An informative Summary of Dayaw (ep 1-3)

This is a series of documentary about art appreciation that contains the knowledge and information about
Dayaw, indigenous people’s cultures, our knowledge and our pride.
Starting from the introduction of the first episode, Loren Legarda talked about how important it is for our
cultures and traditions to be documented and kept alive especially now that the world is changing. She
indicated that even though colonization, conflict, and marginalization, the art of our cultures and
traditions survived and persist. Sisidlan is the living vessels of Filipino wealth that stores Dayaw. In this
documentary, Loren shared that the national living treasure award is a distinction accorded by the
Philippine government to the finest traditional artist of the land. This award is also known as Gawad sa
Manlilikha ng Bayan that is given or conferred to a person or group for their contributions. This is an
effort to recognize the fact that we have a living culture that could be passed on generations to
generations.
It is discussed in this documentary about the people who was recognized for their memorable
contributions to the Philippine culture and tradition through art, the people who continued their legacy to
value our own cultural heritage even though they already passed on, they are called “The Past Masters”.
Those people awarded of the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan includes; Samaon Sulaiman (musician,
1993), Masino Intaray, (musician and storyteller, 1993), and Ginaw Bilog (poet, 1993). Next is Lang
dulay (Textile weaver, 1998), Salinta Monon (Textile weaver, 1998), Haja Amina Appi (Mat weaver,
2004), and Darhata Sawabi (Textile weaver, 2004). This first episode of the documentary has the purpose
of educating people how important it is that they should be recognized in a society where we only look at
materialistic things as a sign of success.
Moving on to the second episode, this is where the living masters are introduced. Masters who are still
with us who’s continuing work that we must acknowledge, learn more, and preserve. Starting to the first
artist, Mardalena Gamayo, an awardee from 2012 because of her textile weaving. Her wish is for the
youth to learn from her and to inherit the knowledge she shared. Next is Teofilo Garcia, a 2012 awardee
for his gourd hat making. He shared that the gourd hat is not just any simple hat but a hat that symbolizes
the richness of our Philippine culture in the form of hats. Just like Magdalena, he is also sharing his
knowledge in order to preserve his work. Lastly is Alonzo Saclag, an awardee back in 2000 and a
musician as well as dancer. He’s passionate about the preservation of all aspects of his culture. For this
episode, it showed that what we can learn from them is the humility and perseverance have lived their
life. In the face of the changing world, they continued their passions when they were unrecognized until
they were awarded for their works.
The third episode is the second part of episode one and this is the continuation of the introduction for the
living masters of Dayaw. Fourth is Eduardo Mutuc, a 2004 awardee and a metal smith. An artist that lets
his work speak for himself. He’s doing the art of “pukpok” or beaten metal. His ability to design became
evident when he demonstrates how his visions is transformed from paper to a finished product. Then
Federico Caballero, an awardee from 2000 is an epic chanter. He has mastered the important epic tales of
his people. He also travels to encourage older folks to read and write because he knows the importance of
committing to paper. Last is Uwang Ahadas, an awardee from 2000 and he’s a musician. He’s blind yet
he can still play his instrument. He was punished by offended nature spirit because of his child’s play but
it seems like the spirits has given him an even deeper gift.
To finish this off, this whole documentary serves as a reminder for us to always appreciate the people
behind the success of our Philippine cultures and traditions. They all share a common responsibility
which is to ensure the continuance of our cultures. They are Dayaw, our knowledge, our pride.