Tag: January 31, 2014

Changes in the route of the annual Black Nazarene procession are meant to ensure the safety of the growing number of devotees every year, a Quiapo priest said.

Fr. Ric Valencia, parochial vicar of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, said a longer route was used for this year’s “Traslacion”—going to Quiapo from Rizal Park via Jones Bridge instead of MacArthur Bridge because of the latter’s incapacity to hold a larger number of people.

“The capacity of MacArthur Bridge is only 20 tons, so to ensure the devotees’ safety, we decided to extend the route of the Traslacion to Jones Bridge. It may be longer, but safer,” Valencia said.

“Pedro Calungsod: Batang Martir” may have failed in the box office and in getting trophies during the 25th Annual Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), but producers do not consider making a film out of the life and martyrdom of the first Visayan saint a bad investment.

The movie, directed by Francis O. Villacorta and produced by HPI Synergy Group, sought to educate Filipinos on the new saint’s sacrifices and persecution in defending and spreading the Catholic faith.

It narrates how young Jesuit missionaries, accompanied by lay catechist Pedro Calungsod (Rocco Naccino), was led by Fr. Diego Luis de San Vitores (Christian Vasquez) in sailing to Guam to introduce Catholicism to the native Chamorros.

“Mabini Art” has become a pejorative term for crass profit-prone art-making, but an exhibit at the Cultural Center of the Philippines shows that the legacy of the several galleries that used to line Mabini Street and nearby M.H. del Pilar Street in Ermita and Malate districts in Manila should not be taken for granted. After all, the art bazaar that was the Mabini gallery row produced several masters of Philippine Art, including National Artists and internationally known art practitioners.

Artworks of three generations of Mabini Artists are showcased in The Mabini Art Movement at the Bulwagang Juan Luna (Main Gallery) of the CCP until February 14.

Exhibit curator is Pearl Tan.

THE PROCESS of change inspires Kadin Tiu who portrays landscapes in monochromatic hues and subtle textures in Folds upon Folds, Layers upon Layers staged at Blanc Gallery, Katipunan from January 11 to February 1.

“Painting has become my medium to understand the changes undergoing within me, as an artist and as a person,” Tiu said. “One cannot stop learning unless he or she stops any action altogether.”

The seven oil-on-canvas paintings portray landscapes in shades of blue and violet routed with grey; the lines are delicate, soft curves similar to the appearance of fabrics.

LONDON-based Thomasian artist Yveese Belen makes art a means of healing and therapy to recover from grief over a personal loss in her sold-out exhibit, Love, Faith and Hope, which ran last December at Gallery Nine, SM Mega Mall, Mandaluyong City.

The Fine Arts almuna’s homecoming exhibit was her way of paying tribute to Romeo Forbes, who died of cancer in 2006 at the very young age of 25.

“Here Comes the Sun,” the first painting in the collecthion, shows Belen’s first encounter with Flores in the summer of 1998 at a basketball league. Both artists are portrayed with red hearts.

“Ang ibig sabihin ng pulang puso ay kahit wala na siya, buhay pa rin siya sa paintings ko,” Belen said.

CHINESE painter Liping Zheng took a contemporary approach to traditional Chinese calligraphy to pay tribute to the beauty of nature in his third solo exhibit in the country, A Passionate World, in which 35 paintings were mounted at the UST Museum from January 7 to 31.

With the use of classical brush lines and tranquil colors, Zheng displayed fresh and vibrant images of flowers and birds, which, according to him, were drawn from the Philippines’ own tropical landscapes. Also featured were typical Filipino countryside sceneries showing native nipa huts shadowed by tall coconut trees.

“It’s Mother Nature and the beauty of the scenery and the flowers which inspired me to create my art here [in the Philippines],” he said.

NICOLE stifled a weak yawn as she waited for the empty classroom to be filled with students. It was not too long before the inaudible whispers were converted into an annoying buzz in the once silent room. Today was the second day of their examinations. They were only halfway through their examinations, but there were already purplish bags forming under her classmates’ eyes due to sleepless nights.

A YEAR away from marking its third decade, the annual Gawad Ustetika again brought together budding and acclaimed writers in celebrating the glory of the Thomasian pen at the Plaza Mayor last December 14.

The prestigious Parangal Hagbong was given to drama enthusiast, literature pedagogue, and textbook writer Piedad Guinto-Rosales and the late writer-editor Norma Miraflor. The Parangal Hagbong is a lifetime achievement award given by the Varsitarian to Thomasian alumni who made remarkable contributions to the development of Philippine literature. Both Rosales and Miraflor are also Varsitarian alumni.

Asked to whom she was dedicating the award, the 83-year-old Rosales held back tears and said she owed everything to her alma mater.

PAGDATING sa teknikal na kahulugan ng oras, iisa lamang ang dapat sundin na pamantayan. Ngunit kung pag-uusapan sa kulturang Pilipino, ang nakatakdang oras ay maaaring maging mamaya o hindi na lamang. Ano nga ba ang dapat sundin?

Noong unang araw lamang ng Enero, pormal na idineklara ng Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administation (PAG-ASA) ang Philippine Standard Time (PhST) na magtatakda ng iisang pamantayan ng oras sa buong bansa. Nilalayon ng kautusang ito na baguhin ang nakagawian at nakaukit nang nosyon na “Filipino time,” isang kaisipan na isang oras na atrasado ang tinakdang aktibidad o gawain.

ANG BAWAT bayan ay mayroong kuwentong kababalaghang naibaon na ng makabagong panahon, ngunit sa hindi inaasahang mga pangyayari, muli itong huhukayin upang muling ipaalala ang ating pinagmulan.

Sa kaniyang ikalimang librong “Tatlong Gabi, Tatlong Araw” (Visprint, Inc., 2013), na nagkamit ng unang gantimpala para sa kategoryang “Nobela” sa nakaraang ika-63 Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards, dadalhin ni Eros Atalia ang kaniyang mga mambabasa sa isang mundo puno ng misteryo, kaiba sa mga naunang akdang kaniyang naisulat.

Umiikot ang kuwento sa pagbabalik ni Raymundo “Mong” Mojica, dating horoscope writer na ngayon ay isa nang kilalang mamamahayag, sa Barangay Magapok ng Santa Barbara de Bendita, upang tuparin ang huling hiling ng kaniyang namayapang ina.