Comments: Guys, can you help me define FILIPINIANA?

Brian Tenorio Guys, can you help me define FILIPINIANA Thanks

12:58am · Comment · Like

 Chris Jalandoni at 1:03am May 25

FILIPINIANA, I think, is a slang for anything Filipino. I guess.

 Kurt Torres at 1:07am May 25

errr philippine lit books' section in the lib?

 Joel Suplido at 1:10am May 25

It refers to Philippine-related literary material, and literature written in Filipino and other Philippine dialects and languages.

 Mike TheMechanic at 1:14am May 25

Anything by Patis Tesoro or found in Nayong Pilipino. Meron pa ba nun?

 Leah Camilla R. Besa-Jimenez at 1:21am May 25

Refers to artifacts of the culture of the Philippines, reflective of its history and even folklore.

 Ernan Munoz at 1:23am May 25

pertaining to the culture, heritage, history and traditions of the Philippines and its people

 Raab de Boracay-Manila at 1:23am May 25

anything in reference to filipino culture?

 Markus L. Schmidt at 1:26am May 25

We went to the Villa Escudero fiesta yesterday. Theme was Filipiniana... which refers to your outfit of course and is anything traditional or modern Filipino... from Mindanao to Ifugao. Traditionally however Filpiniana refers to the southern Luzon "Spanish influenced" style like the barong, the terno etc... or the camisa de chino...

 Paulo Angelo C. Famularcano at 2:25am May 25

My stab at this: Any product of the Filipino culture of the colonial era.

 Alodia Cecilia Mascenon Sales at 3:26am May 25

...think, Maria Clara :)

 Kat Palasi at 3:37am May 25

maybe any product of the mix of cultures between east and west. so where does INDIGENOUS fit in, i wonder. i really don't have an answer. Filipino-made comes closest to my mind...?

 Brian Tenorio at 3:42am May 25

I actually am more concerned about the range of the ideas from the comments -- from slang to literature -- to Philippine-made. Very interesting...

 Kat Palasi at 3:47am May 25

I sometimes get irritated when all i see during "Filipiniana" occasions are the traditional "ideas" of what is Filipino--baro't saya,camisa de chino,etc. and then it stops there. so mangyan,igorot,ilocano,bicol, etc is non existent. and tourism officials don't know what the f*ck they are promoting.see, i am showing my irritation again, b.....

 Joseph Lim Jr. at 7:35am May 25

I had no idea there are tourism officials in the philippines

 Jam Yap at 9:24am May 25

I guess if you compare it with the term "Americana," then "Filipiniana" could be defined as artifacts of the culture of our country typifying that of a certain period/era's. I agree with Paulo on the "colonial era" bit - my take on the timing is the beginning of the 20th century, all the way to the Commonwealth era but before WWII... when ... Read More

 Brian Tenorio at 6:59pm May 25

The Americana comment makes a lot of sense. When the I googled the definitions online, they are very different though. I will need to check how often "Americana" as a term is used and how effectively. I rarely here it in the US too. Let's see... hehehehe thanks everyone!

When lost and looking for an answer, head Downtown to the New Musuem

Re-post: MBA vs. Masters of Design Management

by Nathan Shedroff on October 4, 2007

http://www.designmba.org/blog/archives/2007/10/mba_vs_masters_of_design_manag.html

A question I hear often now is: "what is the difference between an MBA and a Masters in Design or a Masters in Design Management?"

The latter two degrees are fairly common--especially in Europe--but the MBA is brand new and still rare (for now).

A Masters in Design is aimed at training designers to be leading, thoughtful designers. These degrees may include some focus on strategy and business realities (like CCA's new Graduate Program in Design under Brenda Laurel's new leadership), but their concentration is on design.

A Masters in Design Management usually trains designers or other business people in managing the design function within an organization. This department may be subsumed under Marketing, Engineering, Operations, or somewhere else, depending on an organizations' structure, or it may be it's own division. These programs definitely include curricula in managing people within organizations and some business functions.

Instead of leading designers and design leaders, an MBA is a business degree focused on creating business leaders that understand the value design can bring to their organizations. What differentiates the MBA in Design Strategy (or Design MBA, for short) is that it relies on design principles as a direction for innovation strategy so that graduates understand how to innovate within businesses. It's purpose is to help designers and business people from non-design areas, including from the non-profit world, understand how to manage meaningful innovation within an organization and lead with a full understanding of how all parts of an organization must be engaged in order for the company to innovate effectively.

Meditating the Memorial

Antidisetablishmentarianism

They played "America the Beautiful" as the final hymn in Church today. I wish we did that too in Manila, sing patriotic songs after mass.

The etymology of the word of "Casket"

Really, it is from the French, originally meaning "a container of precious things" -- used by the Americans to make things not as morbid.

"Desire begins in the mind."

"Remember Veronica, love Love. But do not love the man who will be in his power." A story about Venice's most powerful courtesan -- most effective too. Dangerous Beauty. (This blog entry's title is from the film too.)

Fav Film: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Really, it is about growing old and young with the people we love. One of the few movie that makes you think (of the really more significant things in life).

The Mother of Exiles

It was my first time to meet in person the Statue of Liberty today. Photograph by Christine Tenorio.

Design peg for "RADIANCE" from the Lux Mortem Casket Collection

Anna Molska: Tanagram

It was my first time to visit the New Museum in New York last May 21. These are pictures from Anna Molska's Tanagram -- one of the best short films I've seen ever. I didn't detect a narrative, but everything else was more than compensative. I hope to see this short film online one day soon. 

The LuxMortem Logo by Brian Tenorio

Designer Caskets

Dear Friends,

I am very excited to announce that I will be launching from New York a line of designer caskets. These will be made in the Philippines. These will be designed pieces that add meaning and dignity to this very significant human experience of passing away. These pieces will be made with sustainability in mind, and not just premium design.

I will also appreciate any leads or offers for collaboration and affiliation from the industries involved -- as I plan to redesign this experience from all aspects. Please message me if you are interested. Thank you.

Brian Tenorio

The Future of Philippine Shoe Design

I feel that the future of Philippine Shoe Design should have its foundation secured onto these three different concepts:

Ecology: Love Your Environment

Tenorio Manila allows flaws in its leather, realizing that the world’s natural resources are limited and that the supply should be, as much as possible, shared equitably. Therefore, any animal, whether maimed, stricken, or nurtured with love, possesses a similar essence with any other creature. Leather from any origin deserves the same respect and integrity when finally laid onto any pair. A scar or a bite, or any similar flaw, are only markings of the creature’s story. These marks do not affect the strength and durability of the leather. This realization now outlines Tenorio Manila’s understanding of what makes a particular material good, and another, better.

Ethnology: Love Local to Go Global

I think that the world is already saturated with mixed-up ideas and a mélange of substance from everywhere, so that anything that is sincere, in pure-form, or is historically-intact turns out to be more valuable.

We then must embrace our culture and history and try to grow within them. We used to be the best shoemakers in the continent and we can be that again. The change can happen starting with the consumers by increasing the demand for Philippine-made shoes. On the other hand, improvement can happen if Filipino designers and manufacturers strive to produce better products.

Phenomenology: Go Personal to Love Global

To believe in human achievement through small personal victories is a truth I've learned (maybe again as an adult this time, in the last few years). If you pay attention very well to how you think and how you act, you will realize that within you are the same patterns of want, desire, and hunger that are present when commodities and goods are traded on a larger global level.

The Golden Age of Philippine-made designer shoes is not about quantity but quality and design. Our local manufacturers and industries should maybe welcome the designer. Shoe design means actually making wearable pairs and not just drafting fantastic illustrations. And to make real pairs, one must have the raw materials, equipment, machinery and skilled craftsmen. These components while readily found and available in our existing companies are not necessarily accessible to designers. When I was starting, the hardest part was to figure out who could make my shoes for me. And when I found some shoemakers and companies, the next obstacles was finding a way to get them to want to make for me. The third challenge involves re-training a set of craftsmen to create high-end shoes again. Decades and decades of making cheap pairs aimed to be competitive with cheaper imports from all over Asia has made it more difficult for these artisans to make very good shoes again. 

The golden age of Philippine-made shoes is not about quantity but quality and design. The future of the Philippine shoe design industry is not only borne out of volumes of leather, or put together in man-hours in factories, or is written out in policies by government, but is first formed by the dreams and imagination of the hardworking creative. 

Farewell, Manila

BRIAN TENORIO: FAREWELL, MANILA
Filipino-American Designer Brian Tenorio 
Takes-off for New York 
in Marikina-made Designer Boots

Shoe label Tenorio Manila’s DREAMS Collection is Brian Tenorio’s parting anthology as he leaves for his sabbatical in New York this fall of 2008. The following text was written by Brian Tenorio, the Filipino designer label's Design Principal.


The foundation of all dreams is hope. Hope could then be the theme of my 2007 to 2008. It has been a while since I’ve released a statement as myself and not as the design principal of my label. You see, these two perspectives, while specially intertwined, have very different directions. Let me then write in the first person and share some learning I have from my beginnings in this industry, my short time in shoe design, and some insight on what is next. This is a “fashion show in print” in ways, as I do not attempt to showcase what is ready to wear, or what is hip. The goal of this text (and incidentally my Dreams Collection) is to inform and alert, remember, inspire, agitate, enliven, and hopefully widen the confines of what we think is real and necessary, to celebrate what is Filipino and Filipinized, and what we think is us and ours.

Creating My Mold (or Revelations as I was Beginning)

While writing this text, I am surrounded by prototypes of styles for my next set – a shoe made up of leathers from eight animal species, a shoe decked with Swarovski crystals, a pair adorned with jade, pearls, or leather straps inlaid with onyx.

What was essential when I started my work as a shoe designer was creating something from nothing. I meant to not simply produce “my version of” but to create pieces that were essentially me, footwear that spoke Filipino but sympathized with the musings and stories from the rest of the world. It was easy. Understand your environment, and produce something from it without leaving. Stay.

The result were shoe styles that could never be thought of as take-offs or “inspired from” from other foreign labels. These pieces were Filipino because a Filipino made them. A guava tree will bear guava fruits, and never apples. (And certainly not apples that look like guavas!) Hence, the molds were formed from silhouettes I dreamt of, roughened up and smoothened by challenges in production and kind words from family and friends, or people I met in the process.

The next stage in beginning things is understanding your own needs, wants, and desires. There is a difference between these three. Needs are details that will allow a designer to survive. Wants, when gotten, complete our undertakings, and allow us to do another cycle of work. Desires, when fulfilled, perfect our message and uplift the craft. Money is a need, exhibition is a want, and self-evolution is a desire. These are examples of each.

Kidskin Lining (and Other Realizations)

Work with What is Available
What is available is what can be imagined. I used to feel very sad thinking that we have very limited access to technology and materials from this country. Then I studied carefully what we have already. Since we have a limited selection of leather, I improved on my form, silhouettes, patterns, and cuts. With my mold makers, I engineered my own silhouette and contoured the slopes myself by hand. With the same kind of perforations on my shoes, I formed new shapes and figures, and created meaning and readings from them. Make what is necessary and beautiful, available. 

Do Not Embellish the Exterior, Instead, Illuminate on the Essence
Younger designers will have the tendency to add or accessorize in order to highlight the value of their subjects. But really, what does not add, only subtracts and what they mean to bring out can actually already be there, lost in the layers of interpretation in colors, textures, and fabric. What young designers must work for is to illuminate the essence of their pieces. What are they about? What about these creations will improve the world, or at least, enrich an individual? What truth does it communicate? Where is the love?

You Exhale the Same Stuff You Breathe In
One should give more credit and value to his or her surroundings, for one's environment will be the basis of his ideas, dreams, and directions. A question that took me a long time to figure out was what made my styles Filipino (specially considering that I was not even born in this country—was born in Tehran, Iran—and also was on dual citizenship, Filipino and American). The answer revealed itself to me once during a talk I gave at the Asian Institute of Management. If you breathe it in, you tend to breathe the same thing out. We should then make this environment, this society, these islands, a very beautiful experience, a wonderful happy story, and most importantly a haven of love and learning for our children. We should make staying worth it, or leaving as a chance to spread the glories of Filipiniana.

Third World Blitz
(As I write this, I am listening to Five Years by the 90's Filipino band, Sugar Hiccup.) The concept of the “rest of the world” introduced to most of our generation in Benetton's campaigns in the early 90s, is back not only because the trend pendulum's tendency is to swing back, but also because we are part of the rest of the world. Apparently, while we look at what's happening in the world's fashion capitals, the creatives from these regions are also looking at us. And although we have been used to reading endearing blogs written by Filipinos about what’s hot in New York, Paris, or Tokyo, I have this theory that we can be the best only at being ourselves. We are the authority when it comes to being Filipino. The next step is to be better at how we are, and I am sure people will notice (as they have already in the last few years and the next ones, I hope).

The Silhouettes of the Future (Conversely, what dreams are made of)
The future of Philippine shoe design, I realized, may not be found in the already set-up industries in Marikina and in other regions in the Philippines. Philippine shoe design (well at least those that will come to be) now also exists in a new sector of industry—our shoe designers. Since the earlier days of Tenorio Manila in 2004, shoe design now is a recognized career option for a lot of our younger design students. Also, there are now more “out there” shoe designers with their own labels.