fleeting moments, awake or asleep,
have net will etch, my journal will keep.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
The Singer, Not the Song
Wisconsin Historical Images - Singer Advertising Card - Philippine Islands "Manila" (illustration based on an 1892 photograph)
Vivid! I still remember Mother's first Singer sewing machine in early 50s. Over the open cabinet of the machine she hummed Philippine folksongs; and when cabinet was closed and machine magically hidden, it became a table for her to write stories, poems and prayers. One day the one-toothed ogre caught my thumb, I let out a shriek and mother came to the rescue really worried. It was almost painless yet I was more amused by the crimson drop that slowly spurted out of my thumbnail.
The machine became her life. She patched, hemmed and created dresses for my siblings; and the only thing that worried her was sight of almost-empty wooden thread spools. The empties became wheels for my cardboard cars and airplanes.
Man, I was only about 5 or 6 when I playfully inserted a tennis ball inside the machine's wheel cage; mom was unaware and stepped hard on pedal that spun ball to my delight. Then ..gasp..I was shocked when ball wedged between a spoke and Titanic-kind of a brittle metal cage! It cracked and fell off! Mother turned white and let out a scream that would've blown a hole through ceiling and lifted corrugated iron roofing of our Pasay abode; LOL!)
Then Dad arrived home after a hard day of driving one of Manila's first Mercedes Benz taxi cabs (Manila Golden) and was fuming mad; but Nanay's hug shielded me while she explained to him that it still worked even without the safety cage.
At age 14, after briefly enrolling in a community tailoring course, I've sewn my first pair of pants. It wasn't easy but I felt like an engineer who stood on the edge of a just-finished Hoover Dam:)
However my romance with a flat, waxy, orange chalk that I used to draw patterns on cheap denim cloth ended as I thought there wasn't enough challenge in it; and I drifted to drawing comics. There was this eerie similarity in clothesmaking and drawing amateur comics. The principles that governed the elements that made storytelling flow smoothly and effectively remained the same.The intent, the yarn, patterns, colours, padding, anxiety, drama, texture, design, stitching and sometimes reverse engineering--it was delightfully visual but often cruelly formatted ; like a tight pair of jeans worn after a long winter hibernation; an anecdote I could wear but without busting the top waist button:).
In the 60's our eldest sister found office work at Singer in Port Area, Manila.
Ok Singer, let's call it quits;). Image above (Mother's First Singer)is one of new merbau experimental painting series I've been drawing from memory for the past year. Nowhere in my web search have I found anybody seriously using merbau (a natural, transluscent stain derived from merbau trees, (also called Ipil or Taal in the Philippines) as medium for painting due to the fact that merbau is only produced commercially to stain wooden furniture. Thus I believe I'm first to try this. It was very frustrating at first for it took me 8 layers to darken areas. It's like working on watercolours, although much more unpredictable. This natural stain is brilliant as it shows unique golden hues and streak when dry, unmatched by any polyemer or acrylic paint.
Saw off CNN the beautiful memorial service for Michael Jackson. I was moved by Jermaine, him almost breaking up with his bold rendition of such a delicate song by Charlie Chaplin for dearest brother.
Here's my humble tribute to the Man (above). Rest In Peace MJ.
Forget those video sex scandals, here's one that should need a Philippine Senate hearing:) and could make Mama Sita and Knorr squirm in horror.
Filipinos have cooked Adobo for more than three centuries and the dish has became globally popular through our hard-working Pinoy immigrants and overseas workers. As a matter of fact the dish (or the sauce) is now a highly commercialized and lucrative business earning motherland millions of pesos exporting canned Adobo-laced morsels and snacks.
But why on earth would a Filipino restaurateur in Sydney label the obviously Philippine National Dish something else?
It all started when a friend/cooking columnist recently reported in a local press group that she discovered in Stanmore (suburb east of Sydney) a Filipino restaurant (the name of which nary gives away the cultural background of the owner) that served Adobo but had labeled it as Pork In Soy Sauce! Asked why, he said it was for marketing purposes.
Here was my response to the group thread. You be the judge whether I'm just blowing it up and getting hyper-ventilated:) Well it really did touch a raw (rather cooked)nerve. My gastronomic tendons stretched tight upon learning of this cultural culinary slack right under our noses:
-----
Excerpt from friend's email: ...."Just heard that there is a Filipino in Stanmore who owns a restaurant and serves ADOBO in the menu BUT calls it PORK IN SOY SAUCE. Asked why not use the word ADOBO. Answer is for MARKETING purpose kuno. How sad!"...
..and here's my knee-jerk email response:
.."Sad indeed about adobo being cooked and sold as a generic cuisine. I really take it as an insult to all Australians of Filipino lineage especially when the culprits are Filipinos themselves. How dare them cook something they owed our Spanish-influenced culinary tradition and not name it as such. 333 years written off by a generic label when a simple closed bracketed translation under the label adobo would have sufficed.
Of course, consumers have the right to know what they put in their mouths thus the need for description of what could be exotic dishes to them. Aussies don't go inside Filipino restaurants to eat Black Stump t-bones, do they?
Philippine Adobo (as different from the South American or Chinese varieties; e.g. above image:) is uniquely Filipino-styled from the Spanish adobado and to generically label it as pork with soy sauce trivializes the legacy of our cooking skills, the recipe, timing, amount of garlic, vinegar, salt, etc.
My oh my, a teaspoonful of soy sauce doesn't make the dish at all! (some don't even use toyo or soya sauce). May i ask, have we seen Italians sell pizza in this country labeling it as flat, round bread with a variety of toppings?
OMG, sino ba nagpapasok sa mga pinoy na iyan dito?! To translate: DKP (Diyos Ko Po), who let those Filipinos in? Har-har wonder if this adobo scandal shall intrigue Balitang Australia, Adobo Nation, Philippine news sites and blogs;-)
Hey Stanmore, wake up, grow up and boycott that joint before they label our sisig as chop-chop and kare-kare as oxtail & tripe swimming in peanut butter. Oh how I wish that Filipino restaurants in Sydney become successful and not even one of them mentally blacklisted or avoided by the community because of misguided labeling. It's never too late to correct mistakes.
Mabuhay ang Adobo, mabuhay ang mga lutuing Pinoy! (Long Live Adobo, long live Filipino cuisine!)
Here's a quick ditty I wrote to give you an idea of the name of that Filipino shop:)
Holy Mollie! Cuddle me pink, Owner is pork king or the missing link:)
Enjoy Adobo everyone. Learn to cook (YouTube how-to's below) and relish the Philippine National Dish (without getting any heart trouble. Just make sure to exercise and knock off those extra cholesterol (which are naturally-occuring in our body anyway).
I can smell the garlic! Here's charming Travis with his Adobong Mah-nack;-)
What's this Manok (chicken) thing with the brothers Roces? First, there's older Alejandro with his book Something to Crow About ( which then became a critically-acclaimed theatrical play); while our younger Alfredo (aka Ding) installed (with the help of Fil-Aus community) a giant Sarimanok proudly cocked side-by-side with The Rainbow Serpent designed by Australian-Aboriginal artist Kevin Duncan. The Land Art could be seen and best appreciated from above an aircraft or balloon. (or maybe a kite-cam above it?:)
Man I guess has a natural fascination of things flying, from a pterodactyl to UFOs. We do get a buzz from time to time. Wonder if an ancient Maranao man while drinking from a primeval stream witnessed an eagle catch a fish with a single swoop. Sarimanok told tales even before an Islamic legend where Muhammad found a rooster in the first of the seven heavens.
In a single swoop Terrigal was right on the doorsteps of Ding. The fish was incredibly too heavy a load for an eagle-eyed me. It was a big project (involving installation of landscaping materials) first appointed (rather proposed:) to this cane-using, sprain/tendonitis/gout-incapacitated blogger but offer was politely declined due to busy preparations for an overseas exhibit; (and obviously the inability to walk and concentrate whilst tortured by pain). And what would have I done if I ever did accept the project? I don't think the community would like it (proposed image below:)
Sari-Manic (Edd's Pain Art sponsored over-the-counter by Voltaren;-)
I often add "t" to end the word pain; it seems painting was my only way to increase threshold and thus save my precious kidney from those helpful but nasty painkillers (tho' a little, sweetly pink Voltaren tablet was heaven-sent for moi to enjoy a 60th bash sans an indiscreet limp).
Participants in the early morning opening of Land Art 2009
Ding obviously came to mind as best guy to represent our charming Filipino-Australian community tho' I had early apprehensions that passing the ball might be perceived by him in a different manner.
Terrigal Beach, Gosford
But then no, he got excited as my partner broke him the news.
Mr. Roces hard at work to the disappointment of fans of crop circles:)
Thank God the man had an old, noble dream and the universe conspired to have him standing during the wee hours of a damp morning in a beach town called Terrigal.
Violi Calvert, one active community leader in front of the huge artwork
Ding drew his first Sari-Manok 50 years ago as a front cover on an Australian magazine (at the time when he hasn't even migrated to Australia yet.) Then this opportunity came to have it drawn once more proved irresistible.
Kevin Duncan during the opening ritual
The Sari-Manok has risen again like a Phoenix out of the ashes of cultural obscurity. This time our Southern Philippine brothers (particularly the Maranao) have somehow magically connected to another race of ancient people farther south, Terra Australis, where the Southern Cross stars reign supreme.
Ding and Kevin, inside the serpent's head.
Ah, the romantic splendour of the seduction of the Sarimanok by the Rainbow Serpent shall now be forever part of the myths surrounding two mythical creatures of the South.
The CCP logo (as originally designed by Ding Roces in the late 60's)
Ding is no amateur designer; how many of us know that he designed the logo of the Cultural Centre of the Philippines? (It was commissioned by Mrs. Imelda Marcos but credit was never given much to the artist! OMG, pati logo natangay!:)
Irene Roces made over for the opening ritual.
Earlier I warned Ding (while doing the design he kept secret;) about the possible danger, composition-wise, of the Sarimanok being swallowed by Kevin's Rainbow Serpent! Indeed he made sure it didn't afterall.
It was an early morning ritual of an opening I missed but then news and photos trickled in my Gmail inbox. Ding announced kinda excitedly:
"It was raining most of the time but it was a truly fabulous day! We started at six with the moon still hanging in the sky on the Skillion and ended late afternoon exhausted but exhilarated with the pounding of dozens of drums at the beach in Terrigal.Wow! Magic! Being alive! Wish you had all been there."
Follow this link to read first-person account by artist himself:
Photo Credits: Mario Aldeguer, Jimmy Pimentel, Violi Calvert & Alfredo Roces
If you're still with me, here was an article published in a magazine just before the opening last Saturday, 20th of June.
Five Lands Walk to unite Gavi and Ding 9/06/2009 4:00:00 AM COASTING MAGAZINE
PREPARATIONS are in full swing for the 2009 Five Lands Walk from MacMasters Beach to Terrigal later this month, where a Central Coast minority culture will be featured for the first time.
The walk will see diverse cultures come together on Saturday, June 20, from 5am. For the first time the event will showcase the contribution and influence of the Filipino culture a minority culture on the Central Coast. This involvement will be highlighted throughout the day's activities.
In a unique arrangement, local Aboriginal artist Kevin 'Gavi' Duncan will be joined by Filipino artist Alfredo 'Ding' Roces to feature an artistic collaboration as the event's land art centrepiece at The Skillion, Terrigal.
The collaboration will feature the sari-manok bird. To the lake dwelling Maranao in Southern Philippines, the sari-manok is a mythical bird; a messenger of the gods. The colourful magical bird (known as a kingfisher to some) sometimes grasps a fish in its claws. The fish conveys the message of love, good fortune and prosperity. Celebrated artist from the Gomilaroi people, Kevin Duncan, is excited to create a collaboration that is reflective of the two identities.
"Alfredo Roce's sari-manok and his traditional Filipino interpretation of the mythical bird being a messenger of the Gods inspired my traditional Aboriginal interpretation of Gurrea, the Rainbow Serpent,"Mr Duncan said.
"She too is regarded as a mythical creature and messenger in Aboriginal Lore and Creation. "There are many connections between the Indigenous Filipino deity and Aboriginal deity in the spirit world as Bathala and Bayami both Gods being responsible for the interaction with the sari-manok and Gurrea in the creation of man and woman," Mr Duncan said.
Co-collaborator Alfredo 'Ding' Roces, has had more than 20 one-man shows, received numerous accolades, worked as a journalist for the Manila Times and is now an award-winning freelance art writer.
The renowned Filipino artist is also passionate about the opportunity to be involved in the project.
"It is a great honour and privilege to work with Aboriginal artist Gavi Duncan while also representing the Filipino community with this sari-manok artwork," Mr Roces said. In addition to the land art installation, the event will feature a kite flying demonstration, musical performances and dances by members of the Filipino community.
The Five Lands Walk is an initiative of Gosford City Council and developed with community organisations and local Aboriginal people.
It is a cultural, physical and spiritual journey comprising a 9km walk through the five lands: Macmasters Beach, Copacabana, Avoca Beach, North Avoca and Terrigal.
It is also seen as a means of preserving and appreciating the unique heritage of the Gosford City region and its people.
For more information on the Five Lands Walk go to: www.gosford.nsw.gov.au
Criselda is a beautiful 21-y.o. Filipino-Australian. She visited my studio yesterday with her parents and patiently posed for a canvas painting.
Her gentle face etched deep on every brush stroke.
A picture of reflection and serenity everytime I look at her, as she radiated an aura of wisdom despite her youth. It seemed every picture taken is already a painting. Truly a painter's delight!
Took the photos for further studio work and I'm hoping to include the painting in process in a future exhibit.
--
A few days after Criselda's pose, I've finished an initial acrylic study (inspired by a nagging pain in my right ankle). Here are some photos taken by partner.
Ding Roces and I were just about to take a photo of Degas' little ballerinas when the guard (who looked Pinoy) seemed to tell me with a Taser-arresting look "Dega' muna pare, bawal magkodak dito" (hang on mate, no snapshots allowed here). But instead he smiled when I asked if we could and said "Thanks for asking anyway but we do apologise; we used to allow it but now with high resolution digital cameras, y'know..please enjoy Degas." Ding, Mario Aldeguer and I looked at each other puzzled. What are we going to do with these light but bulky cameras we brought specifically to shoot Degas? Sacre bleu how on earth can i blog Degas without images of his exhibited works?
I looked around..aha! There lied the answer on the west wing of the gallery- The Degas merchandise shop!. Still no photography allowed here tho' Mario and I were able to sneak some in the foyer.
On sale with Degas theme were French-striped folding chairs and shirts (more of Monet painting elements tho), books, posters, bookmarkers and POSTCARDS (way to go captain obvious, they're hot sellers in camera-unfriendly galleries ;).
So here are scanned Degas postcards I bought from the NGA shop (all across this blog entry) courtesy of my feisty scanner to compensate for the photo eclipse in the National Gallery of Australia (C'mon guys, you must allow photography! It's good for tourism, it promotes your artists (dead or alive). Can you imagine my souveneir photo of my visit in Paris without the Eiffel crane in the background? Inimaginable!
What about those commercial spy cameras that can be hidden in eyeglasses, neckties or in my dentures (like I can snap a picture everytime I smile:). So are you thinking of frisking everyone? That would be such a turn-off!
So I tell you forbidding photography in your gallery is quite futile. Didn't you know that Google Images can regurgitate most of Degas' works in good print resolution? So what's the big deal?
People come to galleries to see the paintings and harmless snapshots shouldn't be of much concern. Gatekeepers of the arts must not stifle the public's natural behaviour to record events! It's the same desire that also compelled Degas to use a camera, albeit using a pinhole. Nevertheless we witnessed Degas' photographic works, his subjects often his friends (including sculptor Auguste Rodin!) However If I were to grade his photographic works I shall fail him! LOL! The shadows were too dark, the poses were rigid, the lighting was hopeless and my phone camera can do a better job (just kidding!:) Of course during his era his works were considered awesome! But did it bother him that one day the camera shall render his paintings obsolete? No, and that's why his paintings still tour the globe for his fans to hold on for inspiration.
Can't help but agree that tourists look better with a big Degas painting in the background:) I guess NGA should be more worried about theft and so they should focus more on their security cameras and not the public's! People's snapshots are poor copies of the genuine. Humanity always find a way to copy or record reality using the best technology of the time. And that's why Nokia installed cameras in mobile phones. Heh-heh take a hint gallery people, to succeed in business, you should know what people want. Why even Degas said:
C'est très bien de copier ce qu'on voit, c'est beaucoup mieux de dessiner ce que l'on ne voit plus que dans son mémoire. C'est une transformation pendant laquelle l'ingéniosité collabore avec la mémoire. Vous ne reproduisez que ce qui vous a frappé, c'est-à-dire le nécessaire. Meaning: It is very good to copy what one sees; it is much better to draw what you can't see any more but is in your memory. It is a transformation in which imagination and memory work together. You only reproduce what struck you, that is to say the necessary. (Quoted in Maurice Sérullaz, L'univers de Degas (H. Scrépel, 1979)
Well Degas' images did strike me and urge me to reproduce the necessary using a scanner:)
We left Sydney early in the morning and with the skillful driving of Mario it took only a little less than 3 hours to see the welcome sign of Canberra. Lene, his wife, held a GPS and so losing our way in a remote place was quite remote. It was a smooth drive inside an almost new Toyota Tarago (Australian aboriginal word for country) hired for the six of us, seven if Jim Paredes was able to come (busy with Jon Santos' April show in Sydney).
First to intrigue visitors is a metallic sculpture (above image) with random shapes welded together to form a globe. It hung above the facade of the NGA with thin wires and was a meshwork of art made more intriguing by the intrusion of a bird's nest. It looked symbolic as an editorial cartoon floating in the sky, the statement something like man and nature can co-exist.
A group of excited schoolchildren went past before me like a moving curtain to reveal the horse racing images of Degas. I was taken back in time. I was looking at the primordial images of horse racing. The ancestral Phar Laps of an ancient Melbourne Cup were all in detail. Did you know one goes inside and become part of a painting to appreciate it? Ding had keenly observed the works and discussed the deliberate cropping of his painting composition, like half a human image here and half a horsecarriage there. It's like him saying "Hey I need not paint the whole potato if you know part of it is a potato!" Fair enough I thought. Indeed the master was an experimentalist, a shaker for change.
But where are the people? Street scenes with two or three pedestrians on the road seemed common. It was a sunny Thursday (usually payday) afternoon and it's the city's rush hour!:) I stuck out my head outside the vehicle and addressed the grey buildings and empty streets with a muffled scream: Wake up Canberra! It's recession, not hibernation!
Lemon grass is good! Tanlad in Filipino, it's a common ingredient of Thai cuisine. Earlier I showed Irene (Ding's green-thumbed wife) my little pot of lemon grass growing in my garden near a saba banana tree which they gifted me last year. Lemon Grass is also the name of a Thai restaurant in middle of Canberra's CBD. After seeing the exhibit courtesy of some generous souls who held concession tickets, we walked around and scanned the restaurant block. Somewhat like a Russian roulette we found ourselves sat inside this Thai restaurant that looked more like a British pub. It must be the tanlad's residual image in our mind that ushered us in.
Pud Thai and satay woke up my restless taste buds with a series of delicious explosions of spicy flavours downed by an ice-cold favourite cola. The stained-glass windows filtered the Degas skies and caressed the glassware on our table. That red pepper garnished on garlic rice reminded me of the bright red ribbons of Degas' ballet dancers.
Later we split the bill but my Menchay was worried about a possible anomaly while she calculated mentally our total bill. After much apology the cashier returned some money for charging us double for my Pud Thai (I murmured "Satay-faction guaranteed pero pudthai kang bata ka!" Now how do you translate that? How about: "That's how to make a killing, kid!":)
Can you identify these caricatures I made of Filipino singers who visited Sydney? (top image)
Back in the 80's the Filipino community in Australia was high on imported Filipino talents. Pilita, Reycard duet, Willie Nepomuceno and many more came to visit us. It was a period before FaceBook and text messaging, when people eyeballed (met eye-to-eye) to get updated with gossip and business deals. Email at that time referred to a company in Australia that manufactured white goods.
Pinoys often went out at night to have fun (e.g. Manila Disco at Kings Cross) or play poker machines in RSL clubs after dining at Intramuros, Lambat or that chinoy Vicente's Philippine Restaurant at Elizabeth St near the Philippine Consulate.
Sometimes these nocturnal trysts ended with Leggo parties using mahjong tiles.The Pinoy community became a beggar for fun due to rarity of traditional Manila "gimmicks".
Homesickness as usual assaulted the psyche of Sydney Pinoys and so alert producers went all out to bring in entertainment. Why I even joined the fray, aesthetically-speaking, for I designed a few stage sets for them and sometimes drew caricatures of talents then projected onto big screens.
"Radyo, TV at mga lumang komiks, wala nang ibang mapaglibangan..." goes the classic song by APO Hiking Society (Pumapatak Na Naman ang Ulan; translation: here comes the rain again..yet the Eurythmics wasn't born yet.
No doubt concert tickets were sold out as the thirst for adrenaline was sated by imported Pinoy talents.
Back then I also drew comics for some local Filipino-Australian newspapers. Here's one I did in 1985. I love doing comics. It was another branch of expression for me to tell stories about life in Sydney where I often lampooned entertainment events.
Not sure if these images were included in my early Jep book published that same year for I can't find my last copy of Jep, Ang Pinoy sa Ostrelya! Am thinking of reprinting and include many other unpublished Jep material.
The original drawing is already yellowing and so I was compelled to scan and save the image digitally before it deteriorated like an ancient papyrus.
After scanning I brought it to PhotoShop where I cleaned and tinted it with light colours (I'd have it printed in color but comics only became black and white out of frugality (because the printers charge too much on colored works). Now our monitors and home printers don't care much about colors or neutral grey. I also retyped some handwritten script using Comics Sans font.
(I've subdivided the boxed strip into grouped and individual frames to fit format of this blog entry)
During a recession people don't want to spend, so naturally they go back to basics including inexpensive fun.
Why, only the other day I was in an art supply store in Westfield, Blacktown and the girl (after I commented that it seemed I'm the only person buying paint in her store while everyone else are doing digital art), said that au contraire, people are going back to painting after losing their jobs (employment in Australia about to hit the bell at 7 %). Now I'm not sure if I should be glad or not:)
Some of my Jep characters might snort upon Pinoy entertainers like these guys in this video (below) but then we're all homesick for the 70's!;-) Might as well enjoy life of a meat today and sandwich it between top half bread of tomorrow and bottom half of the past. Enjoy our recession-hit pan de sal sandwich.
Caricature of Jon (above) where I used a ballpoint pen, scanned and brought to PhotoShop.
Apo Jim Paredes, friend and neighbour excitedly broke the news.
-Hey Edd, I’m bringing Jon Santos to Sydney! He’s good! Really good!
-Good on yer Jim, that’s awesome!
Being such a good neighbour like Jim, we’ll help spread the word to welcome to Sydney impersonator-comedian Jon Santos, who, I confess, I’m not too familiar with. But I trust Jim...and his daughter Ala who saw Jon live in Manila and really loved it. They need not convince me for I trust the taste of creative people... : )
For us who haven’t seen Jon live on stage, aren’t we jealous yet, fellow Pinoy Sydneysiders? This time Jim’s Handog is specifically for our Fil-Aus community. Point is, good entertainment for homesick Pinoys is a rare gift, quality of which enhanced by rare and gifted entertainers who come to Sydney.
I’ve spent half of my life in Australia and I can’t help but be cynical when the little imp in me murmurs “It’s about time our mutilated, Van Gogh-eared community is weaned away from professional “karaokists” (it’s just mic abuse:-) and beat up themes of a stand-up faux pax pugilist. And don’t you poke your wang at me nor laugh if I define ai-ai as a pair of three-toed sloths. There were times I couldn’t escape from a fine-woven straitjacket of mediocrity if I had to watch another Pinoy comedian do a clinical, chocolate-covered, nightsoil humour.
One need not be a sociologist to acknowledge that a community’s evolution relies on the community’s perceived intelligence, hence it’s a two-way affair. It would have been funnier if we were still in the days of Charlie Chaplin when we could slap the stick on ourselves and roar out laughing (and they called it the Silent Movies!).
I love impersonators. Don’t we? Why is that? Well I think our brains were trained early to identify familiar people (along with objects; e.g. props) and if our grey matter are able to polarize all the information presented to us by the mimic aka impersonator and then we’re taken hook, line and sinker; then we think it’s funny. We laugh at ourselves as we vicariously connect and adore the performer who has perfected his craft, a fine art of fleeting camouflage. Reality takes a beating from clever people! It’s like a magic performance; the miracle of transformation that catches our attention; and like a trompe l’oeil (trick-of-the-eye) painting, it’s the seeming realism of the illusion that gives us joy.
Since the seventies Filipinos had a few, good impersonators. Well there’s good, ol’ Willie Nepumoceno who had performed in Australia a number of times, and Gary Bautista who for me is just a blur owing to my exodus to Australia, where impersonators like Sir Barry Humphries (aka Dame Edna Everage) are endemic. Comedy as social phenomenon is universal..err..more of global, but it could only effectively serve well local humor for culture and language vary.
Wonder how hard it is to be an impersonator and be funny. Have you tried impersonating your teacher in high school? Did you get a good score from your schoolmates? I tried in my younger days but I didn’t think I had the courage to stand up on stage and make people laugh as a mimic. ..and that’s why I chose to do comic strips for newspapers instead. So how hard is the process of impersonation and trying to make people laugh?
What if they don’t buy your joke? What if they throw their shoes at me? Unimaginable! So let’s just leave it to the professionals and ask Jon about it before he lands in Sydney this April.
EA: 19 years you’ve been making people laugh! Is it hard?
JS: Anyone who has attempted to do professional comedy will tell you it is harder than drama, action, horror, or any other entertainment expression. Woody Allen called comedy ‘tragedy plus time’. An Italian saying claimed, people laughed ‘so they wouldn’t have to cry’. The paradox is that comedy is almost always about pain. On the physical side, one immediately notices 19 years worth of ‘stress lines’ on my face, as this particular ‘branch’ of comedy is dependent on so much make-up and sometimes prosthetics. Next to them, though, are ‘laugh lines” . The work is intensely rewarding as it is tough.
EA: I learned you worked with Willie Nepomuceno before (this author’s friend and colleague in the student movement against the Marcos dictatorship). How was it? JS: Willie Nepomuceno is a legend in a way that I can only dream. I was lucky to belong to the last post-Marcos socio-political stand-up generation spawned by Willie and Tessie Tomas. After us came the Comedy Club batch. And the local comedy generations continue in ever-changing ways.
EA: Do Filipinos mock or love Filipino stereotyped personalities you might be prone to lampoon?
JS: As oxygen is to combustion, comedy can never happen without love. It is simply impossible to make people laugh on the basis of pure bile. Even in the darkest of Marcos underground comedy, it was never about condemning them as much as it was about exposing their folly to the light, to diminish its power. Nowadays, comedy club ad-libs seem to focus on deriving punch lines from the audience, but it serves its live audience well. Imagine, after a whole workday of political correctness, and sucking-it-all-in, at least everyone gets to laugh, at themselves, and with each other, without restraint.
EA: What type of audience challenges you? (e.g. insular or insolent?:)
JS: All audiences are equally, if not unpredictably, challenging. Sometimes I can have worse jitters tickling salesmen than presidents. The insolent customer is just as dissatisfied as the insular customer, and the challenge to the performer is to think quickly, and, with everything he’s got, work on restoring that connection.
EA: Stand-up comedy is quite a fearsome career. I admire your courage. Were you born or made?
JS: The unthreatening face with genes of expressiveness, the good memory, verbal speed – definitely born with it. But the rest: The childhood pains that drove one to compensate through laughter, the effort to sponge up all comic devices and styles by working with the best mentors– definitely made. But the fact that one survives, one does not faint or crumble in front of a grim crowd, the laughter and applause – miracle, pure miracle.
EA: How can humour contribute to society’s ills?
JS: Mitch (a lot of people remember her as Maya) Valdes, a colleague I truly admire, believes that the Pinoy humour saves us from killing ourselves, and each other. The Pinoy comic has also been compared with the boy in ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’ – the one who says what we all really want to say, but couldn’t, because we, as a people, are very non-confrontational by nature. I have to verify if we really do have low suicide rates, but one thing’s for sure- we are the best looking Asians. Many believe that it’s a double-edged-sword-situation, though. Our propensity for using laughter as relief , as escape, prevents us from acting on our country’s problems.
EA: Gender preference is not an issue, but does it play a significant part in your performance?
JS: Everything that can be an issue plays a part in a comic performance. Laughter is a reaction to the absurd, the uncomfortable, the taboo, the things that may not be spoken. A laughing man is the universal metaphor for subversion.
EA: What makes you happy and at peace?
JS: Whew! At last, a question that I did not have to sweat for. Of course, family, friends, love and what else, laughter!
EA: What do Filipino-Australians like me expect to remember after watching a night of your performance?
JS: You mean, aside from remembering to invite me again? Seriously, rather than remember, I rather you forget. I hope you forget for a while the tough times we are experiencing. Forget for a moment that some of you may be far from home and family. Or that it had been a rough day, week or year. Forget awhile, and laugh. Laugh out loud , but better yet, laugh quietly from the heart. And afterwards, remember that life is beautiful.
EA: Any kind words for (them) us?
JS: In our heart of hearts, we are all Pinoys. Kami ay panauhin ninyo at may utang na loob sa inyo na na- anyaya sa amin. We are honored to be standing in front of you and be accorded the attention. Even greater honor is the fact that we are performing to the modern heroes of our country, keeping our country vibrant with your spirit of enterprise, your hard work and your courage, bringing the Philippines to another spot on the globe, staking your claim for us Filipinos. I can only speak with admiration for you guys.
EA: Salamat Jon. Looking forward to see you in Sydney!
JS: Salamat din. See you all. --- More about Jon (from the net) “Nineteen years ago, Tessie Tomas was invited as guest speaker for Jon’s Junior Marketing Association in UP. He went up for an autograph and upon the cajoling of friends, impersonated the master impersonator herself. Entertained, Tessie invited him to join her group.
He had just accepted a teaching post (Economics. Yikes!), when, again, Tessie urged him to try the comic circuit for a year, and he never stopped. He has since campaigned with Ralph Recto for Ate Vi, exchanged small talk with former president Fidel Ramos over cigars, made Charo Santos realize that having been impersonated by Jon, She Has Arrived. And after doing countless personalities, Jon Santos has been busy more often as himself, setting up a little bed and breakfast on Boracay Island and taking his “characters” along with him for special comedy shows abroad.
In the Philippine scene, nobody is anybody until he or she is done by Jon Santos. Having perfected the art of costume and make-up, Jon becomes the person; a better version in fact, because it’s a much, much funnier version. Even bureaucratic bores who somehow land on the news become hilarious, endearing creatures in the hands of Jon Santos (Actually, in the hands, face, body and voice of Jon). So just think what a riot he creates with the already colourful or absurd……
Jon has been impersonating and imitating people for nineteen (19) years now. His material thrives on who’s hot at the moment, but some of his best-loved characters are the classics: “Ate Vi”, “Basana Roces”, “Armida Sigyon-Makareyna”, “Sherap Espada (& his wife, “Sen. Lhoy”) Shawie”, “Bro. Mike Volare”, “Tita Kory”, “Sen. Juan Flavor”, “Sen. Meeryam”, “Pres. Gloring”, “Krissy Anino”, “Ara”, “Joyce”, “Mawee Tailor-ing” and the latest addition to the repertoire, “Okrah Weenfree”.
But these are samples of Jon on paper – and don’t even capture half the adlibs, the brilliant spur-of-the-moment remarks that add tons to the character that he is at the moment. We don’t see the costume, the make-up nor hear the voice and the delivery that keep audiences laughing for 30 or so minutes non-stop. As they say, everybody in the Philippines is a comedian.” ---
HA-NEP! (Check out my interview with Willie Nepomuceno)
Photo update! Hey guys, check out readers' contributions at the end of this blog entry. Show us your vinyls and we'll tell you who you are! (i.e. Music lovers are beautiful people!:)
Claro of our Banggaan art group sent us an email showing various photographs of people cleverly holding cover albums of their favourite old, vinyl records. The idea tho' old as the records themselves, was fun; and if you still have them unsold at eBay, why not ask a friend to take snapshots of you cleverly holding those treasured albums?
Here are some old ones pulled out from my baul! (top image) I was hamming it up with joy when my partner agreed to take photos below.
Miles Davis, Kind of Blue, CBS 1962
Bob Marley and the Wailers, Catch A Fire, 1973 Island Records
Santana, Santana's Greatest Hits, 1974 CBS
Sly Dunbar, Simple Sly Man, 1974 Virgin Records
John Lennon & Plastic Ono Band, Imagine, 1971 Ono Music
Okay, have fun. Send me those album photos (not photo albums:) all right guys?
--
Here's from Dennis M. of OzPinoyRock yahoogroup. Thanks bud, keep rockin'!
-- Now here's from Banggaan artist Rod Samonte of Hollywood, California.He took all day shooting these photos. Thanks Rod. Fleetwood Mac
Barry Manilow, One Voice
Ringo Starr, Rotogravure Rolling Stones, Sticky Fingers The Beatles
Pilita rocks and contorts!:) She was front act of The Beatles' Manila concert at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in 1966.
--
Now here's from Claro Cortes IV whose email lit the fire for this album cover fad. I think the idea has a sense of a Magritte painting (e.g. top images). The illusion is unpretentious yet intriguing.
These covers (below) are cd's (photos by Claro's kid). Nevertheless we'll take exception for they are versions of the original vinyl albums. Thanks guys!
"She figures as one of the most important female musicians in our local industry, having worked with such bands as Tropical Depression, Electrikoolaid, and Analog. More than that, she is a great inspiration to many people, because she lives her life with such vigor and intensity, doing her best in everything that she does, be it as a focused, hard-working writer and editor, or as a dedicated mother to young 12-year-old Mischaela, or as a dutiful daughter and sister, or as an absolute whiz in the kitchen, or as a caring, loving friend..." - from a FB online support group for Anabel while she was undergoing brain surgery.
Frozen moments (in May last year at the Oarhouse in Manila) with Anabel Bosch who passed away at 4:30 a.m. today, 11th of January of this New Year.
Guys, here's some info from FaceBook about various fundraising gigs for Anabel:
From Marlies, via SMS, at 4:30 A.M. on January 11:
Anabel has chosen to rest now.
Details of her wake are being discussed, and once they have been finalized they will be posted here. Thank you for keeping her in your thoughts and prayers.
Update as of 13th Jan.
WAKE DETAILS You may pay your respects to Anabel and her family during the wake at the Bosch family compound at 350 Protacio St., Lemuria Compound, Pasay City. On the ninth day of the wake, January 19, there will be a final mass for Anabel. Once details of this have been finalized, we will post them here.
From Katrina:
I'd like to ask you all to PLEASE ATTEND AS MANY BENEFIT GIGS AS YOU CAN. Whatever happens, we will push through with them all. The family badly needs financial support for the escalating medical bills. And, if there's anything left over, it will go towards Mishka's scholarship fund.
...so please check the gig sched on this site, then head over to the different venues, and have fun with the terrific lineup of bands! Just make sure you take a photo of yourself in a way that makes it clear you were at the right venues on the right dates, and show proof that you've somehow spread the word on the gigs. Let's Rock Bosch!
GIGS! GIGS! GIGS! (as of 1:39 AM January 9)
Bands and musicians are welcome to perform at any or all of these gigs, and the many other fundraising events that are to follow. Please email the corresponding contact persons for these gigs.
If you would like to help set up another benefit show for Anabel, please email Isabelle Ramos at isabelle.ramos@gmail.com or PM her on Multiply (http://isabetlog.multiply.com).
3 Jan, Saturday - BIG SKY MIND The Dawn, Cambio, Chillitees, Peryodiko + more! 9.30pm, P100 entrance contact gang@rockedphilippines.org
7 Jan, Wednesday - Mag:Net HIGH STREET Tropical Depression, Cocojam, Coffeebreak Island, Hinlalato + more!
9 Jan, Friday - SAGUIJO Sandwich, Pupil, Itchyworms, Sugarfree, South Superhighway, Top Junk + tarot readings by Karen K. + more! 9.30pm, entrance P100 contact gang@rockedphilippines.org
9 Jan, Friday - TEN 02 Noel Cabangon - Johnny Alegre (Affinity), Akasha (Mar Dizon, Henry K., Dave Harder), Lynn Sherman and Skarlet, Balooze (Ricky Gonzalez’s jazz quartet), Corporate Lo Fi, Helen, Reklamo, Color It Red, Ms. Emee Fortuno (wife of the legendary Ed “Bosyo” Fortuno) contact wamjammin@yahoo.com
10 Jan, Saturday - HOBBIT HOUSE http://www.hobbithousemanila.com Jook Jam (feat. Delta Slim), Blue Jean Junkies, Blue Rats, the Jerks, K.O. Jones, Coco Jam & MISHKA BOSCH 8 pm, P300 entrance contact apa.ongpin@gmail.com
14 Jan, Wednesday - TEN 02 Classic Rock Night for Anabel DRT, Kjwan, The Dawn(tentative), Playphonics and Razorback contact wamjammin@yahoo.com
15 Jan, Thursday - TEN 02 Reggae Night for Anabel Reggae Mistress, Spy, Coffee Break Island, and many more contact wamjammin@yahoo.com
15 Jan, Thursday - ROUTE 196 The Ronnies, Bagetsafonik, Analog with Waya Gallardo on vocals, The Late Isabel, Slave Drum, Pedicab, Imago, Sugarfree. Robert Alejandro, graphic artist and poet will also be doing portraits. 9pm contact route196rocks@gmail.com or isabelle.ramos@gmail.com
17 Jan, Saturday – 19 EAST Razorback 9 pm, P250 entrance *Part of the proceeds will go to Anabel and her family.
19 Jan, Monday - ROUTE 196 The Jerks, Duster, Kaktooz, Paramita, Ciudad, Archipelago, The Dorques, Blue Jean Junkies 9pm contact route196rocks@gmail.com or isabelle.ramos@gmail.com
*Taken By Cars, 6 Cycle Mind, Nyko Maca + PLAYgROUND + Juno Oebanda, Macky of Tribo Manila + others will also be playing during one of these dates.
*More dates and events to be announced as soon as we are able to confirm them.
---
(Photos of venues sourced from the net)
-----
Band vocalist succumbs to brain aneurysm
By Pocholo Concepcion Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 17:59:00 01/11/2009
MANILA, Philippines—A female band vocalist succumbed to brain aneurysm Saturday.
Anabel Bosch, lead singer of such bands as Elektrikcoolaid, Spy and Analog and backup vocalist of Tropical Depression, passed away 10 days after she was rushed to the Makati Medical Center. On New Year’s Eve, Bosch complained of a severe headache and was vomiting before she was brought to the Makati hospital.
Doctors diagnosed brain aneurysm and recommended immediate surgery. Bosch slipped into a coma after the operation and never recovered. She died early Saturday morning in a hospital private room. She was 32.
Bosch is survived by her husband Jamie Wilson and daughter, Mishka.
Bosch was well loved by the local rock community for her friendliness and generosity. Dozens of bands joined at least six benefit gigs to raise funds for her hospital expenses while she was confined.
Bosch was a niece of counterculture figure Pepito Bosch, whose ancestral house in Pasay City was a creative refuge of bands such as Cocojam and Jun Lopito. This influenced Bosch to train her sights on a musical career. When she was in high school, Bosch was already a regular at the original Club Dredd along Timog Avenue in Quezon City.
---
A Poem by Joni Mercado (Wife of Mario, Banggaan-USA)
Please convey our condolences to Anabel's family members, as well.
THE LOVELY SOUL THAT PASSED ON
A lovely soul departed When it was time to go An angel came a calling To the sleeping soul below The spirit rose and floated off To reach its destination A journey it would travel Far beyond all comprehension And all the souls it left behind Felt sad this soul had gone But what remained were memories To comfort everyone.
With heartfelt Condolences, Joni Mercado
----
To end this blog entry, here's a video by duo called 2 O'clock (shared to us by Banggaan art group member Ed Labadia).
May I dedicate this beautiful song In My Life to the memory of Anabel Bosch.
Holy Novenary! Was it 9 p.m. on the 9th of September of 1979 and when there’s about 9 more animation frames to finish? ..and it was hot and that old wall air conditioner sounded like a broken rotor blade. Yep, at that time we were in an animation film studio set up by Nonoy Marcelo for television projects of Imee Marcos.
One thing I truly remembered (and believed was totally irrelevant to producing animated films) was when my late marital godfather Nonoy walked away laughing after one of the animation in-betweener guys rotated his unfinished plate of Lambat Restaurant morsels. Well, you know, old school Filipinos do that every time one has to leave the food table while the rest still partakes. I still vividly hear his voice: “Malas raw ang maniwala sa pamahiin!” (They say it’s bad luck to believe in superstitions!). Then quiet. We were waiting for his punchline.. we then realised that was the punchline! We were rolling all over the cel-covered floor. Oh how I miss Ninong Nonoy’s simply-Matisse-like wit that only supplemented his artistic and literary genius.
Oops, before anything else, Happy 2009 readers! Still have that nagging apprehension how the year’s going to treat us? Will it be good luck or bad? Well if we should need some trivial guidelines, the horses have already bolted 9 ends-of-the-world ago (that was 9 layers of extreme and climactic earth upheavals detected from deep-drill ice tubes taken from the Antarctic).
Now if we have to refer to the Chinese calendar and numerology, then it’s lucky! Nine (pinyin jiǔ) is considered a good number in Chinese culture because it sounds the same as the word "longlasting" (pinyin jiǔ). For an added tikoy of a bonus, it's also the Chinese year of the Ox on our Pinoy faces (Whaa..they’ve included me for I was born in fortyNINE!) It’s going to be lucky for the 9 dragons of Kowloon though; but do I hear “Hey what about us Filipinos; what’s in store for us in ’09?” Will it be a year of oxtail kare-kare? Ssssh, my friend, take a deep breath...ahh..let the prana out...let go..and let the superstitious take over the planet; otherwise the dragons shall breathe fire and melt your 9 Ghz hard disc. But this is scary..according to the Mayan calendar, we will be just 3 years away from the End of the World (2012)! Damn! I still have to finish that 5-year painting!
The way I look at it, early scientists, mathematicians and engineers (sometimes they are all one and the same) should be blamed for all superstitions known by Man. Hey check out those Aztec guys whose calendars were so precise, all encrypted and carved in stone. I pondered, when the Moon struck 8 pm, i.e., when the horizon and earth’s first satellite cross-haired in that little Aztec adobe window, it’s time then for Montezuma, the ninth Aztec emperor, to chew his coca leaf, perhaps to make Mrs. Montezuma happy; thereafter the next morning he could announce to his wretched proletariats that they could sow their wild corn oats on the ninth appearance of the moon to avoid damaging frost.. but wait.. like any mail-order product tv barker will say.. there’s more! They have to sacrifice nine virgins on the ninth week! And only then shall the land be rich with nourishing protein from the red liquid that flowed down the Holy Stairs pyramid.
If your Chinese friend tells you that Nine is Purity, is he being superstitious? Not really. It’s scientific. Nine is a method of grading purity of fine precious metals; e.g. platinum, gold and silver which is based on millesimal system of fineness (a metal is said to be one nine or one nine fine if it is 900 fine, or 90% pure.
Mathematicians! Oh how I despise mathematics but I couldn’t live without it. See the very computer I’m using to write this article down relies on Nine! Uptime is a measure of the time a computer system has been "up" and running. Similar to the unit of metallic purity, "Five nines" means 99.999% availability, which translates to a total downtime of approximately five minutes and fifteen seconds per year. It is often used as a measure of computer operating system‘s reliability and stability, in that this time represents time a computer can be left unattended without crashing, or needing to be rebooted for administrative or maintenance purposes. Conversely, long uptime can indicate negligence, because critical updates can sometimes require reboots. Here’s another superstition.. they say if you’re using a Mac, it could be a different story!:) No more frequent crashes and rebooting! Waah I want my MacPro!
How do Toyota makers perceive 2009? Well,with the current recession and stagnant car sales, it’s no wonder the Japanese consider 9 unlucky because it sounds similar to the Japanese word for "pain" or "distress" (kunrei ku). Arigato Wikipedia-San.
Relax, it’s not all bad luck. And don’t be turned off by Anton LaVey who applied the number to Satan. He’s the guy who authored the Satanic Bible. Struth! I reckon he’s got a big eeeee-go! Get a life, man!
Religions also have knowingly or unknowingly revered number nine. Are you Hindu, hindi? (no?) Well if you are, you might as well consider numeral 9 as a completely divine number because it represents the end of a cycle in the decimal system, which originated from the Indian subcontinent as early as 3000 BC. Now that’s old!
Oh you’re a Buddhist? Well you’ll have to email and eyeball 8 other colleagues because your rituals usually involve nine monks.
We all know Pinoys are predominantly Christians..and so we should know that In the Christian angelic hierarchy there are 9 choirs of angels ( Angelica Panganiban not included; she can’t sing!:)
What do you call a Bahay-Kubo with nine bamboo posts? Bahá'í Kubo! Seriously, Nine, as the highest single-digit number (in base ten), symbolizes completeness in the Bahá'í Faith. A 9-pointed star symbolizes the faith (and what’s this 5-pointed asterisk doing in my keyboard?:)
Nine is a significant number in Norse Mythology. Odin hung himself on an ash tree for nine days to learn the runes; which reminded me of a Banggaan yahoo art group member who did the same (hanging by his toes unaided) up on a torii (Japanese gate) for about 9 minutes. Really!
Oh and if you’re a Pinoy Muslim, you would of course know that the Ramadan is ninth month of Islamic calendar.
So then how could have Nine influenced all our lives? (I don’t mean our Australian TV channel!:) I refer to our very lives that we’re supposed to carry on through this year. Well, ask our mothers! After all she was the one who carried each one of us for nine laborious months. We're out alive and kicking and we're lucky!:) And that’s Naegele's Rule! Pardon me? Oh, it is a standard way of calculating the due date for a pregnancy. (named after that German obstetrician Franz Karl Naegele who invented the rule. Clever guy, hey Naegele, my mother carried me for nine years! (that was after I was born:)
And so that was the year that was, we’re on the move now..listen..there’s John Lennon repeatedly calling number nine while I play Revolution 9 of their White Album. For the President-elect Obama, it’s time for change after being punished by 2008! Believe it or not, Robert Ripley said "A cat-o'-nine-tails suggests perfect punishment and atonement."
We are in the Now, like Nature who just keeps doing what it needs to do. Mother Nature sometimes could be perceived as superstitious, too. She loves number Nine! You could see it wagging while the happy sow has her tail upright; find it swaying in the wind at the end of vine tendrils of your Wisteria;
find it in the spiral of life itself whose signature is still intact from an extinct ammonite to a humble cartoon of 9 as a big headed, intellectual man (unlike 6 with a heavy stomach:) which could stand and balance itself, thrown in the air and still landing on its feet like a feline with 9 lives.
Before the year ended, this writer was at Jim Paredes' place on Christmas Day and just about New Year's Eve at Ding Roces’ abode whereupon after a lovely dinner he showed us his collection of superstition-empowered metals! They were beautifully stamped or crafted anting-anting (amulets). There were books and shirts where Latin words were written. And did you know that number 9 is used to translate Cyrillic to Latin?
Nona (Latin for nine)..err..No9 Marcelo would be in Cloud 9 if he were to wear that old Latin-peppered white singlet. He’s too mental I suppose. Very inspiring fellow and so here’s a “digital” image of him with superimposed symbols of the glyph 9 dating back to an ancient Indian civilization. (image below)
I believe we are responsible to what we bring into our lives, be it good or bad. So take care of your health and throw away that 9-day old turon in your fridge:)
To end this blog entry, here are some good moments in Manila last year. Goodbye '08!
---- Info Sources: from my subconscious:) and Wikipedia (some italicised portions)
Drawing made me crazy since I was a child, copping flak from playmates whenever I start doodling “Nasira na naman ang ulo mo!” (you’ve gone crazy again!). I knew they were joking but comment was historically valid. And to quote my late artist friend Santi Bose: “All artists are crazy, that is why they ‘re artists!"
Whether you’re Filipino or an Australian aborigine, what normal fellow would get a stick with a hairy end or none, daub it in ground pigments with either oil, acrylic or lime-rich saliva and poke it on canvas for hours? Crazy! But I wonder why people love to see their creations; e.g. painting, stageplays, films, ballrooms, etc and not be bothered by the artist’s insanity. A kid confused, I perhaps drew a thin, white chalk line on our thinly-asphalted street and wrote on each portion the words: aliw at baliw. (entertainment and madness). Until adulthood a western symbol of theatre impressed on me so much. The masks of Tragedy and Comedy. I would have interpreted it also as a Western version of Yin-Yang.
Thus this contradiction intrigued me since childhood. Why even singer Don McLean revered an insane artist via a song “Starry, starry Night”. Oh Vincent, how you have inspired a generation of baby-boomers that went through the insanity and chaos of Manila in the seventies. And who’s running the show? Mad men and their mad dogs addicted to lapses of insanity and moments of madness which then were easily muted into oblivion.
All Filipinos are artists, I’d be courageous to say; for our ancestors were mostly born out of pain, slavery, deprivation, hunger, injustice, abuse (now that’s the dark side); yet the same trauma tempered us, pushing us to be more creative or to use art and the likes as painkillers to survive. We sang songs without using aspirin or Panadeine to increase pain threshold; we invented dances charmingly plucked out of mundane farming activities (including copra). Why, our islands were green gems in a blue sea for centuries. Filipinos then (and up until now)were peace-loving people crazy for coconuts, rice, shellfish and the good Life;-)!
But then we can’t help but help build a man-made world under a better (purportedly) governance by colonizing countries which have found a better way (via mission, fusion or fission) of annihilating culture and people (if latter don’t conform)and would that mean generally that all Filipinos are crazy, too? LOL!
But what is an artist?..and what’s crazy? I dare to polarize it: all people who love and appreciate beauty and life are artists. Like..err. people who created a dance out of two bamboo poles or coconut shells, people who played with their food (and invented our famous Kiping:). Who are the crazy ones? Definitely people who don’t know how to appreciate and play with bamboo poles but instead sharpened them to hurt someone; people who use food to manipulate the hungry and oppressed.
An old question: “Is it the art that drives the artist mad or the madness that drives the artist?”
Hard to tackle or cranial-ise this one but I’d be partial to art that drives the artist mad. Filipinos are always motivated to become artists. Subjugation, deprivaty and prolonged feelings of injustice shall nourish spores of an endless breed of singers, animators, dancers , etc. and as a result almost all genres would be used to express exactly those sentiments. Once shown publicly the creative effort would then contribute to our culture that went through a process of trauma most evident in mental. Same trauma-inspired artists used the grandiose structures which arose from political madness to express art's dignified pain-- from the most elegant stage of CCP (where hangs giant painting “Simula” (Genesis) by National Artist Hernando Ocampo--down to a guitar-playing homeless man sheltered under a tattered tarpaulin, caressed by a heavy aura of carbon monoxide coughed out by rampaging yet artistically-decorated jeepneys.
I guess Art is addictive, and sometimes a close ally of escapism. Will too much art make one go cuckoo? No. But Art sometimes is used to cover up something ugly- so Art becomes utilitarian in a sense, but not necessarily nice though. Just half a decade ago, an insane, meta-amphetamine- addicted dictator used art to manipulate the gullible and fearful German masses to annihilate another group of people. What ordinary citizen can't be swayed by the beautiful, bold graphics of the Third Reich? Art then became "totalitarian". The same aesthetically perfect billboards which covered cities and countrysides provoked grim action to hurt one's neighbours. The Swastika, originally a biblical symbol effectively terrorized the world's neighbourhood.
Sometimes art is a way of life that is so carefree and unrestricted- but like poison, indulgence becomes a trap towards bonkersville as judged by our wordly parameters-- where even a guy in a public park sitting alone in meditative silence becomes suspect as a screwball.
Now there’s toxicity that harms the brain, and thus shall harm the mind. The brain as an underlying structure of mental consciousness would then be susceptible to harm by chemicals and bad air and water. Like a Lao-Tzu poser, shall a lotus flower grow out from a murky pond? Yes. Well then, can art be spawned through mental illness? Oh dear, this is such a touchy subject yet it needed to be addressed. It is a universal malady.
Questions: What is dire consequence of insanity at top end of its spectrum? What is feared most? What is everybody trying to avoid?
Answer: Death (whether self-induced or not). Mortality and will to survive using art and creativity are perhaps two sides of contradictions most us Filipinos are romantically in. It’s death of culture and way of life I’m also talking about. The flesh, I believe, shall always regenerate thereafter (from an esoteric platform).
So is it the madness that drives the artist?
Maybe. However Science has already jumped in the psychiatric playground puddle in analyzing art of people with unsound minds. There’s this interesting article in a Time website:
The "subconscious," grand catch-all of irrational human nature, came into literature through James Joyce, into painting through Surrealism. The soberest writers and painters are glad of it, reckoning dreams and fantasies and unconscious motives part of the subject matter of art. They agree with most people in disliking Surrealism's fakes, faddists, exhibitionists. They value the systematic study of the subconscious by qualified scientists. Last week in Manhattan this respectful alliance between artists and psychiatrists was demonstrated in the first public exhibition of its kind yet held in the U.S.
Drawing and painting were added to the time-honored forms of occupational therapy (basket-weaving, metal work, etc.) at Bellevue in the spring of 1935. The Federal Art Project furnished artist-instructors to hold four or five classes a week for all children and adults, except surgical patients, in the psychiatric division. For Bellevue psychiatrists this meant precisely what a new and rangier telescope would mean to an observatory. Day by day they could study in sequence the attempts at expression by mentally sick people. Though the art of individual schizophrenics, among them Dancer Vaslav Nijinsky, has been analyzed in the past as a matter of psychiatric routine, Director Karl Bowman of the Psychiatric Division thinks Bellevue was the first to practice such extensive therapeutic use of painting, such systematic study of the results.
The genesis (simula)of November celebrate All Soul’s Day in dear, ol’ crazy Motherland where people start cleaning graveyards and kids collect and ball up candle drippings (so alien here in Australia as there are guys permanently assigned to clean cemeteries all year round). Even crazier, only recently I’ve watched on tv a Filipino guy build a mansion inside a cemetery, complete with sliding glass doors and a security guard. In the center of the ostentatious structure is his future grave surrounded by LCD tvs and karaokes for the poor guys who survived him.
I know quite of death, my late wife Virginia died in my arms in 1987. (May she rest in peace) I heard and inhaled her last gasp as she expired in Prince Alfred Hospital’s terminal cancer ward. I’m also familiar with the anguish of parents who came to me to have caricatures and portraits done of their kids who committed suicide out of mental illness or depression. You won’t believe it but I was teary eyed up to the last pastel highlight of the departed subject. Such strange and eerie feeling.
Oh how I wish my own children would not go through terrible times of depression. How I’ve hoped I’ve served as a role model for them to use art and creativity and try to stay away from the devil’s playground.
“Unang mapikon, talo!” (during horseplay, the first one to get annoyed loses) I called on to my mates. Those unable to survive shall cross the thin chalkline of insanity. Unable to understand the rules of worldly games the loser shall be banished to become village idiot, the Eng-eng (a mad character in Filipino movie “Tinimbang Ka Nguni’t Kulang”).
Sane or insane, I offer a peaceful prayer of peace to our departed, creative artists whose insanity kept our art alive for generations to come. For you guys up there who crazily burned the midnight oil, who dementedly sharpened thousands of pencils and spilled a lot of ink on the floor, who madly stunk up the place with linseed oil and mineral turpentine; for you guys including (Ninong) Nonoy Marcelo, Santi Bose, Pepito Bosch, Larry Alcala, Edgar Soller, Boy Togonon and many more sorely missed. Fair Dinkum prayers to my departed Australian colleagues and artist friends Bill Mitchell, Darren Pracy, Victor Dove and Louie Zmak.
“Now you return that pencil at once and apologise to him!” Mother upset after showing her funny pencil that won’t roll over. It was flat, even the graphite lead. I was so amused I took it nonchalantly from among dozen of sharpened Mongol pencils crammed in Darigold milk can of Kuya Ponching while he napped.
It was 1958 and Estero de Gallina in Pasay City deteriorated into a cesspool of human and industrial waste. Lola Pina used to catch tulla (clams), talangka (crabs) and suso (snails) in what used to be fresh water creek leading to Pasig River. During the Spanish Era, according to Lola, waterway was like gentle Venice canal plied by bancas (dug-out canoes) leading to city markets. During monsoon floods men caught bayawak (goanna-like lizards) and some other crocodilian critters. They rode rafts of bamboo-impaled banana tree trunks.
Our house was few minutes walk from where Kuya Ponching lived. My 9-y.o. pair of legs cautiously trudged wooden-bridge planks that led to rivulet. My sense of equilibrium was often put to test as planks were stolen by some wretched souls for firewood.
Across river bank was city of Makati. Kuya Ponching’s castle of a nipa (thatch roofing leaves) hut stood couple of metres away from shore of soggy black and green carpet (thanks to toxic and blooming algae!). I learned to climb his slippery bamboo staircase with masterful agility as I frequented the place like second home during childhood. It also toughened my Achilles’ tendons. But there’s real reason why I rapidly learned ascending and descending it. I was scared of pigs underneath the staircase! They were black, huge and fattened with loving care by my Tia Aying (distant cousin of Mother) who lived with Kuya Ponching . A strong lady she did rounds of gathering kaning-baboy (leftover food, mostly soggy but organic) from house-to-house. Despite abhorrence of stink I persisted to visit the place often.
Kuya Ponching was famous as the village artist. He painted all those awesome mural cobras and jets on walls of our local basketball and handball courts in Pasay. He also painted huge Esso logos all over the city billboards and painted tiger tails hanging out of gas tank lorries (commissioned by oil company promoting “put a tiger in your tank” campaign).
I finally landed on top step, nervously clasped tight on flat, carpenter’s pencil and on bamboo-slatted floor with built-in analogue movement squeaky alarm.
“Who’s there?”
“Uh..it’s only me, Kuya, I’m returning..err..pencil..err..I..borrowed. What are you painting this time?”
“Spoliarium by Juan Luna!” then silence.
“So you took my pencil. Why?”
“I don’t know. Pencil looked funny and I wanted to try it at home and draw like you.”
“Why do you paint sad things?” as he painted gore on the Spoliarium’s floor.
“Bata ka pa kasi, hindi lahat ng masaya ay nagpipinta ng bulaklak”. (You’re still young to understand that not all happy people paint flowers) was all he said and continued painting behind his thick Woody Allen glasses.
Kuya Ponching handled brushes well and preferred oil. It dried quickly under hot and humid Philippine weather. (In cold Europe oil paintings usually have to dry for 6 months before final varnish). However smell of turpentine and linseed oil assaulted my olfactory nerves but my eyes were fixed at his Spoliarium as he instinctively mixed colours. It was as if he felt colours and knew when to stop when he got correct hue desired. He hated new brushes. If he had a new, squarish-ended one, he’d scumble paint with it until it’s rounded off.
Few weeks later I’ve snuggled enough warmth with Kuya Ponching (he could be a hothead, too!) He explained later that it was his entry to get a scholarship at De La Salle College (a few blocks away from our place). He was copying it from a tattered picture of a magazine page. His version just seemed to be crispier and brighter as I noticed he enhanced the highlights and shadows.
“Sorry Kuya Ponching, I didn’t mean to steal your pencil. Mom was really upset when I showed her.”
Kuya Ponching had big canvasses all over his pawid (palmleaf) –roofed home studio. Most of his paintings were guaranteed to shock anyone, especially a child like me then. There was a tall painting of an American soldier throwing up blood profusely. Another was of Japanese soldiers with Filipino babies impaled by their fixed bayonets and a few other gory images. I often went home disturbed and sleepless.
Took some time to impress on me that those were images of last war and most adults didn’t want to talk about it. However Kuya Ponching painted them! He survived the war that left horrifying images in his mind. He lived to paint and exorcise demons. Oh, the trauma of war. I was a post-war baby and didn’t understand much then the terrible impact the war had done to our happy and rustic Amorsolo-painted village. Families were broken, property razed to the ground, artists, writers, poets massacred, some missing, maimed while zombiesque amputees ambled on streets where they used to play patintero (tag game).
That was our village, now our Philippine village...straight from the scene of Juan Luna’s Spoliarium. Good gladiators used to kill and be killed in a game of war by village chieftains indulging in the legacy of Nero.
“Tell your Nanay Epang it’s all right; and you can have the pencil. Next time learn to ask, okay? Also you have to first learn to sharpen it with a knife before you can use it. No pencil sharpener can handle a flat one..and so if you can handle a knife, well then you can focus.”
I breathed a sigh of relief, thought I’d be like that dead Roman gladiator being dragged in the Spoliarium, punished for stealing a pencil while Mother wept in the background.
Kuya Ponching impressed the La Salle Brothers so much he got the scholarship. (De La Salle Uninversity's undergraduate school of Arts & Sciences was established in 1953 as part of its post-war recovery plan)
In the late 70’s I was for 2 years art director for Project Compassion and Green Revolution, both community projects of Mrs. Imelda Marcos. Whenever there was a 3-D carpentry and painting job I needed for my design presentations I always fielded the services of Kuya Ponching which overjoyed him. Painters and lack of money seem to be partners by default he’d say.
In 1998 my father died and went back to Manila briefly where I saw the rest of family who came from Canada for the burial ritual. Before we left Mother and I went to visit Kuya Ponching who we learned was in coma for weeks due to brain tumour. Tia Aying could no longer afford the expensive drugs. We knelt on his bedside.
“Ponching, Ponching, si Nanay Epang mo ito!” Mother called his name while she went into intense prayer and trance, holding Kuya Ponching’s limp hand (I’ve known Mother as a spiritual medium, back then people came to our house to be given healing prayers, and she never asked to be paid).
“Kuya Ponching, si Edd po ito, ano ba’ng nangyari sa iyo?”I whispered as I identified myself with tears. Then to everyone’s amazement Kuya spoke!
“Kumusta na kayo, Nanay Epang, Eddie?” he greeted us miraculously! But he was in coma and spoke for the first time! And sadly the last. Hair stood up my neck. Kuya Ponching died during the morning of our flight.
I don’t know what happened to all his paintings. I never saw one in his room. Where was his version of Juan Luna’s Spoliarium? Did La Salle keep it? Now everytime I see the Spoliarium and its dead Roman gladiator I think of Kuya Ponching, killed by brain tumour, perhaps caused by toxicity dumped in our river village which up until now are affecting health and lives of people.
What prodded me writing about Kuya Ponching was an email from John Silva via photographer friend Ben Razon. John invites all Filipinos to see Juan Luna’s Spoliarium at the National Gallery of Art, National Museum Complex in Manila until November. Click on poster (above) to enlarge for details.
The Spoliarium is a painting by Filipino artist Juan Luna. The painting was submitted by Luna to the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes in 1884, where it garnered a gold medal. In 1886, it was sold to the Diputación Provincial de Barcelona for 20,000 pesetas. It currently hangs in the main gallery at the ground floor of the National Museum of the Philippines, and is the first work of art that greets visitors upon entry into the museum.
The Spoliarium measures four meters in height and seven meters in width. The canvas depicts a chamber beneath a Roman arena, where bodies of dead gladiators are being dragged into a shadowy area, presumaon the far right side of the painting is a grieving woman in torn and shabby clothing. Horizontal lines are seen in the walls and the people watching the scene. But diagonal lines that denote movement are very obvious and can be seen in the gladiators’ slain bodies, in the men dragging them and in the floor tiles. There is dominant use of contour lines as shown in the muscles of the arms, legs and backs of the gladiators. In the use of color, there is a governing use of red, mostly seen in the center, that is one of the first things to attract the attention of the viewer. The use of green on the weeping lady's dress creates contrast against the gladiators’ red dresses. The intensity of the color red is very overwhelming. Almost all of the colors used are warm colors, which is thought to be intentional on the part of the artist. Luna has been known to use colors not simply for reasons of aesthetics but also for their symbolic value. (from Wikipedia)
I AM COMING UP FROM BEHIND! Ah don' need to be an American to run! Obama, McCain, girrout of muh way! :)
(If you want to run, too, watch video below)
if it's not working let me know and I'll zap this blog entry into oblivion. Just got feedback from friends, for some the video didn't work.
Update Sep 17 '08
My sister in Canada and a few buddies emailed me complaining they couldn't play the video above; hence I've uploaded YouTube version for sis, it's only a direct video shot of LCD monitor (as I don't have any way of saving it in my computer). For those who missed it here's poor YouTube version (below:(
(The video graphics are so convincing it's scary! Also I suspect it's a form of clever, non-malicious viral marketing (much like the benevolent Christmas Elves and that persistent Hi5 spam)..so may I suggest that you don't run against me anymore:)
Caricature (above) of Sarah Palin I did for today's Sydney Morning Herald (read article). This version was enhanced a little bit, giving her a wider, glazed eye, almost confused and high:) As I write this, she's just about to give the speech of her life.
The article I've illustrated discusses that Palin is being unfairly attacked by feminist movements. Ahh, politics, truly an invitation to open one's closet. Nice looking lady, however this Sarah, and many perhaps are wondering why cosmic forces did not make it an Obama-Palin match? Now we'll leave that to the voters for they know minds don't always meet.
Yes, the Alaskan guv'nor is quite controversial, that was upon media learning she once belonged to a party that wanted Alaska to become a separate country. Palin is also pro-lifer but ironically her conservative hand, in principle, was bitten off by her child mother-to-be; and then there's the nagging question everyone asks: How could she ever manage to hack a VP job with 5 children in her care?
I say six children as the 72-year old McCain , always like a good soldier, fights off disease and natural aging...and if he exits prematurely the American mandate would be left to his nanny!
Here's a photo-cartoon collage (above) I playdoughed in a paint program. The cartoonist in me couldn't resist comparing Palin's hairstyle to that of cartoon character Marge Simpson (and painfully realistic as wife of a redneckish Homer;)
And what do you call a male honey bee with no sting and gathers no honey but solidly supports Palin? (Answer below:)
Does one really need experience to run for President? Isn't it the very process of election is already most sobering experience any guy can have; and after which, win or lose, job becomes easier?:) Just a thought. Experience alone can not rectify political mistakes. I remember when I was younger my martial arts tutor repeatedly told us: It doesn't matter for how long you've been kicking that punching bag; if technique is wrong, you'll only injure yourself.
Like I'm telling a buddy here in Downunder recently, tactics are just part of strategy. Strategic mechanisms against terrorism are all okay but when bad tactics result to huge losses of lives and property, then only option is change. Here's an interesting link.
Let me end this entry with a popular palindrome (and yes, you could read it backwards, too:)
"Satan, oscillate my metallic sonatas"
note: I enjoy word play, puns and games. Check out my blog entry on Ambigrams.
----
Palin Update! 06 Sept '08
Got lots of feedback on this entry.I playfully opined earlier that Palin is like palindromic sentence, (like you can read her forward or backwards yet the palindrome author tries to make sense out of it in the process; much like her acceptance speech claimed to be written by a Bush speechwriter (Matthew Scully) who prepared it earlier and was to be delivered by a man! Now talk about gender-based speech! The plot is getting thicker:)
The lady is not just a moose-gutting hunter; would you believe? Like i'm not a radical animal activist but an animal lover, also a big NatGeo fan, and we all know how a thriving wildlife helps achieve an ecological balance anywhere here on earth, like you know foxes, bears, pandas, elephants down to the lowly dung beetles are all part of it; but how in the world can she support this?
This video link sent to me by a friend who's now preparing for the assault of Gustav:( Now guys, tell me this ain't black propaganda:
Wait! there's more. Q: Is Sarah Palin obsessed with guns or fur? Err..let me rephrase that: Will she shoot a whale stranded in Bondi if it blocked her beach view? Click this trigger!
Then an email from member of journos group in Sydney. Article asserts Media should apologise to Palin! Why? Read article.
Hey there's also a palindromic song created by Weird Al Yankovic. He really sounded like Bod Dylan here! (below)
Coloured pencils handy and TV on, I drew Barack Obama’s caricature (above) while he delivered his acceptance speech as Democrat’s nominee for the US presidential election. I’ve been following the election closely as inspired by net friends with much enthusiasm (particularly photographer friend Ben Razon. He passed on some images by Arman Clemente of Manila Standard Today of Americans and Filipino-Americans marching along Quezon Bridge in Manila for Obama). (Photos below)
Hillary Clinton’s surprise turnaround for Obama left a lot of jaws hanging, gaping wider than Denver coliseum. I was gobsmacked, too while I listened to her speech. What a speaker! Then today Barack gave an even better speech. A guy who could touch raw nerves and yet those touched could still feel good about it; what an artiste!
I would have been a proud American had I lived there; i.e. for my hope for a better country seemed to have achieved clarity. You may say, like Beatle John said, I'm a dreamer but I would have been a proud Afro-American or just an ordinary American who still remembers Martin Luther King’s speech “I have a dream...” But I am Australian and we’re all right here, sport:) Hey Barack, you'll be a fine inspiration for our Aussie Prime Minister:) but not for Mr. Bush's friend here;-)
However something about having a Filipino heritage bothers me. It’s Philippine politics.. and man, it sucks! Oh how I pine for change in the political landscape of Motherland. I’m not much into politics but nothing can be detached from politics as the Great Beijing man has said. American politics shall affect world politics and everyone should consider himself a global citizen...even just for principle for a decent civilisation. Moral decadence has ravaged the environment on a global scale. Partly to blame are American policies like the resistance to reduce carbon emission by its industries.
During his speech I felt Obama was addressing the Filipinos while he promised “I will restore our moral standing!” Now that’s different from the norm. No promises of new basketball courts in every Barangay but a change in morality; something about self-respect.
Well, let’s pretend..suppose he’s running for President in the Philippines, will there be hope for a country which still lags behind other Asian economies while most would hardly have a square meal a day, not to mention “pagpag” food, a country where journalists are threatened to be deleted like typographical errors with much impugnity, where politicians instead of resigning due to obvious scandals still hang around on branches like vultures?
Shall he win?:)
Oi, may I suggest some possible slogans:
-“Sa Barako kami!”,
-“O' Ba.. Ma-saya!”,
-“Egoy is beautiful!”
-"Gusto namen
Obama-Biden, hindi
Osama Binladen!":)
The Barack Obama concept of a real politician full of idealism is wonderful. But only time will tell if the flesh can sustain it.
Meanwhile where I'm typing this, may I..for the spirit..and only for his idealism and spirit..let out a big cooee: Go Oba Downunda!
TV and Pinoy Pay TV in Australia..Let the Games Begin!
Most of the world is now watching the Beijing games on TV as I write this, and whilst empty virgin seats are yet to be polished by tourist backsides most of us are content enough with the boobtube. Thank God for TV! Plasma or LCD we want our athletes show their true colours and in high resolution us we pump up adrenaline for our Aussie swimmers.
We're lucky to have SBS beam us complementary viewing (where I use a projector for this ethnic channel while Channel 7 is second choice for normal TV:)
Anyway, as an added bonus we TV watchers have seen more Beijing fireworks that those who saw the opening ceremony live! LOL! And forget that pretty kid who did a Milli Vanelli act. We want to see the real kid singer Yang in the closing ceremony! Fair?:) (No Olympic game host was perfect anyway, not to mention Hitler's Munich show. Even Sydney 2000 had lots of angst and criticisms (remember that Homebush used to be an abattoir and also a toxic dump! Athletes frolicked while underneath their Nike-clad feet are nasty chems!).
Here's video update of lighter side of the Games;-)
...and after viewing video, let's stop bashing Beijing. Poor guys, they're just trying their best as Olympics host. Give 'em a few more days to rectify mistakes. Anyway after the Games the world can get back to normal;-)
Sometime early '90s I did an airbrushed illustration (above) of Aussie TV channels which was commissioned and published by Australian Playboy)
In 1979 when I first came to Australia there were only Ch.2 (ABC/BBC TV network, always sophisticated and informative), Ch.7 (Always the Olympic channel), Ch.9 (that gave us “moonface” Bert Newton and recently made voyeurs of us watching Australia’s Funniest Home Videos) and Ch.10 (where prime time crazy game shows are often played). All free!
Illustration (above) I did for The Australian, c.87
Now with pay TV there are more tv channels than we would have time to view. So why pay for so many channels we haven’t got time to watch? Well, there’s surfing convenience. TV on tap! I guess that’s what a subscriber is paying for. Like pc internet, we can open as many windows as we want and deal with each one of them in quick-shift browsing manner with efficient time management on choice.
TV guide cover I did for Sydney Morning Herald c.92)
The world has turned (as a good friend succinctly put it). Satellites and computers have kicked-started the planet spinning on a different axis, upsetting analogue-driven machines which were too bulky for this newer but smaller world. For a newly-arrived Filipino immigrant, the 80’s tv offered little. No pay tv nor internet (gasp!) Free-to-air tv was invasive entertainment ever since Australia was introduced to it 1956. I had no choice but to watch channels offered (tho’ I have to admit I learned a lot about this country via tv). Now Filipinos here can view Philippine channels with the flick of ...(“where’s the bl--dy remote?”:)
Regina Leviste-Boulos
Filipino-Australian Pay TV Pioneer (above caricature)
In 1999 the first Filipino pay tv was cheered on by homesick Filipinos. Everyone was asking if one’s got TARBS (Television and Radio Broadcasting Services) which later became a buzzword for Filipino pay TV. Sadly it faded away and program feeds from Philippine tv network ended to the dismay of homesick Pinoy subscribers. During this time (and up to this time) no pay TV network in Australia was making a profit (Australis Media declared a net loss of $542M!) and eventually collapsed in 1997. Rigid governmental regulations and fierce resistance by free-to-air tv network lobbies seemed to have stifled development of pay tv in Australia, thus Filipino pay tv suffered, too.
In 2004 ABS-CBN (TFC) staked their flag in the Lucky Country and has monopolised Filipino pay tv in Australia eversince...
...until Regina Leviste-Boulos returned to the scene. On June 25 this year (my 59th summer!:) launched UBI Pinoy, a Filipino tv and radio package topbilled by GMA7. (Regina played a very significant part of first multi-cultural satellite pay tv launching in Australia in 1999 via TARBS and the first multi-cultural satellite pay tv launching in New Zealand this year via UBI World TV). Our community should be celebrating; more infotainment do more good than harm. Pinoys here will emerge winners when the air is rich with broadcast channels.
In an interview:
EA: Is this a resurrection of your pioneering Pinoy pay tv in Australia?
RB: I suppose so. But more than pioneering, I see it as a commitment to bring innovation and technology to the Filipino community in Australia and New Zealand. Before TARBS Filipino launched in 1999, no company in Australia and the Philippines was bold enough to venture into offering such a service for Filipino migrants. Now, under the UBI World TV banner, we are proud to continue servicing Filipino-Australians and Filipino-New Zealanders through ‘UBI Pinoy’, believing they are a community that deserve such an initiative.
EA: The other media pay TV here seems comfortable. You seem confident, is it Pepsi vs Coke?
RB: The other Filipino pay tv provider should be comfortable. After all, it is through the efforts and investments of TARBS that got them to where they are now. It should be known that this media company, seeing that TARBS had already developed the business, just took over by not renewing the agreement with TARBS, harvesting what TARBS had planted. But we are relentless in bringing in only the very best Filipino Service. Now, we are offering something else that Filipinos have long been clamouring for – GMA 7, acknowledged as number one in TV ratings in the Philippines today. As such, we are confident that ‘UBI Pinoy’ offers our community more of the best Filipino programming that they want and deserve.
EA: Briefly, what’s UBI Pinoy TV?
RB: In a nutshell, ‘UBI Pinoy’ offers the highest rating, premium quality and the most affordable Filipino entertainment, while catering for the information needs of the global Filipino. We offer two of GMA 7’s most requested international channels: GMA Pinoy TV and GMA Life TV, which air 24 hours of the highest rating news, dramas, talk, comedies and entertainment, including some of our all-time favourite shows. In addition, we offer news and commentary on DZBB AM and Filipino pop and homegrown music on DWLS FM. Further, two premier 24-hour international news channels, Al Jazeera International and Euro News, will satisfy the Filipino viewers’ strong interest in global news and events.
EA: Your company’s pay TV investment must be breathtaking (for a pauper like me); but are the Filipinos in Australia worth it?:-)
RB: We always saw that the Filipinos in Australia and New Zealand deserved to have their own pay TV service, and way back in 1999 we took the risks and made huge investments in order to make this a reality. ‘UBI Pinoy’ continues our pursuit of bringing in no less than the highest rating, the most awarded, the most informative, and the most entertaining Filipino programs and channels for our community.
EA: Will you hold on steadfastly for our entertainment?
RB: No doubt, we aim to do so. UBI World TV is as committed to continue serving the Filipino community for the long haul, as with the other migrant communities that UBI provides a service for. However, it is our community’s patronage of ‘UBI Pinoy’ that will ensure that we will be able to continue to provide and better this service for everyone.
EA: Do you see your company a dominant Filipino pay tv channel in the future?
RB: With our strong offering, and with the support of our kababayans in Australia and New Zealand, we see ‘UBI Pinoy’ as the preferred Filipino pay TV service by our community. We will be constantly expanding and enhancing the breadth and range of programming available on ‘UBI Pinoy’ – and this will be a further ‘value add’ for our subscribers and the wider Filipino community.
EA: Are you USB-ready? If I may rephrase that, have you allowed space for more developed high-technology?
RB: UBI’s services are founded on state-of-the-art satellite and fibre technology as well as sophisticated encryption and subscriber management technology. We are abreast of the latest developments in broadcasting and new media, and are in constant search for new services that we can offer to our subscribers.
EA: Tell me something about your dream and yourself, and how may your company contribute culturally to our community.
RB: I am one of the many Filipinos that have migrated to Australia to establish a new life. When I first arrived here in 1996, I felt a need to be connected to the Philippines and have access to the news and entertainment that I grew up with. I needed that to comfort me in the daily challenge of adjusting to a new country and a new way of life. At that point, I realised that migrants of any cultural background share the same need, and I knew that a service that could establish that link to their homeland was an effort worth undertaking.
My dream is for UBI World TV to be THE ethnic broadcaster in Australia and New Zealand where migrants can turn to to find that link to the land where their identity came from. From the Filipino migrants, I look forward to hearing stories from them one day, of how their lives have been enriched, how their time at home has become more enjoyable, how their children have learned something valuable about the unique Filipino heritage they possess, and how they are in constant touch with the Philippines through ‘UBI Pinoy’. Those are concrete signposts that ‘UBI Pinoy’ will have made a significant contribution to the Filipino community.
EA: Thanks Regina. I wish your pay TV network well. Mabuhay ang Pinoy at ang Pinoy pay TV sa Australia!
RB: Maraming salamat Edd and to all the Filipino migrants who have already supported UBI World TV!
Man, I was only about 5 or 6 when I playfully inserted a tennis ball inside the machine's wheel cage; mom was unaware and stepped hard on pedal that spun ball to my delight. Then ..gasp..I was shocked when ball wedged between a spoke and Titanic-kind of a brittle metal cage! It cracked and fell off! Mother turned white and let out a scream that would've blown a hole through ceiling and lifted corrugated iron roofing of our Pasay abode; LOL!) 
Then Dad arrived home after a hard day of driving one of Manila's first Mercedes Benz taxi cabs (Manila Golden) and was fuming mad; but Nanay's hug shielded me while she explained to him that it still worked even without the safety cage.
