RP Newsletter #5 - If I could buy the Cultural Center of the Philippines
Plus some thoughts on the Rappler, MB, and Muntinlupa city photo issue and other stuff.
2010, Last few months of the Benguet Center before it was demolished.
If the gov't sells more assets
On one hand, I feel like it would be great for the CCP. The place is old and can use major renovations. My dust allergy activates every time I enter the halls. The influx of money from a private investor or business can upgrade the facilities, maintain the archive, give research grants, and restage shows.
Here are some ideas for exhibitions:
- A restaging of otherwise photography.
- Eddy Boy Escudero retrospective: an exhibition of music and mayhem of the '80s-'90s (with a corresponding photobook). Perhaps live performances as well.
- Nap Jamir Retrospective. Design, Direction, and Darkroom. Exhibition and photobook of course.
- I'm down with whatever Judy Freya Sibayan and/or Marian Pastor Roces wants to do.
- Martial law era in the eyes of Luis Liwanag, Sonny Yabao, Edwin Tuyay, Nico Sepe, (and a few others out there), and a photobook of course. This requires a massive grant and research.
- Baguio Artists book
- A restaging of the 1986 Philippine photography festival
- Funding and documentation of Viva Excon tracing its history
But the first thing I will ever do is do something for Ray Albano. I don't know what yet but I want it to be worthy of the man's contributions to the institution.
There can be halls dedicated to the different mediums and cultural sensibilities of the regions. Many possibilities when there is funding.
On the other hand, how sure are we that they are not going to destroy the place and just build up a condominium complex, offshore gambling offices, a Casino, or worse, A mall? The address of CCP is prime real estate and Philippine big businesses have shown in the past that it doesn't care about socio-cultural significance and architecture all to make an offering to the temple of profits. I still mourn the loss of Benguet Center that was demolished to make way for the ghastly, Podium Phase 2.
If the CCP and other similar cultural centers will be sold, let's hope that the money would be used to preserve the place and elevate them into what they are supposed to be.
The Corona Virus news coverage
This Rappler, Philstar, and Muntinlupa city market photos was an excellent lesson in context and perspective. I enjoyed the hot takes from different personalities in justifying the photos and vilifying the photographers, news outlets, and the people in the images. I saw no one mentioned the photo editor.
The past few years of media the being weaponized, used as a propaganda tool, or a virtue-signaling satellite has slowly woken the consciousness of people in how the 4th estate works. It is difficult to learn things from the internet as it would be directionless but I'm happy that media literacy is being taught to senior high school students. There’s hope for the next generation to demand more from their 4th estate.
What all of this does is it should continue to challenge news and photo editors with what they are showing. I never liked the 24-hour news cycle, so many things are happening in the world, I wish news can apply market segmentation to their news broadcasts. I'm for the news to directly show their political affiliation. I think this is what makes John Krazcisnky’s some good news a hit in the pandemic. You'll only get good news. Maybe I'm wrong but I think it is worth a try to wear your political badge on your sleeve.
Regarding the photos, where do I stand in all of this? Therein lies the problem, with multiple "truths" coming out, the actual get lost. The camera as always is unreliable. The consequences of asking a lot on a medium that only deals in improper nouns.
Shelter fund
Shelterfund is a community-driven print sales drive that pools all the sales and equally distribute them to the participants. A cooperative if you will, for the furloughed industry that is commercial photography. It's a great idea that could hopefully cover money lost from the virus.
This initiative is an accidental depository of Philippine photography. I wish someone should gather all the data and make an infographic. How many photographers, where are they located, what is their field of practice, what is the gender percentage, which type of picture made the most sales, which made the least, and more possibilities to understand the current scene with hard evidence rather than just observations (like what I do). 2020 PH photography is shaping up to be the year of the primers. Between Ateneo art gallery's Not visual noise show, Artfair Ph photo showcase putting all photo galleries in one area (save for one), and shelter fund, it has been about pooling together. Now can we make the next evolutionary step? Or if we can have a method of distributing photography in a noncommercial manner? I don't know where but my bias and desire are towards books.
I expect it to have more participants. I'll reserve institutional critique for later. For now, if you are a business that was helped by photography or these photographers, buy a print and help a photographer today.
Link Dump:
Eddie Boy Escudero is scanning all his negatives archive and I just want to print them and make my edits centered around Music and Mayhem. There’s a book there waiting to be made.
Covid 19 resources by photographers (compiled by Angkor Photo Festival) - A lot of reading and resources that would be of great interest even if you are not a working photographer.
Battlestar Galactica on Syfy network - an excellent spare time watch. The characters are nuclear refugees lost in space, searching for a new home. The life they know is gone and they are being hunted by an unbelievable enemy. Life mirror the themes of the show. So say we all.
That's it for now.
Stay safe and sanitized.
- A.g.
Administrative stuff
I originally wanted a once a week schedule but it seems I wouldn't be able to push for that. In between balancing husband duties, grocery runs, maintaining my overall wellbeing, and struggling to keep the relevance of higher education (I can do a newsletter just on this alone), it's already a lot to handle. It feels as if I didn't move away from the "previously normal". Sure I do not need to commute 6 hours daily but my schedule is still loaded. My wife and I have to face the fact that her profession as a makeup artist is probably furloughed or outright dead. I'm thankful that my salary in the academe can cover costs (only barely) and we have health insurance. All my other revenue streams from commercial photography, writing, and other photography-related events are pretty much gone. Still, we are trying to be a two-income household again for life-changing news that we can't disclose yet.
So yeah, that's my long-winded way of saying that we are feeling the financial pressure closing in. I'll try to aim once a month if not once a week, and please do subscribe to my wife's make-up youtube channel (which I help her make).
If you reached up to here, you have my gratitude.
Thank you. It would be great if you could share this newsletter as well.