CHRISTIAN SAMARITAN HEALTH SERVICES AND TECHNICAL SCHOOL, INC.

Pabayo-Tirso Neri Sts., Barangay 9, Cagayan de Oro City

DIVISORIA CAMPUS

Name: Strand: Date: Score:

Subject: Contemporary Arts Across the Regions

Topic: The Contemporary In Traditional Art: Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan (GAMABA)
Content Standard: The learner understands that the mastery of the basic forms, types, techniques and devices
of creative nonfiction enables him/her to effectively critique and write creative nonfiction.
Performance Standards: The learner presents a form of integrated contemporary art based on the region of
his/her choice.
Learning Competency:
1. Classifies various art forms found in the Philippines
References:
WEEK 8
Reference: Datuin, F.M., Marcelino, L., Paulino, R., Ramirez, E.L. (2016). Contemporary Philippine
Activity No. 6
Arts from the Regions(1st ed.). Philippines: Rex Book Store, Inc.
DISCUSSION

NOTE: YOU CAN ASK YOUR TEACHER FOR PHOTO EXAMPLE IF NOT PRINTED IN YOUR MODULE FOR
CLARIFICATION OF EXAMPLES.

In this lesson, you will learn about our National Living Treasures, more formally known as the awardees of the
Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan (GAMABA) from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts or NCCA. The
awardees produce art forms that are woven into everyday life. These demonstrate how pre-colonial traditions
persist through to the present.

How does tradition become contemporary, and the contemporary traditional?

Teofi lo Garcia, a 2012 awardee is a farmer in the town of San Quintin, a municipality in Abra Province,
better known for tending a plot of land fi lled with enlarged upo or gourd. After planting the upo in November and
harvesting the mature fruit during the summer months of March to May, Garcia would transform the harvest into
durable hats protecting people, especially farmers exposed for long hours under the heat of the sun. Each upo or
tabungaw (in Ilokano) is hollowed out, polished, and varnished, which gives the tabungaw hat a distinctive yellow
sheen. The varnish also strengthens the organic material to make it weather resistant. Thin strips of rattan or
uway are woven to line the hat, while another type of intricate weave, usually made of fern or nito, is placed on the
mouth of the hat as decoration. Simple hand tools are used to gouge the insides of the tabungaw . Garcia was
instrumental in fortifying the tradition through six decades worth of persistent practice. His artistic rendering of
a functional object, dedication to craft, and commitment to the community make him a bearer of culture. In recent
years, he initiated training for students at San Quintin National High School to pass the knowledge of tabungaw
hat making, inspiring the youth to value the tradition and to ensure its upkeep.
We learned in the Lesson 1 that the distinction between modern and contemporary art is a historical,
cultural, and stylistic one. From the example of Teofilo Garcia, we reiterate that Philippine traditional art, though
based on long-standing, established practices, has always been contemporary in a sense that it is art that is being
made now, and that it persists as part of a continuing performance of tradition. Although traditional artists do not
consider their work as a contemporary art form, its similarities to contemporary art practices can be discerned.
The process of making the tabungaw hats for example, involves the interface of local scientific knowledge and art.
Prior to crafting the hat, the growth of enlarged tabungaw is made possible through techniques that manage the
interplay of seed, earth, and forces of nature within a particular duration.

What is the GAMABA?

Garcia has been named Manlilikha ng Bayan (“one who creates for the country”) or National Living Treasure.
Twelve individuals have received this distinction from the time of the establishment of the award in 1992 through
Republic Act No. 7355 until 2012. The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) bestows the highest
awards for culture and the arts, including the National Artist Award, which will be discussed in Lesson 5. The said
award and the GAMABA recognize the outstanding work of artists in the Philippines.

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 Traditional art is based on indigenous peoples’cultures that are largely honed by oral tradition. A distinct
feature of the GAMABA is its emphasis on the intangible and communal aspects of art production, which as pointed
out in Lesson 1, are closely aligned with the process-based and collaborative inclination of some contemporary art
practices. Traditional art finds deep affinities with nature, place, society, ritual and spirituality, and everyday life.
In traditional integrative art, forms and expressions do not normally end up as objects distanced from everyday
living. The site of dissemination and
knowledge transfer is neither in the
formal spaces of a museum nor a
theater. The process of creation is
usually shared among members of the
community, and appeals to broader
aspects of life. Things produced such
as textiles, hats, baskets, or utensils
are commonplace, usually found and
used in people’s homes. Songs and
dances are performed as a group as
part of ritual and as a way of affirming
one’s cultural identity or sense of
belonging.

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What are some of the issues related to awards?

The Production Process and The Changing Environment

The traditional artists’ mode of production continues to be affected with the dynamics of change. Environmental
degradation ushered in by calamities, modernization, and capitalistic endeavors displace the indigenous peoples
from their ancestral land. As their home base, it is considered of paramount importance— this is where resources
are gathered and shared, and where culture is performed.
The following factors affect the traditional artist’s production process:
1. Tourism – Land areas are converted into sites for tourist consumption. Ecological domains become more
susceptible to damage with the combined forces of natural disasters and tourist mobility. Dances and
rituals are staged for an external audience rather than for the community’s observance of tradition. Art
forms native to the community tend to diminish in quality. Removed from their original context, the works
are transformed into mass produced souvenirs in order to meet the demands of the tourist trade. Neon
colors and designs woven from synthetic fibers have been made available in recent years to create
appropriations of traditional textile designs for commercial purposes.
2. Mining and infrastructure projects – The construction of dams and the establishment of oil and mining
companies evict people from their dwellings and severely damage the environment. Deprived of the bounty of
land, indigenous groups are prompted to seek short-term employment from these industries in order to make ends
meet in a money economy.
3. Militarization – The insecurity and tensions brought about by militarized zones arrest the people’s ability to
create art. It prevents people from having communal gatherings, where exchanges and passing of knowledge can
take place.
4. Christianization – The influence of Christianity and the conversion of the natives to a foreign religion have
caused members of the community to forsake their indigenous rituals and traditions. At worse, people are led to
believe that the latter are primitive and therefore their practice has no place in contemporary culture. In some
cases however, the community finds a way to syncretize their indigenous ways with traditions of Christianity. The
Manobo community of Mt. Apo, for example initiated a “culture regeneration movement.” As Christian converts,
they sought the revival of their traditions by holding clan reunions, employing native wedding rites, and recalling
narratives of their culture through painting.

Difficulties in the Selection Process

The archipelagic orientation of the Philippines makes some locations challenging to reach by land, air, or sea.
Places that pose security risks, particularly militarized zones prevent the sustained entry of researchers and possibly
diminish reception outside of the locality. This is partly why the awarding does not follow a regular pattern, as the column
on Year of Conferment on the table of GAMABA awardees shows.
The award-giving body, through its cultural workers, is entrusted with an equally significant and difficult
responsibility of being critical, transparent, and judicious in the processes entailed by the GAMABA, from the selection,
awarding, and even beyond.

Eff ect of the GAMABA in the communities

Since the artists are very much entrenched in their localities, the award system might create a division within the
communities when one person is elevated to the status of a national awardee. The attention and the entry of outsiders may
create a disruption that may also change, not just the social and economic relationships, but also the people’s attitudes,
concepts, and definitions of the art forms and the processes.
The GAMABA and the National Artists Award, which will be discussed in the next lesson, are the highest
national awards for culture and the arts. The GAMABA recognizes exceptional artists who are engaged in the traditional
arts. With the latter, we refer to forms which are produced or performed within the context of the community. The
traditional arts are strongly grounded in culture, spirituality and religion, and also the environment. Thus, forms produced
by the GAMABA, while having a high aesthetic value, are also functional and accessible in everyday settings. The
changing times continue to pose major challenges to the environment and the traditional artist’s production process. As
culture bearers, the role of the GAMABA is to pass on their artistic knowledge to the community, to inspire them, and to
ensure that aspects of their cultural identity continue to thrive.

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WRITTEN WORK ACTIVITY:
Watch the documentary in Youtube: Katutubo: Memory of Dances (2001), directed by Antonio Jose Perez, 50 mins.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOrbP5HAtvc

Write a reaction paper based on the following guide questions:

a. What forms of traditional art can you identify in the videos?
b. What do these narratives tell us about the character of traditional arts?
c. How are the artists portrayed in the videos?
d. What specific factors cause changes in art production?

PERFORMANCE TASK ACTIVITY:

Designing the Stage for the Creation Story

Which of the art forms from the GAMABA awardees could best fi t into your developing version of the Creation
Story? Which element will it serve? Dress? Telling the story through chant? Production design? Musical or dance
element? Etc. Would you need to give it a more contemporary look or will you retain the traditional form, depending
on the tone of your story? Construct a maquette or a sketch if the art form you are going to appropriate is visual.
Create a dance or song if the element is performance-based or theatrical.

Vadcas-CAAR

January 1, 2021