LESSON 2:

TRADITIONAL
TECHNIQUES
APPLIED TO
CONTEMPORARY
ARTS
Understanding traditional arts simply means
looking at the artists from within a
community where they belong. They are
artists who share something in common such
asethnicity, region, religion, or occupation.
As a group of people with common set of
aspirations and hopes, these artists while
deeply rooted in the past, in their traditions
can also be very innovative and influenced
by modern factors such as technology,
migration or mass media.
Hence, to understand these traditional
techniques you should be able to
evaluate their aesthetic sensibilities as
defined by the community. Also known as
folk arts, these are viewed as creativity in
everyday life. These folk artists or traditional
artists use techniques to express their
artistry based on traditional knowledge.
 MEDIUM & TECHNIQUE
One of the basic principles of creative art
is the use of materials to produce art
which is called medium. Medium which
helps describe the relation of the artists
to their design serves as a vehicle by
which thoughts and feelings are
externalized and communicated. How this
design is created from the medium is
referred to as technique.
Composed of certain raw materials, art
elements are put together and organized
according to some designs or patterns to
express meaning. Certain techniques are
applied to provide a distinctive quality or
character to an art work.
Form and content are two interlocking
compositions of art that help artists give
sensuous delight to their work while
communicating or expressing a message. The
material used as a medium will make you
discover what lies beneath every creation of the
beautiful, the good, and the true in an artwork.
The knowledge of the nature of each medium
helps determine the way it can be worked and
turned into an artwork.
Below is a list of mediums used in creative art
Sound
Words
Building materials
Colored pigments
Wood, stone, metal
Hands, feet, body parts
Art forms can be classified into three basic
groups according to medium.
Occupy space and can be seen.
Expressed in time and can be heard
Can be both seen and heard
Appreciating Philippine arts begins by
getting acquainted with the place they
originated from. The folklore, the traditions,
the products produced, and festivities/fiesta
celebrated by the community characterize the
everyday life the people live and are reflected
in their arts.
In their art creation, the community folks use
traditional techniques rooted in their customs
and beliefs. Artists work on their creation using
found materials common in the place. Their art
works speak of their customs, values, and
attitudes.
In Luzon, one very common art form is “wood carving”
in Paete, Laguna which has a long reputation for its
highly skilled craftsmen. A town known for carpenter
shops, Paete came from the Tagalog word “paet” which
means chisel, a carpentry tool used for carving woods.
Paete was proclaimed as the “Carving Capital of the
Philippines" president Corazon Aquino on March 15,
2005. “Yoyo” a carved wooden toy believed to originate
from the Philippines was invented in Paete. Another
creative art from Paete called “Taka or Paper Mache”
which came from Paete is a popular alternative wooden
sculpture.
It eventually became a folk art which is used as
decorations during town festivals. Taka-making used a
mold of layers of paper and for final layer, a brown craft
paper is used to provide a thicker base and smoother
finish for the craft.
The indigenous art in the northern part of
the Philippines is very much
appreciated today. Thread and non-thread
“weaving” is still popular as a cultural
expression of ethnic groups of people in Mt.
Province and Cordilleras. In Sagada and
Kalinga, Itneg people are known for their
intricate woven fabrics. These fabrics are
now used in handicrafts like bags and
modern accessories that feature fabric
designs with colorful and bright tones.
The “Binakol” also known as “binakael” which was
traditionally used as blankets means “twill” in
Ilocano. The twill is said to represent the waves of
the sea and for the people of Cordilleras and a
protection against malevolent spirit.
Traditional techniques in this woven fabric are
applied to both antique and modern
designs now used in contemporary fashion
personal accessories.
Belenismo
Belenismo.
In Tarlac, “Belenismo”, the
annual tradition of the Art of Making
Belen started only in 2007. It becomes
a cottage industry while preserving the
religious importance of the birth of Jesus
Christ.
As it serves as a tourist attraction, this
contemporary art festival is a competition
during the Yuletide season. The entries to
the competition ranges from the life-size,
personal, monumental to dioramas display
of nativity scene in various places around
the province. The small dioramas are housed
at the Museo de Tarlac.
“Parol”, the craft of lantern-making in San
Fernando, Pampanga, strengthens the
Filipino Christmas traditions.
These ornamental Christmas
lanterns which come in various shapes and
colors are handcrafted not only for local but
also international consumption as these are
shipped out of the country for Christmas
Season. Parol-making showcases the special
skills and talents of our people. The evolution
of the techniques used in traditional lanterns
has been made possible by the skills of the
craftsmen in San Fernando.
Tagalog literature flourished in the provinces
of Southern Luzon, Central Luzon,
and Metropolitan Manila or NCR (National
Capital Region). Literary traditions in the
Tagalog regions covered the field of oral
literature like bugtong (riddle), salawikain
(proverbs) and native songs. These oral
literatures are always poetic in form and
Asian in perspective.
Hablon Weaving and Pottery
Making in Miagao, Iloilo
In the Visayas, Miagao, Iloilo is known
as the “Textile Capital of the Philippines“.
Hablon Weaving and Pottery Making are
the two most prominent art works found
in this Western part of Visayas.
The Home of the Loom Weavers is
Barangay Indag-an where one of the
biggest weaving centers can be found
right there in the Indag-an Primary Multi-
Purpose Cooperative. Those who have the
passion for weaving are given the
opportunity to learn the
traditional art of hablon weaving.
Scarves, shoals, handkerchiefs,
patadyong, and table cloth are among the
list of products in Miagao weaving
industry.
Next to hablon weaving industry is
Miagao’s undying art of Pottery Making.
Used for adornment and storage of things
in the house, the creative art of pots and
earthenwares come from the skillful
craftsmen from Barangay Cagbang, a
small barrio in Miagao.
With the traditional method of
pottery making, people use “daga” or
clays just found in the backyard or fields
to produce a variety of products namely:
banga (water jars), kalan (stove), kulon
(cooking pot), and paso (pots for plants).
The Shell Craft, from Mactan, Cebu
The shell craft in Mactan, Cebu used to be
simply a folk art has now turned to
be an industry and a business. This craft of
making decorative objects using sea shells
includes creative designs made for jewelry,
figurines, furniture, and even
constructions of houses and buildings of
mosaics and grottos.
The common and rare sea shells which
are used for fashion accessories and home decors
are handcrafted by skilled individuals. Cebu’s
world-class guitars are inlaid with shells. The
development of this shell craft industry in Cebu
could also be attributed to the growth of tourism
industry in the country
and the effort of the government to intensify the
development of cottage industry as
potential source of livelihood for many Cebuanos.
“Kut-kut art” of Samar, the Eastern part of the
Visayas, is considered as a “Lost Art of the
Philippines”. Its art style and technique was
based on early century art form which was a
combination of sgraffito, encaustic, and layering.
Samar is also very famous for the Art of Mat
Weaving.
Also known as“Banig”or “Tikug Weaving”, the
mat is woven from the dyed died tikog leaves.
With its colorful designs and patterns,
banig weaving becomes a source for
the livelihood of the community folks as
this creative art continues to flourish in
the old town of Basey, “the Banig
Capital of the Philippines”.
The Maguindanao tribe has its “Likos“, an
inaul or woven fabric of different colors and
designs used as wall decor of buntings for
special occasions like weddings.
The Tausug, a tribe from Sulu,
weaves “Laminosa” mats
which are made from Pandan
leaves dyed in different colors.
The Mandaya of Davao Oriental
has the “Dagmay” cloth.
Bagobo-Tagabawa of Davao del Sur has
their “Inabal”.
T’nalak”
is the traditional
tapestry making of the
T’bolis from South
Cotabato.
“Sarimanok” of the Maranao
people (also called the Lake people
originating from the lands surrounding
Lake Lanao, the second largest lake in
the Philippines and the oldest lake in
theworld) comes from two words “sari”
meaning cloth or garment and “manok”
meaning chicken.
It symbolizes good fortune as it depicts
a fowl with colorful wings and feathered
tail, holding a fish on its beak or talon.
Profusely decorated with scroll leaf and
special motifs, “Sarimanok” has cultural
significance not only for Maranao but
also all throughout the Philippines.
Performing arts which include early music and
dance of the Philippines are a mix
of indigenous Islamic and Asian influences. With
certain Spanish influences, the early
Filipinos have variety of musical instruments such as
flutes, guitar, ukulele, violin, trumpets, and drums.
Ethnic music and folk songs inspire composition of
modern music
genres include pop songs, rock, metallic, and other
styles incorporated with techniques
that give expression to the contemporary musical
composition.
“Tinikling or Bamboo” dance; from Luzon,
“Cariñosa” from the Visayas; and “Singkil”
from Mindanao. These dances showcase the artistic
style of choreography which
highlights the social life of the Filipinos. They tell a
story of the people belonging to a
certain class, the life they live, their sense and
sensibilities as Filipinos.
Architectural designs
include houses of the
native Filipinos, the
“Nipa Hut” also known
as “Bahay Kubo”
using bamboo and
coconut as
source of wood.
With the coming of the Spaniards bringing Christianity to
the Filipino people, Spanish influences are most evident on the
creative arts found on houses, churches, and other building
constructions in Intramuros, Manila, Cavite, Vigan, Batangas,
Iloilo, Bacolod, and Zamboanga. Contemporary houses as influenced
by modern art of America and Europe
are characterized by style for urban living that is space saver and
economical.
The “Taluksangay” Mosque which was
built in 1885 by Hadji Abdullah Maas
Nuno. Filipino Muslim art inside the
Mosque of Mindanao is a traditional art
form known as “Okkir” which is believed
to be of Hindu and Chinese influences.
Its architectural design has geometric
and floral artwork
with strong imagery and symbolism.