LESSON

3
THE CONTEXTS OF ART
 CONTEXT
 Refers to settings, conditions, circumstances,
and occurrences affecting production and
reception or audience response to an artwork.
It is a set of background information that
enables us to formulate meanings about works
of art and note context affects form.
 Different context of art

 A. Artist’s Background
Age, gender, culture, economic conditions, social
environment, and disposition affect art production.
The mode of production , which encompasses the kind of
materials accessible to the artists as well as the conditions
surrounding labor, also hope the work produced by the artist.
A traditional artist’s resources differ from an artist reared in a
highly urbanized environment like Manila. Initiation and
training in art might be different too.
The methods of production are usually learned from the
elders, like the practice of weaving where the knowledge
is passed on the younger generation of women weavers.

Samar mat weaving

In Betis Pampanga, sculpture- making is learned
through apprenticeship with a matecanan
mandukit or master sculptor who maintains a
workshop where young people are trained to make
santos.

Sculpture making in Betis Pampanga

Parol Making in San Fernando,
Pampanga

Rolando Quiambao –Lantern Maker, “

Parol King”
The mediums, techniques, and styles in traditional
art shared among members of the community.

“Taka” or Paper Mache

sculptures of horses in Paete,
Laguna.
Some artists deliberately foreground their cultural
identity in their works. The Tausug National Artist
Abdulmari Asia Imao integrated motifs from the
culture of Mindanao using modernist styles of
figuration.
Julie Lluch, an artist who hails from Iligan City,
would often emphasize her female identity and
personal experiences in may of her terracotta works.
In Cutting Onions Always Makes Me Cry, 1988,
Lluch’s self portrait presents cooking- a role
associated with women in the home– as oppressive
and unpleasant.
 Travels, training, and
professional development
broaden the artist’s
horizon.
 Different context of art

 B. Nature

Nature can be seen as a source of

inspiration and a wellspring of materials
for art production.
The t’nalak for example uses abaca fibers stripped
form the trunk of the banana tree, and colored with
red and black dyes naturally extracted from roots
and leaves of plants.

One of the recognizably different and

interesting elements of T’boli ( Lake Sebu,
South Cotabato) culture is their Abaca fabric
known as T’nalak woven by their
Dreamweavers.
 Different context of art

 C. Everyday Life

Philippine traditional art has always been

an integral part of daily life. Its
significance lies not only in its aesthetic
appearance but also in its functionality and
its value to the community that produced it.
 The art of making the pabalat or pastillas wrappers has transformed in
recent years from being a local, folk tradition into a popular art.
Besides adding flair to the sweet pastillas de leche made from fresh
carabao’s milk, the pabalat has also become a compelling icon/symbol
of the people’s creativity, not only of the town of San Miguel but the
entire province of Bulacan.

LUZ OCAMPO, pastillas girl

 Different context of art

 D. Society, Politics, and Economy,

and History
 Changes in the society, politics and
economy affects artists, the work that
they do, and the structures that
support their production.
 Technological innovations give rise to shifts
in artistic productions. It was only in the
early 20th century when photography became
accessible to local photographers as Kodak
set up shop in the Philippines in 1928.
 Photography fulfilled documentary and
artistic functions, serving as an alternative to
painting as a reproducible and inexpensive
form of portraiture.
 Different context of art

 E. Mode of Reception
 Aside from considering our personal
identity as a perceiver of art as well as
the other contexts, it is also important
to note when, where, and how art is
encountered.
 When forms of street art like
graffiti are placed inside the
whitewashed walls of the
museum, how does looking at
this art make you feel?
REPORT

 GAMABA ( GAWAD SA MANLILIKHA NG BAYAN)

AWARDEES
 PREPARE A WRITTEN REPORT with pictures (1-2 PAGES -
front page not included)
 CONTENT:
1. BIOGRAPHY OF THE ARTIST ( include their ethnicity,
location, etc.)
2. 2. EXPERTISE (INCLUDE SOME OF THEIR WORKS/
CRAFTS)
3. PREPARE A SHORT PRESENTATION OF YOUR RESEARCH.
 LESSON 4
 THE CONTEMPORARY IN TRADITIONAL ART:

GAWAD SA MANLILIKHA
NG BAYAN
GAMABA
 In April 1992, the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan or
the National Living Treasures Award was
institutionalized through Republic Act No. 7355. Tasked
with the administration and implementation of the Award
is the National Commission for Culture and the Arts
(NCCA), the highest policy-making and coordinating
body for culture and the arts of the State. The NCCA,
through the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan Committee
and an Ad Hoc Panel of Experts, conducts the search for
the finest traditional artists of the land, adopts a
program that will ensure the transfer of their skills to
others and undertakes measures to promote a genuine
appreciation of and instill pride among our people
about the genius of the Manlilikha ng Bayan.
 Gawad sa Manlilikha ng
Bayan
 As a group, these folk and traditional artists
reflect the diverse heritage and cultural traditions
that transcend their beginnings to become part
of our national character.
 As Filipinos, they bring age-old customs, crafts
and ways of living to the attention and
appreciation of Filipino life.
 They provide us with a vision of ourselves and of
our nation, a vision we might be able to realize
someday, once we are given the opportunity to
be true to ourselves as these artists have
remained truthful to their art.
R.A. 7355
o “Manlilikha ng Bayan”
o shall mean a citizen engaged in any
traditional art uniquely Filipino
o whose distinctive skills have reached such a
high level of technical and artistic excellence
and
o have been passed on to and widely practiced
by the present generation in his/her
community with the same degree of technical
and artistic competence. 
How does one become a
Manlilikha ng Bayan?
• To become a “Manlilikha ng Bayan”, the
candidate must possess the following
qualifications:
a. He/she is an inhabitant of an
indigenous/traditional cultural community
anywhere in the Philippines that has preserved
indigenous customs, beliefs, rituals and
traditions and/or has syncretized whatever
external elements that have influenced it.
How does one become a
Manlilikha ng Bayan?
b. He/she must have engaged in a folk art
tradition that has been in existence and
documented for at least fifty (50) years.
c. He/she must have consistently
performed or produced over a significant
period, works of superior and distinctive
quality.
How does one become a
Manlilikha ng Bayan?
d. He/she must possess a mastery of
tools and materials needed by the art, and
must have an established reputation in the
art as master and maker of works of
extraordinary technical quality.
e. He/she must have passed on and/or
will pass on to other members of the
community their skills in the folk art for which
the community is traditionally known.
A traditional artist who possesses all
the qualities of a Manlilikha ng Bayan
candidate, but due to age or infirmity
has left him/her incapable of teaching
further his/her craft, may still be
recognized if:
a. He/she had created a significant body
of works and/or has consistently displayed
excellence in the practice of his/her art, thus
achieving important contributions for its
development.
A traditional artist who possesses all
the qualities of a Manlilikha ng Bayan
candidate, but due to age or infirmity
has left him/her incapable of teaching
further his/her craft, may still be
recognized if:
b. He/she has been instrumental in the
revitalization of his/her community’s artistic
tradition.
A traditional artist who possesses all
the qualities of a Manlilikha ng Bayan
candidate, but due to age or infirmity
has left him/her incapable of teaching
further his/her craft, may still be
recognized if:
c. He/she has passed on to the other
members of the community skills in the folk
art for which the community is traditionally
known.
A traditional artist who possesses all
the qualities of a Manlilikha ng Bayan
candidate, but due to age or infirmity
has left him/her incapable of teaching
further his/her craft, may still be
recognized if:
d. His/her community has recognized
him/her as master and teacher of his/her
craft.
Categories:
 The Award shall be given in each, but not
limited to the following categories of
traditional folk arts, viz.:
folk architecture,
maritime transport,
weaving carving,
performing arts,
Categories:
 The Award shall be given in each, but not
limited to the following categories of
traditional folk arts, viz.:
literature,
graphic and plastic arts,
ornament,
textile or fiber art,
pottery and other artistic expressions of
traditional culture.
Categories:

 Consideration shall be given to

geographical distribution and balance of
artistic categories.
What are the incentives
received by the awardee?
 A Manlilikha ng Bayan awardee receives:
specially designed gold medallion,
an initial grant of P100,000 and
P10,000 monthly stipend for life.
What are the incentives
received by the awardee?
 In consonance with the provision of
Republic Act No. 7355, which states that
“the monetary grant may be increased
whenever circumstances so warrant,” the
NCCA board approved:
an additional monthly personal allowance of
P14,000 for the awardees
 GAMABA Awardees
Form:

Weaving
 1. Lang Dulay (d. 2015)
• Year of conferment – 1998
• Ethnicity/ location- T’boli/ Lake Sebu South
Cotabato, Mindanao
• Expertise- Tinalak weaving
Lang Dulay knows a hundred designs, including
the bulinglangit (clouds), the bankiring (hair
bangs), and the kabangi (butterfly), each one
special for the stories it tells. Using red and
black dyes, she spins her stories with grace.
Her textiles reflect the wisdom and the visions of
her people.
Her textiles are judged excellent because of the
“fine even quality of the yarn, the close
interweaving of the warp and weft, the precision
in the forms and patterns, the chromatic integrity
of the dye, and the consistency of the finish.”
 2. Salinta Monon
• Year of conferment – 1998
• Ethnicity/ location- Tagabawa Bagobo/
Bansalan, Davao del Sur, southeastern
Mindanao island.
• Expertise- Inabal weaving
She used to wear the traditional hand-woven
tube skirt of the Bagobo, of which
the sinukla and the bandira were two of the
most common types until the market began to
be flooded with cheap machine-made fabrics.
 3. Darhata Sawabi
(d.2005)
• Year of conferment – 2004
• Ethnicity/ location- Tausug/ Parang, Sulu,
southern Philippines
• Expertise- Pis siyabit weaving

the pis siyabit, the traditional cloth tapestry worn

as a head covering by the Tausug of Jolo. A
hand-woven square measuring 39 by 40 inches,
which takes her some three months to weave,
brings her about P2,000. These squares are
purchased by Tausug for headpieces, as well as
to adorn native attire, bags and other
accessories. Her remarkable proficiency with
the art and the intricacy of her designs allows
her to price her creations a little higher than
others.
 4. Haja Amina Appi
(d.2013)
• Year of conferment – 2004
• Ethnicity/ location- Sama/ Tandubas,
Tawi tawi, southern Philippines
• Expertise- mat weaving
Her colorful mats with their complex
geometric patterns exhibit her precise
sense of design, proportion and
symmetry and sensitivity to color. Her
unique multi-colored mats are protected
by a plain white outer mat that serves
as the mat’s backing. Her functional and
artistic creations take up to three
months to make.
 5. Magdalena Gamayo
• Year of conferment – 2012
• Ethnicity/ location- Ilocano/ Pinili Ilocos Norte,
northern Luzon
• Expertise- inabel weaving
North is known for its cotton, it does not have thread
factories to spin bales of cotton into spools of thread.
Instead, Magdalena has to rely on local merchants
with their limited supplies. She used to spin her own
cotton and brushed it with beeswax to make it
stronger, but after the Second World War, she now
relies on market-bought thread.
Magdalena has taught herself the traditional patterns
of binakol, inuritan(geometric design), kusikos (spiral
forms similar to oranges), and sinan-sabong(flowers),
which is the most challenging pattern
 GAMABA Awardees
Form:

Literature and
Performing Arts
 6. Ginaw Bilog (d.2003)
• Year of conferment – 1993
• Ethnicity/ location- Hanunoo Mangyan/ Mansalay, Oriental
Mindoro
• Expertise- Surat Mangyan and Ambahan Poetry

• The ambahan is the traditional poetry of the Hanunuo

Mangyans of Oriental Mindoro. Ambahan Poetry- a poetic
literary form composed of seven-syllable lines used to
convey messages through metaphors and images. The
ambahan is sung and its messages range from courtship,
giving advice to the young, asking for a place to stay,
saying goodbye to a dear friend and so on. It is usually
written on bamboo in the Surat Mangyan, a centuries-old
pre-Spanish script. The syllabic script and the ambahan
poetry have complemented each other, contributing to
their continued existence today.
• Reproduced here are three extracts from the work of
Antoon Postma, anthropolog
 7. Masino Intaray

• Year of conferment – 1993

• Ethnicity/ location- Pala’wan//
Brookes Point, Palawan
• Expertise- Lyrical Poems :kulilal
(song), basal, bagit (music) and
playing their accompanying
instruments, epic chanting and
story telling.
 8. Samaon Sulaiman
(d.2011)
• Year of conferment – 1993
• Ethnicity/ location- Magindanao/ Mama sa Pano,
Maguindanao, western Mindanao
• Expertise- Playing the Kudyapi

• Learning to play the kutyapi from his uncle when he

was about 13 years old, he has since, at 35 become
the most acclaimed kutyapi master and teacher of his
instrument in Libutan and other barangays of
Maganoy town.
• Samaon was a popular barber in his community and
serve as an Imam in the Libutan mosque.
• For his exemplary artistry and dedication to his
chosen instrument, for his unwavering commitment to
the music of the kutyapi at a time when this
instrument no longer exists in many parts of
Mindanao, Samaon Sulaiman is worthy of emulation
and the highest honors.
 9. Alonzo Saclag
• Year of conferment – 2000
• Ethnicity/ location- Kalinga/ Lubuagan,Kalinga
northern Luzon
• Expertise- Playing the Kalinga musical
instruments; dance patterns and movements
associated with rituals.
• As a young boy in Lubuagan, Kalinga, Alonzo
Saclag found endless fascination in the sights
and sounds of day-to-day village life and ritual.
According to his son, Robinson, he received no
instruction, formal or otherwise, in the
performing arts. Yet he has mastered not only
the Kalinga musical instruments but also the
dance patterns and movements associated with
his people’s rituals.
 10. Federico Caballero

• Year of conferment – 2000

• Ethnicity/ location- Sulod Bukidnon/
Calinog, Iloilo, Panay Island
• Expertise- Chanting the sugidanon epic
of the Panay Bukidnon
 11. Uwang Ahadas

• Year of conferment – 2000

• Ethnicity/ location- Yakan/
Lamitan, Basilan island,
southern Philippines
• Expertise- playing Yakan
musical instruments
 GAMABA Awardees
Form:

Plastic Arts
 12. Eduardo Mutuc

• Year of conferment – 2004

• Ethnicity/ location- Kapampangan/ Apalit , Pampanga,
central Luzon
• Expertise- metalsmith
• . silver plating of religious and secular art
• an artist who has dedicated his life to creating
religious and secular art in silver, bronze and wood.
His intricately detailed retablos, mirrors, altars, and
carosas are in churches and private collections. A
number of these works are quite large, some
exceeding forty feet, while some are very small and
feature very fine and delicate craftsmanship.
 13. Teofilo Garcia

• Year of conferment – 2012

• Ethnicity/ location- Ilocano/ San Quintin, Abra,
northern Luzon
• Expertise- gourd casque making
 Parul Kapampangan
• Brief History
The word parol derives from the Spanish
farol, meaning lantern or light. Filipinos
place much significance on the symbolism of
light, the star regarded as a fount of light
and a sign of hope in the predominantly
Christian country in Asia. 
 The First Lantern Maker
•
The first lantern maker was recorded to be
Mr. Francisco Estanislao, a saltmaker, who
made big lanterns from bamboo and coco
cloth in Santa Lucia, San Fernando,
Pampanga.
 The First Lantern Festival 

• Historians said that the first

lantern competition was organized
in honor of Aurora Aragon Quezon
early 19th century.
• It was in the year 1931 the
electricity was established in San
Fernando, thus sparking the birth
of the first Giant Lantern Festival.
The added illusion of dancing lights
highlighted the bright colors and
intricate designs of these Giant
Lanterns.
• The San Fernando lantern industry progressed from the
Giant Lantern Festival of San Fernando. The festival,
which is held every December, finds its root in Bacolor
where a much simpler activity was held. “Ligligan Parul”
(Lantern Competition) was said to have started in San
Fernando in the year 1904. But some say that the
“Ligligan Parul” did not happen immediately after the
transfer and in fact began in 1908.
 Lubenas to Giant Lantern
• This forerunner of the present day Giant
Lantern Festival was in a religious
activity which we know today
as “lubenas”, a nine-day novena before
Christmas, which coincided with
the “simbang gabi” from December
16 to 24.
• This tradition gradually evolved as the
lanterns became bigger and the designs
more intricate. Later, one big lantern was
made for each barrio, which was created
through a cooperative effort.
• At this time, the lights were
controlled by individual switches
that were turned on and off
following the best of the music. In
the years that followed, more
improvements were introduced to
the giant lanterns. Colored plastic
replaced the traditional papel de
hapon.
 Design

• Designs of Mr. Rolando Quiambao

4 basic parts of a Kapampangan Parol 

• Tambor- center
• Siko Siko- star shaped
layer
• Palimbun- enclosing
the siko-siko/star
• Puntetas- additional
design/ outer layer
Frame

The frame is the lined with cardboard and

foil followed by another enormous task,
placing the over 5,000 light bulbs in their
places and wiring them up together using
hundreds of yards of electrical wires. 
Rotor System

Large steel barrels called rotors also

replaced the hand-controlled switches to
maneuver the lights. Strips of masking tape
on this rotors establish the sequence of the
switching on and off of the lights. Hairpins,
attached to the end of the wires leading to
each bulb, connect the lights to the rotor,
which in turn, is connected to the source of
electricity.
• The Christmas Lantern Contest was co-
organized by the Municipality of San
Fernando and Department of Tourism
Angeles Field Office in the year 1975.
• Brgy. Del Pilar was the Champion in
1983-1991(9 years ) the longest defending
champion  in the competition.
Parol- A world class creations of
the Kapampangan.
• Such a creation however, did not come
without the untiring efforts of the
Fernandinos, and more so, their ingenuity
and innovation. And it is because of the
Parul Sampernandu that San Fernando
has earned for itself the title
of “Christmas Capital of the
Philippines.”
Parol- A world class creations of
the Kapampangan.
 1ST QUARTER PRODUCT PERFORMANCE: 100 POINTS
GIANT LANTERN DESIGN MAKING

I. Objective:
To understand the different context of art by recalling and interpreting how it applies to a familiar or community- based
art form.
 
II. Task:
1. The students will be divided into 4 groups
2. Each group will prepare their own design
3. The students will work on their project during their Contemporary Arts class.
4. Each group will prepare the following materials:
1/2 illustration board (already drafted)
Pencil, Colored Pencils and Markers
Ruler and/or compass
 
III. Scoring Rubric
Criteria:
1. The design should have the 4 major parts of a kapampangan parol
2. Original design with feasible geometric patterns
 
Judging:
The Giant Lantern Design will be judged by Mr. Rolando Quiambao- the Kapampangan“Parul King” and entrepreneur.