Buwan ng Wika

August marks Buwan ng Wikang Pambansa or National Language Month.

What does this mean in this day and age when many among the young population no longer know anything about our Filipino languages and indigenous cultures?

The theme for this year’s observance is “Filipino at mga katutubong wika: Wika ng kapayapaan, seguridad at ingklusibong pagpapatupad ng katarungang panlipunan.”

It’s all about understanding the Filipino language and our indigenous languages as languages of peace, security and social justice.

As we observe National Language Month, I would like to put the spotlight on Baybayin, one of the precolonial writing systems used by early Filipinos.

Our observance of Buwan ng Wika often refers to spoken language and not the written language but it shouldn’t be this way, if only to help preserve our heritage and to help younger generations learn about pre-colonial writing.

The work of calligraphy artist Taipan Lucero, a Filipino I met in the US around this time last year, comes to mind.

Taipan’s work is called CalligraFilipino, a portmanteau of calligraphy and Filipino. It is Taipan’s art and advocacy and it celebrates pre-colonial writing and traditional Filipino culture. Or, to put it simply, it is a nationalistic art and design movement started by Taipan himself.

Actually, it was while he was working as a designer in Japan and learning Japanese calligraphy or Shodo, when he experienced first hand how the Japanese show love and respect for their culture – “from preparing materials, to breathing, to the strokes, everything is treated as an art form.”

“After going through this for several months, I was inspired to show the same love and respect for our own culture. I quit my job and went back to the Philippines to work on CalligraFilipino,” Taipan shared with me.

Now, he travels extensively to share CalligraFilipino to a wide and diverse audience. He makes designs and logos for events, universities, cultural festivals and even for personal use, using Baybayin and traditional Filipino cultural elements.

Of logos and slogans

Actually, if our government officials are sensible enough, they may opt to use CalligraFilipino in coming up with new logos or brand designs. At the very least, it would stir interest in our language and our art.

Before I actually met him in August last year, I already received an invite for Taipan’s talk about his CalligraFilipino organized by the Philippine embassy in Washington. That’s how I learned about him.

I wasn’t able to attend the talk; it didn’t strike me as interesting then but it was only days later when we met in Nevada that I learned about his craft and how with it, he has been waving the Philippine flag.

Cultural renaissance

Indeed, Taipan has been igniting a cultural renaissance and a renewed love and appreciation for our culture through his CalligraFilipnio.

Taipan succeeds because the interest he has generated has been strong and far-reaching.

“There is a growing number of people interested in learning and using our script, even for simple applications such as tattoos, chat conversations, notes and I think it is wonderful,” Taipan said.

In fact, when I met him last year, he was actually in the middle of a US tour for  CalligraFilipino.

I never would have imagined it because we met in some parking lot with a bunch of other strangers as we commenced our journey to last year’s Burning Man Festival in Black Rock City. Taipan also shared his art and craft at the festival.

After Burning Man, Taipan, myself and other strangers parted ways and each walked toward the rest of our lives. But we tried to stay in touch. I learned that he also did solo art exhibitions at the Philippine consulate in San Francisco, had a Baybayin demo at the Golden State Warriors’ Filipino Heritage Night and also spoke about his craft in different campuses in the US.

“The US tour of my art and advocacy of CalligraFilipino was a success, in my opinion, because of its widespread reach and support. This is proven by the institutions that collaborated with me for special programs: Google, Stanford University, Golden State Warriors and many others,” he gladly shared with me.

Today, a year after we met in the US, Taipan is on his way back there to continue spreading his art and advocacy.

He doesn’t seem to get tired even if not everyone may not appreciate Baybayin.

“While it is true and I agree that Baybayin is indeed outdated for modern use, I want to continue its appreciation through my art and advocacy of CalligraFilipino. Even if we cannot use it formally, I believe it is important we celebrate it so as to not forget our history. As Antonio de Morga said when arriving in our land, our ancestors were literate,” Taipan said.

May we remember this as we observe Buwan ng Wika this month. It is not just about our spoken words but the written language as well, and one that connects us deeply to our past.

This isn’t really just the story of Taipan Lucero and his art but the story of each of us. It is a story of how beautiful and timeless our indigenous languages, cultures and art are.

We must celebrate it every day, this beautiful heritage and all the elements that define us as a people and as a nation.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.