BICOL REGION

"SINCO BICOLANOS (THE ART OF FIVE)"

● This group of Filipino artists hails from different parts of the Bicol region. Their painting has
made their lives like a masterpiece inspired by the magnificence of life's color and genres of
depiction of everyday living and even drama of the past. They tell the story of the Bicolano arts
and heritage is the time-trend capsule that thrives in the hearts of these artists and per se other
cultural melting pot to enrich knowledge of the local cultural "The Uragon" identity.

DR. ELDEN LUMANING

● Dr. Elden Lumaniog specializes not only in the art of medicine, but also has a firm hand in the
arena of real artistic talents. In Dr. Lumaniog's artistic expression, it is intrinsically a process of
sharing emotions to enchant the viewer. His art advocates discovery, study, documentation &
preservation of our rich cultural heritage.

“Tres Marias Series 2015” “Sinner or Saint”

 “NAN\AY”

HERMEL ALEJANDRO

● A Bicolano self-taught artist who took up B.S. in Industrial Technology at Bicol College of Arts
and Trades in Naga City. The influence of Picasso is still strongly felt in Hermz (his nickname)
style of art which gives him an idea on how to conceptualize his own works.

● MOTHER AND CHILD 17

● MOTHER TREE

● FRUIT VENDOR

JUN TIVI
 ● Jun Tivi who hails from Daraga, Albay is a largely self-taught artist who encountered art early on
earning himself recognition from his impressed teachers. He participated in his first group
painting show in Galeria De Las Islas. Then, his pursuit of arts never stopped till today.

RICHARD LA TORRE PEREZ

● Richard La Torre Perez is from San Jose, Pili Camarines Sur was born on October 28 1975. Has
won several awards here in Bicol, Manila and one in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Participated in 25 group
exhibitions.
RODERICK AKONG IMPERIO

● Roderick Akong Imperio is a Bicolano artist who took up Fine Arts in De Ocampo Memorial
Collage, Aquinas University of Legaspi. Roderick is a gallery owner of Imperio Art Gallery in
Libod 1, Libmanan Camarines Sur. And a businessman and proprietor of Kongzki General
Merchandise. He is also an active member of Salingoy Art Group in Naga City, Art Association
of the Philippines and Lakbay Kulay in Manila.

● “DAYDREAM”, “HINDI MAGKAHIWALAY”, ‘STILL LIFE”

 SOME OF THE FAMOUS ARTFORMS OF EVERY
PROVINCES OF IN BICOL REGION

MASBATE
RODEO MASBATENO FESTIVAL

● Was launched within the tenure of Emilio Espinosa Jr. as governor in 1993.

● It is a festival celebrated every second week of April.

● The fest was organized to bolster the profile of the province as a tourist destination and to
revitalize its flagging cattle industry.
● Aside from Rodeo Masbateneo, Masbate celebrates other festivals including Lapay Bantigue
Dance Festival and Pagdayao Festival.

LAPAY BANTIGUE DANCE

● Lapay Bantigue Dance FestivalIt is celebrated annually during the City
Anniversary on the 30th day of September. This event highlights the traditional
folk dance created by "Lola Felisa" many years ago, when she imitated the
graceful movement of the seagull (locally known as Lapay).

CATANDUANES
 ● Quilts are made from patches of fabric sewn together using tiny stitches to make finished
products like bags, bedspreads, wall hangs, wallets, etc. which are themed using appliqués or
patterned patches of fabrics.

● Catandungan Festival is a cultural and religious festival as well as a founding

anniversary celebration that is held in the province of Catanduanes, Philippines
every October 26. It is held in honor of Our Lady of La Naval. A province-wide
observance, it is a remembrance of the historic creation of the province on
October 26, 1945.

SORSOGON
Absalon Marticio was born in Donsol, Sorsogon, 1949. He is a well-known portrait artist, a member of
the Tuesday Group, Tanay Group, and Arte Ethnikia, a group based at the National Museum, Philippines.
His first major exhibit was conducted in 1989 at Metro Bank, Manila, and was elected one of the Board of
Directors of the Angeles Artists Association.

Geri Matthew “Choi” Carretero is a Bicolano multidisciplinary artist, independent curator, and
community development worker. He is the co-founder of the Kurit-Lagting Art Collective and a member
of the Concerned Artists of the Philippines. The Kurit-Lagting is a collective artistic collaboration of
Bicolano artists from Sorsogon, Albay, Catanduanes, Masbate and Camarines provinces with art
advocacies on human rights and the environment. The Art Collective is a member of the Sorsogon Arts
Council and the Concerned Artists of the Philippines Bicol Chapter.

Every October of each year, the Kasanggayahan Festival is celebrated in Sorsogon in

commemoration of its foundation as a Province. It is a province-wide festival, with the center of
activities in Sorsogon City. It is celebrated with a series of cultural, historical, religious, agro-
industrial and economic activities, showcasing Sorsogon as abundant agricultural products,
particularly food and decorative items from the versatile Pili tree, which is indigenous to the
province. The festival features various activities such as street dancing, beauty pageants, trade
fairs, sports competitions, and cultural presentations.
Pilar, Sorsogon is known for its quality, and beautiful handicrafts ever since. Some of these
handicrafts are abaniko, bags, slippers, wallets, coin purses and other products made up of
scratches of abaca fibers. Abaca handicraft lined this area of Maharlika Highway in Castilla,
Sorsogon. Abaca production played a significant role in the history of the province's
economy.

Paradijon pottery in Gubat, Sorsogon. The Paradijon clay craft can be traced way back in
pre-colonial times, more than 2,200 years ago, before the Spaniards came, as recorded on
June 13, 1731. The skills of these master potters, known as paradihon, came from generations
of potters who settled and earned their livelihood by making use of the abundant clay deposits
in their area, alongside other economic activities such as farming and fishing.

ALBAY

Magayon Festival
The Magayon Festival in Albay, Philippines, held annually in May, showcases a vibrant celebration of the
region's culture and heritage. A form of art as it involves creative expression and cultural significance
through costume design, cultural performances, visual arts, and vibrant decorations. These elements
showcase artistic innovation, storytelling, and cultural heritage, making the festival a platform for artistic
expression and community celebration.

Potenciano Gregorio, also called "Lolo Poten," was born in town of Lib-og, now Santo Domingo, Albay,
on May 18, 1880. Sarung Banggi or “one evening,” tells the story of a besotted man driven to poetics for
the love of his girl. He ponders his feelings and constant longing while waiting to rendezvous with her,
“sarung banggi.”

Mataas Shell Scoop differs from other shell spoons in terms of its carved figure in its handle. Its shape
and presence appears to be an anthropomorphic (human-shaped) figure wherein its handle are linked to
the soul boat figure in the famous Manunggul Jar and other depictions of the soul boat in Southeast Asian
art. Mataas Shell Scoop is classified as a shell spoon, a concave utensil made from green turban shell
(Turbo marmoratus), which is known for its mother-of-pearl luster. Archaeologists Robert Fox and
Alfredo Evangelista found it in 1957 among other prehistoric artifacts on a rock sheltered at Barangay
Mataas in Cagraray Island, Bacacay, Albay.

CAMARINES SUR
The exhibit entitled “Babaylan: Ang Pagbabalik Tanaw sa Kanyang Kaakit-akit na Ngiti” is composed of
an oversized smiling face of a Babaylan made of fiberglass, which Barcena placed at the foot of the large
tree in Plaza Quince Martires, with the branches and leaves serving as the hair of the sculpture when
viewed from a distance. Jo Barcena is well known for his famous sculpture of Plaza Oragon Monument in
downtown Naga, the John Paul II Center, and the Image of Our Lady of Peñafancia used during the
Traslacion.

FROM the plain-looking handwoven slippers to embroidered bags and embellished baskets, the seagrass
craft making in San Fernando, Camarines Sur, in Bicol Region has upscaled into a full-blown home-based
business industry enterprise providing additional income to rice farmers in flood-prone areas.
Painter/designer Bernadette De los Santos, artist and entrepreneur,

CAMARINES NORTE

Bantayog Festival is a historical festival and founding anniversary celebration held in the province of
Camarines Norte, Philippines every April. It is a festival that gives tribute to the heroism of Jose Rizal
and local patriots who took part in the Daet revolt in 1898.

Hermes Alegre, a native of Daet, Camarines Norte, began his forays into the world of art by drawing on
the beaches of his hometown and has then moved on to giving his vision tangible form through painting
on canvasses Hermes Alegre, known for his paintings of mysterious and enigmatic Filipinas in lush
backgrounds of flora and fauna returns with his latest visual feast in “Hermosa.” This eighteen piece
series of artworks celebrates the beauty of Bacolod’s unsung heroines: strong, enterprising women who
are the lifeblood of the region.