present generation in his/her
unless the Commission after due hearing finds good reason to discontinue the
community with the same degree of technical and artistic competence.
grant arising from violations of pertinent terms and conditions herein stated.
Criteria and Qualifications. – To become a Manlilikha ng Bayan, the
This grant may be increased whenever circumstances so warrant provided
candidate must satisfy the following minimum criteria:
that the increase shall not be given retroactive effect;
a.) Techincal and creative skill – The candidate posses a mastery of the tools
c.) Documentation – All surviving samples of works by the awardee shall be
and materials needed by the art, and must have an established reputation in
catalogued and photographed, and his/her work methods and tools shall
the art as master and maker of works of extraordinary technical quality;
likewise be documented;
b.) Artistic quality – The work of the candidate must be outstanding
d.) A vocational course using materials, tools, methods and designs of the
aesthetically, and he/she must have consistently produced over a significant
awardee may be offered at the nearest arts and trades school through the
period, works of superior quality;
cooperative efforts of the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department
c.) Community tradition – The candidate must have transferred and/or willing of Education, Culture and Sports, and a private foundation and/or private
to transfer to other members of the community, skills in the folk art for which corporation, to effect the transfer of his/her skills and the preservation of folk
the community has become nationally known; art tradition;
e.) A feasibility study of converting the awardee’s art into specialized cottage GINAW BILOG, 1993
industry in the awardee’s province, preferably in the recipient’s barangay or Poetry (Ambahan)
town, may be undertaken by the Department of Trade and Industry in
Ginaw Bilog, 1993
collaboration with private investors; and
Born on January 3, 1953
f.) The recipient shall be invited to Manila-based and regional cultural events
that salute the importance of traditional folk arts in the Filipino cultural was a Hanunuo Mangyan who was a native of Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro.
heritage;
He was known for his efforts in preserving the mangyan poetry tradition
Duties and Responsibilities of Awardees. – The Manlilikha ng Bayan is a of ambahan.
link between the past, in which his/her traditional folk art found fertile soil for
Ginaw Bilog, Hanunoo Mangyan from Mansalay, Mindoro, grew up in such a
growth, and the future, during which he/she seeks his/her art to be
cultural environment. Already steeped in the wisdom that the ambahan is a
permanently sustained. It becomes his/her responsibility therefore to
key to the understanding of the Mangyan soul, Ginaw took it upon himself to
undertake the following;
continually keep scores of ambahan poetry recorded, not only on bamboo
a.) to transfer the skills of his/her traditional folk art to the younger tubes but on old, dog-eared notebooks passed on to him by friends.
generation through apprenticeship and such other training methods as are
Ambahan, a poetic literary form composed of seven-syllable lines used to
found t be effective;
convey messages through metaphors and images. The ambahan is sung and
b.) to cooperate with the implementing agency, as provided for in Section 7 its messages range from courtship, giving advice to the young, asking for a
of this Act, in the promotion and propagation of his/her traditional folk arts; place to stay, saying goodbye to a dear friend and so on.
and
MASINAO INTARAY, 1993
c.) to donate to the National Museum a sample or copy of his/her work. Poetry/ lyrical poems and playing accompanying instruments, epic chanting
and storytelling
The categories are, but not limited to, the following categories of traditional
folk arts: was a Filipino poet, bard artist, and musician who is a Palawan native known
for his performance of the local traditions of basal, kulilal and bagit.
folk architecture -maritime transport
Intaray was born on April 10, 1943 in Makagwa Valley and lived Brooke's
-weaving -carving
Point, Palawan. He is known for playing multiple indigenous instruments
-performing arts -literature namely the basal (gong), aroding (mouth harp), and the babarak (ring flute).
Intaray is also known for his performance of kulilal or songs and bagit, a form
-graphic and plastic arts -ornament
of vocal music.
-textile or fiber art -pottery
He has the creative memory, endurance, clarity of intellect and spiritual
-Other artistic expressions of traditional culture may be added. purpose that enable him to chant all through the night, for successive nights,
countless tultul (epics), sudsungit (narratives), and tuturan (myths of origin LANG DULAY, 1998
and teachings of ancestors). Weaving (T’nalak)
Masino and the basal and kulilal ensemble of Makagwa valley are creative, Born on August 3, 1928, Lang Dulay was a T'boli princess from the Lake
traditional artists of the highest order of merit. (Prof. Felipe M. de Leon, Sebu region in South Cotabato. She first learnt weaving at the age of 12 from
Jr.) her mother, Luan Senig.
SAMAON SULAIMAN, 1993 Using abaca fibers as fine as hair, Lang Dulay speaks more eloquently than
Music (Kutyapi) words can. Images from the distant past of her people, the Tbolis, are
recreated by her nimble hands – the crocodiles, butterflies and flowers, along
was a Filipino musician who is a recipient of the National Living
with mountains and streams, of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, where she and
Treasure award. The Maguindanaon is known for his mastery of the
her ancestors were born – fill the fabric with their longing to be remembered.
indigenous kutyapi instrument.
Through her weaving, Lang Dulay does what she can to keep her people’s
Born on March 3, 1953, tradition alive.

Samaon Sulaiman achieved the highest level of excellence in the art of Lang Dulay knows a hundred designs, including the bulinglangit (clouds), the
kutyapi playing. His extensive repertoire of dinaladay, linapu, minuna, binalig, bankiring (hair bangs), and the kabangi (butterfly), each one special for the
and other forms and styles interpreted with refinement and sensitivity fully stories it tells. Using red and black dyes, she spins her stories with grace. Her
demonstrate and creative and expressive possibilities of his instrument. textiles reflect the wisdom and the visions of her people.

Learning to play the kutyapi from his uncle when he was about 13 years old, Ironically modern designs get a better price than the traditional ones. Despite
he has since, at 35 become the most acclaimed kutyapi master and teacher this, and the fact that those modern designs are easier to weave, Lang
of his instrument in Libutan and other barangays of Maganoy town, deeply persists in doing things the old, if harder, way, to give voice, in effect, to the
influencing the other acknowledged experts in kutyapi in the area, such as songs that were her elders’ before her. Her textiles are judged excellent
Esmael Ahmad, Bitul Sulaiman, Nguda Latip, Ali Ahmad and Tukal Nanalon. because of the “fine even quality of the yarn, the close interweaving of the
warp and weft, the precision in the forms and patterns, the chromatic
Aside from kutyapi, Samaon is also proficient in kulintang, agong (suspended
integrity of the dye, and the consistency of the finish.”
bossed gong with wide rim), gandingan (bossed gong with narrow rim),
palendag (lip-valley flute), and tambul. Through the years, she has dreamed that, someday she could pass on her
talent and skills to the young in her community. Four of her grandchildren
Samaon was a popular barber in his community and serve as an Imam in the
have themselves picked up the shuttle and are learning to weave.
Libutan mosque.
SALINTA MONON, 1998
For his exemplary artistry and dedication to his chosen instrument, for his
Weaving (Abaca – ikat / Inabal)
unwavering commitment to the music of the kutyapi at a time when this
instrument no longer exists in many parts of Mindanao, Samaon Sulaiman is was born on December 12, 1920
worthy of emulation and the highest honors. (Prof. Felipe M. de Leon, Jr.)
grew up in Bituag, Bansalan in Davao del Sur
at age 12 she learned how to weave Saclag taught himself of his people's traditions in the performing arts. He
learned how to play traditional Kalinga musical instruments and Kalinga ritual
Her favorite design is the binuwaya or crocodile which is said to be among
dance movements without formal or informal instruction
the most difficult to weave.
Yet he has mastered not only the Kalinga musical instruments but also the
She was known for her Bagobo-Tagabawa textiles and was known as the
dance patterns and movements associated with his people’s rituals. His tool
"last Bagobo weaver".Her ardent desire to excel in the art of her ancestors
was observation, his teacher, experience. Coupled with these was a keen
enabled her to learn quickly. She developed a keen eye for the traditional
interest in – a passion, if you would – the culture that was his inheritance.
designs, and now, at the age of 65, she can identify the design as well as the
author of a woven piece just by a glance. Much of his energy is channeled towards different preservation efforts. He
has for years urged the members of his community to preserve their artifacts
All her life she has woven continuously, through her marriage and six
and archaeological sites. While the unwritten laws and epics chronicle their
pregnancies, and even after her husband’s death 20 years ago. She and her
victories as a people, their artifacts afford us a glimpse into their day-to-day
sister are the only remaining Bagobo weavers in her community.
existence. One such artifact is the Kalinga gong or the gangsa, the making of
Her husband paid her parents a higher bride price because of her weaving which is a disappearing trade. He has endeavored to revive this dying craft.
skills. However, he left all the abaca gathering and stripping to her. Instead, And to hold these and other treasures, he lobbied for two years with the
he concentrated on making their small farm holding productive. Life was such provincial government to grant funds to convert the abandoned Capitol
that she was obliged to help out in the farm, often putting her own work Building into a museum. His persistence was finally rewarded when, with
aside to make sure the planting got done and the harvest were brought in. support from the provincial government and other patrons, the Lubuagan
When her husband died, she was left alone with a farm and six children, but branch of the National Museum was established.
she continued with her weaving, as a source of income as well as pride.
To guarantee that his knowledge in the performing arts is passed on to
When she has work to finish, Salinta isolates herself from her family to others, he formed the Kalinga Budong Dance Troupe. He takes the young
ensure privacy and concentration in her art. At the moment, she does her men and women who come to him under his charge and they learn about the
weaving in her own home, but she wants nothing better than to build a music and dance of their ancestors. While many have expressed a genuine
structure just for weaving, a place exclusively for the use of weavers. She desire to represent and promote Kalinga performing arts, he admits that a
looks forward to teaching young wives in her community the art of weaving, handful have other, more personal, motives. Because the troupe occasionally
for, despite the increasing pressures of modern society, Bagobo women are goes on tour, joining it is perceived by some as a chance to see places other
still interested in learning the art. than mountains they call home. Who can resist the lure of foreign places, he
concedes.
Alonzo Saclag, 2000
Music and Dance (Kalinga) Waiting, however, is a small difficulty. The greater obstacle appears to be
gaining the support of those who continue to question and challenge his
was born on August 4, 1942
motives. One would think that with such a noble purpose, one would have no
a native of Lubuagan, Kalinga province trouble finding allies, not the least among the Kalinga themselves. Reality,
though, suggests the contrary.
But Alonzo Saclag remains unfazed. With characteristic generosity, he does Uwang Ahadas, 2000
not, for instance, begrudge nor fear the efforts others take to put up a group Music (Yakan specifically Kulintang, kwitangan kayu, gabbang, agung, and
similar to his much-celebrated Kalinga Budong Dance Troupe. Moreover, he tuntungan)
welcomes the idea of collaborating with them, should the opportunity present
was born on February 15, 1945
itself
is a Filipino folk musician of the Yakan people, to whom instrumental music is
FEDERICO CABALLERO, 2000
of much significance, connected as it is with both the agricultural cycle and
Poetry and Epic Chant (Sugidanon)
the social realm.
Born on December 25, 1938
He went near blind when he was five years old.
He is known for his work on the documentation of the oral literature,
Even as a young child, Uwang joyously embraced the demands and the
particularly the ten epics. These epics are rendered in an extinct
discipline necessitated by his art. His training began with the ardent
language related to Kinaray-a
observation of the older, more knowledgeable players in his community. His
Caballero is married to Lucia, who is a binukot a title similar to a princess in own family, gifted with a strong tradition in music, complemented the
Panay-Bukidnon tradition, and has three children. instruction he received. He and his siblings were all encouraged to learn how
to play the different Yakan instruments, as these were part of the legacy of
His own love for his people’s folklore began when he was a small child. His
his ancestors. Not all Yakan children have such privilege.
mother would lull his brothers and sister to sleep, chanting an episode in time
to the gentle swaying of the hammock. Sometimes it was his great-great- From the gabbang, a bamboo xylophone, his skills gradually allowed him to
grandmother, his Anggoy Omil, who would chant the epics. Nong Pedring progress to the agung, the kwintangan kayu, and later the other instruments.
remembers how he would press against them as they cuddled his younger Even musical tradition failed to be a deterrent to his will. Or perhaps it only
siblings, his imagination recreating the heroes and beautiful maidens of their served to fuel his determination to demonstrate his gift. Yakan tradition sets
tales. the kwintangan as a woman’s instrument and the agung, a man’s. His genius
and his resolve, however, broke through this tradition. By the age of twenty,
When Anggoy and his mother died, he went on to continue the traditions
he had mastered the most important of the Yakan musical instruments, the
and documented these epics which are referred to as the Labaw Dunggon
kwintangan among them.
and Humadapnon epics with researchers. He worked with the Bureau of
Nonformal Education, to teach people how to read and write and would He believes it is best for children to commence training young, when interest
promote the tradition of epic chanting despite the initial objection of his is at its peak and flexibility of the hands and the wrists is assured. His own
children. children were the first to benefit from his instruction. One of his daughters,
Darna, has become quite proficient in the art that like her father, she too has
He also worked as the manughusay in his local community, an arbiter who
begun to train others.
helps resolves disputes and conflicts in the community. He is considered as
a bantugan due to his positive influence extending beyond his community. His younger brother, Rohas, worries about how best to preserve his
And he is good at doing anything that peoples tell him to do, So he's basically techniques so that they can be passed on to others even after he is gone. For
a jack of trade his part, he has started documenting his brother’s instruction, creating a
notation system that will simplify instruction. Already he has begun using this preserved and are available for contemporary appreciation and future study.
method for training students and declares that it shows promise. She continues to weave at home, while teaching the other women of her
community.
Darhata Sawabi, 2004
Weaving (Pis Syabit) Eduardo Mutuc, 2004
Metalwork (Bronze and Silver)
The families in her native Parang still depend on subsistence farming as their
main source of income. But farming does not bring in enough money to is an artist who has dedicated his life to creating religious and secular art in
support a family, and is not even an option for someone like Darhata Sawabi silver, bronze and wood. His intricately detailed retablos, mirrors, altars, and
who was raised from birth to do only household chores. She has never carosas are in churches and private collections. A number of these works are
married. Thus, weaving is her only possible source of income. The money she quite large, some exceeding forty feet, while some are very small and feature
earns from making the colorful squares of cloth has enabled her to become very fine and delicate craftsmanship.
self-sufficient and less dependent on her nephews and nieces. A hand-woven
He was 29 when he decided to supplement his income from farming for the
square measuring 39 by 40 inches, which takes her some three months to
relatively more secure job of woodcarving. He spent his first year as an
weave, brings her about P2,000. These squares are purchased by Tausug for
apprentice to carvers of household furniture. It was difficult at the beginning,
headpieces, as well as to adorn native attire, bags and other accessories. Her
but thanks to his mentors, he was able to develop valuable skills that would
remarkable proficiency with the art and the intricacy of her designs allows her
serve him in good stead later on. The hardest challenge for him was learning
to price her creations a little higher than others.
a profession that he had no prior knowledge about, but poverty was a
At 48, and burdened by years of hard work, Sawabi no longer has the powerful motivation. Although his daily wage of P3.00 didn’t go far to support
strength or the stamina for this. Instead, she hires one of the neighboring his wife and the first three of nine children (one of whom has already died),
children or apprentice weavers to do it at the cost of P300. It is a substantial choices were limited for a man who only finished elementary school.
amount, considering the fact that she still has to spend for thread.
Things began to change after his fifth or sixth year as a furniture maker,
In the 1970s, when Jolo was torn apart by armed struggle, Sawabi and her when a colleague taught him the art of silver plating. This technique is often
family were often forced to abandon their home in search of safer habitats. used to emulate gold and silver leaf in the decoration of saints and religious
The first time she was forced to abandon her weaving was very painful screens found in colonial churches. He left the furniture shop and struck out
experience as it was impossible for her to bring the loom along with her to on his own with another friend. One of his first commissions came from
the forest where they sought refuge. They returned to their home to see the Monsignor Fidelis Limcauco, who asked him to create a tabernacle for the
pis she had been working on for nearly a month destroyed by the fighting. parish of Fairview , Quezon City . Clients began to commission him to create
There was nothing for her to do except pick up the pieces of her loom and other pieces, many of which are based on Spanish colonial designs. Peak
start again. Because of the conflict, she and her family had been forced to seasons are before Holy Week and Christmas. He derives inspiration from
relocate twice finally establishing their residence in Parang. During this time, traditional religious designs and infuses his own ideas into the finished
Sawabi supported her family by weaving and selling her pieces to the product.
participants in the conflict who passed through her village. Because of her
According to him, craftsmanship begins with respect for one’s tools and the
dedication to her art, generations of traditional Tausug designs have been
medium. The first thing he teaches his students is how to hold the chisel and
hammer properly to promote ease of use and prevent fatigue and mistakes pliant. Finally, she weaves them into a colorful geometric design. Instead of
because of improper handling. He also cautions against working with an eye beginning at the outermost edges of the mat, she instead weaves a central
towards easy money. The only way to improve one’s skills, he says, is to strip to form the mat’s backbone, then works to expand the mat from within.
immerse oneself, learn the technique, and to practice. Only in perfecting
Haja Amina is respected throughout her community for her unique designs,
one’s craft can there be real reward. (Maricris Jan Tobias)
the straightness of her edging (tabig) and the fineness of her sasa and kima-
Haja Amina Appi, 2004 kima. Her hands are thick and callused from years of harvesting, stained by
Weaving (Mat) dye. But her hands are still steady, and her eye for color still unerring. She
feels pride in the fact that people often borrow her mats to learn from her
Haja Amina Appi of Ungos Matata, Tandubas, Tawi-Tawi, is recognized as the
and copy her designs.
master mat weaver among the Sama indigenous community of Ungos Matata.
Teofilo Garcia, 2012
The art of mat weaving is handed down the matrilateral line, as men in the
Casque Making (Tabungaw)
Sama culture do not take up the craft. The whole process, from harvesting
and stripping down the pandan leaves to the actual execution of the design, Teofilo Garcia leaves his farm in San Quintin, Abra, he makes it a point to
is exclusive to women. It is a long and tedious process, and requires much wear a tabungaw. People in the nearby towns of the province, in neighboring
patience and stamina. It also requires an eye for detail, an unerring color Sta. Maria and Vigan in Ilocos Sur, and as far as Laoag in Ilocos Norte sit up
instinct, and a genius for applied mathematics. and take notice of his unique, functional and elegant headpiece that shields
him from the rain and the sun.
The process starts with the harvesting of wild pandan leaves from the forest.
The Sama weavers prefer the thorny leaf variety because it produces stronger Because he takes pride in wearing his creations, Teofilo has gotten many
and sturdier matting strips. Although the thorns are huge and unrelenting, orders as a result. Through his own efforts, through word of mouth, and
Haja Amina does not hesitate from gathering the leaves. First, she removes through his own participation in an annual harvest festival in his local Abra, a
the thorns using a small knife. Then, she strips the leaves with a jangat lot of people have discovered about the wonders of the tabungaw as a
deyum or stripper to make long and even strips. These strips are sun-dried, practical alternative.
then pressed (pinaggos) beneath a large log. She then dyes the strips by
Although he has been a master artisan since he learned how to make gourd
boiling them for a few minutes in hot water mixed with anjibi or commercial
casques and weave baskets from his grandfather at the age of 15, Teofilo is
dye. As an artist, she has refused to limit herself to the traditional plain white
still principally a farmer. Most of the year is spent working the land to coax a
mats of her forebears, but experimented with the use of anjibi in creating her
good harvest to enable him to send his five children to school. But during the
designs. And because commercial dyes are often not bold or striking enough
months that his land is not planted to rice and tobacco, or caring for his herd
for her taste, she has taken to experimenting with color and developing her
of cows, he devotes his land to planting upo (family Cucurbitaceae), which he
own tints to obtain the desired hues. Her favorite colors are red, purple and
then transforms into the traditional tabungaw.
yellow but her mats sometimes feature up to eight colors at a time. Her
complicated designs gain power from the interplay of various shades. His output is also limited by his harvest of gourds. In a good year and blessed
with good weather, he can make up to 100 pieces. His craft demands a lot of
Upon obtaining several sets of differently-colored matting strips, she then sun
personal input from him because there is hardly any way for him to source
dries them for three or four days, and presses them again until they are
the materials he needs for his work unless he makes them himself. He has Magdalena has been relying on her instincts, practiced hands, and innate
had to turn down large orders because he has no one to help him, and in any skills for years, starting at the age 16, when she learned the art of weaving
case, there is no one who matches his level of skill. Sometimes, he wants to from her aunt. She was never formally taught, but picked up the art on her
give up because it’s hard work, but he doesn’t do it, for fear that the art will own by copying the patterns. At that time, every girl in her village knew how
end with him. to weave, and there would be an informal competition among her cousins
and friends as to who could weave the finest, who could be more consistent.
Since he learned the craft, he has not stopped innovating. Each handcrafted
Her father bought her first loom at the age of 19; he obtained the sag’gat or
tabungaw is the product of years of study and careful attention to the
hard wood himself and gave the task to a local craftsman. Her first loom
elements that make up the entire piece. Previously, he used nito (vine
lasted her at least 30 years, sustaining her through years of marriage and
trimmings) to decorate the outside of the headgear and sourced it from
motherhood. When it was beyond repair, she considers herself lucky to have
Cagayan, but when his relative who supplied him with the raw materials
been able to buy a secondhand one. Today, there are few locals who have
passed away, he decided to experiment with more locally accessible
the skills to put together a loom similar to the ones Magdalena uses: a sturdy
materials. His training in weaving baskets served him in good stead, and he
wooden frame with three foot pedals with wide horizontal beams to support
was able to apply that skill when he turned to bamboo as an alternative to
the warp and an even longer lengthwise frame to keep the threads in place.
nito.
It is different from the backstrap loom traditionally used in the Cordillera,
Magdalena Gamayo, 2012 where the warp is anchored to a stationary object on one end and to the
Weaving (Inabel) weaver’s body on the other end.

from Pinili, Ilocos Norte Even though Magdalena is already 88 years old, her eyesight still holds true
and she still takes care of arranging the threads on the loom. Weavers agree
Even though the roads are much improved, sourcing quality cotton threads
that in weaving, it is the hardest task of all. The slightest miscalculation can
for her abel is still a challenge. Even though the North is known for its cotton,
result in a misaligned design that doesn’t reveal itself until it’s too late.
it does not have thread factories to spin bales of cotton into spools of thread.
Instead, Magdalena has to rely on local merchants with their limited Magdalena has taught herself the traditional patterns of binakol,
supplies. She used to spin her own cotton and brushed it with beeswax to inuritan(geometric design), kusikos (spiral forms similar to oranges),
make it stronger, but after the Second World War, she now relies on market- and sinan-sabong(flowers), which is the most challenging pattern. She has
bought thread. She still remembers trading rice for thread, although those also taught herself to recreate designs, which is a useful skill particularly
bartering days are over. Thread is more expensive nowadays, and of poorer when she is only able to see the design but does not have a sample of how it
quality. Often, she has had to reject samples but often she has little choice in is done.
the matter.
Ambalang Ausalin, 2016
There are less local suppliers of thread nowadays, a sign that there is less Weaving (Yakan tennun)
demand for their wares, but nonetheless, the abel-weaving tradition in Ilocos
born March 4, 1943
remains strong, and there are no better artists who exemplify the best of
Filipino abel weaving tradition than Magdalena Gamayo. Weaving is an extremely important craft in the Yakan community. All Yakan
women in the past were trained in weaving. Long ago, a common practice
among the Yakan was that, when a female was born, the pandey, traditional Sinalu’an is a design or category of weave with stripes of the diamond twill
midwife, would cut the umbilical cord using a wooden bar called bayre (other technique. The finished cloth is traditionally sewn as trousers as well as upper
Yakan pronounce this as beyde). That bar was used for ‘beating-in’ the weft wear. Under this category, Ambalang is best identified with
of the loom. By thus severing of the umbilical cord, it was believed that the the sinalu’an teed, the most complicated of all Yakan woven textiles.
infant would grow up to become an accomplished weaver. This, and all other
The seputangan is her other exemplary specialty, as it was her mother’s
aspects of the Yakan weaving tradition, is best personified by a seventy-
too. This cloth is a meter square in size with geometric designs, and is the
three-year-old virtuoso from the weaving domicile of the Yakan in
most expensive part of the Yakan female ensemble because of its detailed
Parangbasak, Lamitan City: Ambalang Ausalin.
design.
Apuh Ambalang, as she is called by her community of weavers, is highly
Estelita Tumandan Bantilan, 2016
esteemed in all of Lamitan. Her skill is deemed incomparable: she is able to
Weaving (B'laan igem)
bring forth all designs and actualize all textile categories typical to the Yakan.
She can execute the suwah bekkat (cross-stitch-like embellishment) born 17 October 1940
and suwah pendan (embroidery-like embellishment) techniques of the bunga
She was at birth, seventy-two years ago, Labnai Tumndan. It was a
sama category. She possesses the complex knowledge of the entire weaving
recognizable name in the language, Blaan, spoken in the montane hamlet
process, aware at the same time of the cultural significance of each textile
of Mlasang. Her extended family reckoned their place in relation to
design or category. As a young girl, her mother, who was the best weaver of
the mlasang, a tree that, once a year, flowers profusely, sheds the
her time, mentored Ambalang.
inflorescences immediately, and carpets abode and environment in
The secret of an intricately-woven cloth resides in the comb: the more the magnificence all at once.
number of sticks that make up the comb, the closer its teeth, thus the tighter
The child Labnai, already precocious in mat weaving, took on the name
and more embossed or lifted the designs will be. This type of comb is called
Estelita in the 1950s. Protestant pastors had installed themselves among her
sud dendam.
people, had commenced fundamental social change. When Estelita married,
The word ‘tennun’ in Yakan generally means woven cloth, and used in making becoming Mrs. Bantilan, she raised a family in the foreign faith.
the Yakan dress. Yakan textiles are often mistakenly described as
In her old age, Estelita began to be called by a new nickname, Princess. The
‘embroidered’ by people not familiar with the production process.
term of endearment is spoken with the lightness of heart; also with genuine
There are different categories of a Yakan cloth. Ambalang has mastered all respect, especially from the other mat weavers of Upper Lasang.
these, although her artistry and craftsmanship are best expressed in
Estelita’s demeanor — characterized by alertness, focus, and a calm that
the bunga sama, sinalu’an, and seputangan.
appears to permeate her entire body — is key to understanding mat weaving
The bunga sama is a design or category of weaving with floral and bold itself, among the Sarangani Blaan and the rest of the Filipinos who still know
designs. The cloth is usually fashioned into upper wear and pants, though the art. It is an exercise of imagination within the parameters of a technology
only for the dress of a high status Yakan, specially the suwah bekkat and of making. The rigidity of the parameters is precisely what the weaver works
the suwah pendan. Today, however, the bunga sama is commonly produced with to play with surprising variation and compelling repetitiveness. To
and pressed to service as table runners, placemats, wall decor, or doilies. manage this maneuver between confinement and freedom, any good weaver
needs the focused energy Estelita abundantly demonstrates. Except that in wheel drive vehicle through pockmarked dirt passes; although it must be
her case, a preternatural serenity appears to be the very source of genius. added, they are not overly daunted. Landan is connected to the rest of the
country by feeder roads, however flimsy, and through the national political
In Upper Lasang, Estelita’s mathematical precision and aesthetic clarity found
order, however tenuous in these parts.
hospitable ground in which to thrive. She lives among people who enjoy
strong cultural recollection; for instance, the use as dyestuff of the bark of Fu Yabing was born in an Amgu-o where the plant and animal life were
the tree whose extravagant shedding of inflorescence deserved its own differentiated to minute degrees by the locals in the vocabulary of their
descriptive, mlasang. It is a place where strong women, mat weavers all, had tongue, Blaan. Among them, some held encyclopedic lore — which none
the gumption to form themselves into a legal association to manage their divided into seen and unseen reality, or science and enchantment. The
affairs and dealings with market. Upper Lasang is also where a woman like adepts knew their biology, climate, and geology invariably in relation to states
Estelita can partner with a man supportive of her art. Estelita is therefore of being; knew their arts of transformation, not the least, wielding the
right to take the nickname “Princess” in stride, to not regard herself separate pigmenting, or toxic, or life-enhancing, or mysterious qualities of barks, roots,
from her milieu. She makes for a beautiful Princess, in truth. But her leaves, and strange small petioles in various mixes in various preparations.
remarkable artistic and personal attribute is her ability to vanish into her Which is to say, the minutiae of life in its many forms was saturated with
community — even as she shines out. meaning.
Yabing Masalon Dulo, 2016 Fu Yabing lived as a youth in a milieu with a density of stimuli that
Weaving (Ikat) encouraged skill and imagination. When Fu Yabing’sgeneration took from the
forest fibrous material that they worked into art, that art, in turn, supported
born 8 August 1914
the integrity of natural/cultural interconnection.
Since the venerable ikat-dyer has a memory sharper than blades, it seems
Although no longer. In Mindanao, the forests are for the most part an extinct
always best to follow her counsel. She does know for a fact that she was
form of community. Among all the peoples who used to ikat in Mindanao, ikat
born in a place already called Landan in that long ago time. The exact sitio
is, for the most part, an extinct form of art-making, community-making,
was and is still named Amgu-o, a settlement of a few related families within
equilibrium-making. And but for Fu Yabing Dulo and only one or two others
Landan, today a barangay, a constituent unit of a town. During the early
(one of whom is her daughter Lamena), Blaan ikat dyeing is an extinct form
twentieth century, Amgu-o was a cluster of houses thoroughly unconnected
of human endeavor in a world gone the way of the forests.
to the national political organization. It was a hilly, forested place where
streams were punctuated by all sizes of rocks. The trees, then, were ancient. Whang-od, nominated October 21, 2017
Tattooing (Batek/Batok)
Now ancient as well — accepting the honorific Fu, elder, with no hauteur —
Fu Yabing has lived long enough to have seen Amgu-o emerge as an
exposed, dry place sans those trees. Her thatch-wood-concrete domicile
speaks of a permanence unconnected to the archaic system of shifting
agriculture that gave its practitioners to move entire hamlets following the
obligation to regenerate soil after extended use; giving that land back to the
forest. Today, visitors reach Fu Yabing on foot, or by motorcycle, or a four-