Social networking with heroes: Love, peace and a new revolution
CEBU, Philippines - Seven days after the death of former President Cory Aquino and the outpouring continues. The unstoppable freethinkers that we Pinoys are, our Supreme inboxes, Facebook pages and Twitter accounts have been filled with messages heralding Pinoy pride, and then some.
Whatever magic Tita Cory has on the Filipino people, her presence (and absence) does not cause a hostile rebellion as Pinoys get more creative in expressing nationalism. Supreme does not normally print randomly found items from an online source, but this one is different—Jose Rizal’s personal wall on Facebook was just too hard to ignore. We applaud Noypi.me or whoever authored this one (we got it on our inbox from Henri Calayag) for its witty, humorous and historically hysterical digital output “Paano kaya kung may Facebook na nung panahon ni JR?” Who would have thought Sisa could speak gay lingo or poke her girl friend Maria Clara on FB? JR, which obviously stands for Jose Rizal, even shares a link to his blogspot, shamelessly promoting El Filibusterismo. Yes, if Rizal were alive today, he’d probably be a shameless self-promoter. Rizal’s “cyber self” and never-to-be-forgotten friends’ Facebook universe is one where our heroes plan the next Katipunan convention. And one where Rizal and lover Josephine Bracken use for online love notes. Whatevz.
On another note, Supreme salutes young graphic artist and scene fixture Revo Naval for creating the blog Peaceloveandrevolution.com, which reflects a spanking, new mindset that veers away from violent protests and cyber cynicism. In his blog entry, Naval creates a 500-peso bill with the busts of Cory and Ninoy as his personal tribute to the mother of the People Power Revolution. He was not there during Edsa, but the flames that Edsa stood for burns brightly within this young man. Revo was born in 1986. Revo is short for Revolution.
In another paper, one editorial slip connotes the death of the current president. Maybe on a tone that shouts wishful thinking (?), an erroneous caption on Thursday said, “With utmost care. Military honor guard carefully moves the coffin of President Arroyo out of the Manila Cathedral.” Oops, now that is going beyond the call of freedom. SHE IS STILL ALIVE!!!
Speaking of freedom, let our lives be filled with patriotism and love for country and God. The people behind Team Manila and Graphika Manila have held hands for Manila Design Week, all with the purpose of uniting and gathering all you folks who love to make this country more beautiful. This whole week event is worth going to, to meet the vanguards of Philippine design and for you to get to know your creative self and your creative countrymen more. It promotes eco-friendliness, too and will surely fuel your juices. Because times like these, the Filipino truly shines through. Yes, we are all worth dying for.
Manila Design Week starts today, August 8 and is brought to you by Philippine STAR Supreme. (Follow Tim Yap at www.twitter.com/iamtimyap.)
MDW 2009 at a glance
Day 1: Public Art
August 8 Saturday / 4pm / Bonifacio High Street Grounds
MDW starts off with Public Art, an outdoor tarpaulin banner exhibit of 50 artworks along 5th Avenue and 11th Street in Bonifacio Global City. A live art show with murals painted by local design collectives. A Nokia/Mindstyle DIY recycling center offering free Ron English bags made out of recycled tarp in exchange for old phones.
Day 2: Creative Collaboration
August 10 Monday / 8pm / Greenbelt 5 Gallery
Day two is a fashion photography exhibit called Creative Collaboration held Monday, August 10, 8PM at the Greenbelt 5 Gallery, featuring the works of 40 of the biggest names in the fashion and design world.
Day 3: Future Design
August 11 Tuesday / 630 Pm / Glorietta 5 Atrium
Future Design, the student art exhibit, shall present over a hundred original artworks in the form of shirt designs from schools around the metro on Tuesday, August 11 at Glorietta 5 Atrium. The idea is to give the young talent a voice and a platform, hence the theme, MESSAGE FROM THE FUTURE.
Day 4: Design Dialogue
August 12 Wednesday / 4pm-7pm / Greenbelt 3 My Cinema
The next event is Design Dialogue on August 12 at Greenbelt 3 My Cinema: an intimate and select gathering of designers, creatives, communicators and public figures that shall result in a plan to brand the Philippines in a relevant and positive way, both locally and overseas.
Day 5: Cubao Experience
August 13 Thursday / 9pm / Cubao Expo
To showcase how graphic design has helped the Filipino music industry look the part, MDW has put together a bloc party and music art showcase at Cubao Expo on Thursday August 13.
Day 6: Daily Grind
August 14 Friday / 9pm / Team Manila Store /Jupiter Street
On August 14 at the Team Manila Lifestyle store on Jupiter St., Manila Design Week 2009 ends its roster of activities with the fourth edition of Daily Grind Sessions. Expansions, a multimedia hiphop experiment pioneered by Caliph8 and Mark Zero, will provide the sounds and visuals.
Day 7: Graphika Manila
August 15 Saturday
Saturday, August 15 starts 10am at Graphika Manila, an international multimedia design conference . This year’s guests include legendary graphic designer, Stefan Sagmeister, Industrial Light and Sound, Brand New School and local talent represented by Everywhere We Shoot, Inksurge and Adobo magazine.
