Full Circle: Creativity Moving Through Generations

If you're looking for something different to do this weekend, check out the Yuchengco Museum, one of my favorite museums in Metro Manila. It may be small, but I love the layout, accessibility (it's in the Makati CBD and mere minutes away from my place) and occasional special exhibits. Yesterday was the opening of the exhibit Full Circle which features a few Chinese-Filipino families who are artists, working in various fields: visual arts, interior design, fashion, and so on.

 My favorite would have to be the Lim-Higgins section, featuring clothes by the late Salvacion Lim-Higgins and mixed-media artwork and costumes by her son Mark Lewis Higgins. Salvacion (aka Slim) was a famous couturier who clothed Manila's high society in the 1950s up until the 1980s. Her clothes are flamboyant, rich and dramatic. I saw an exhibit of her designs at the National Museum and was delighted. Only a few of her designs are at the Yuchengco, but there are enough to give you an idea of what her work is like. I was also happy to see the costumes of Aslan and Mr. Tumnus from the 1998 Trumpets production of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, designed by Mark. I really liked the works from his "Invisible Cities" collection, being a fan of both Calvino and gouache.

There are other nice works there as well that you have to see for yourself. One question the exhibit poses to visitors would be - is artistry or creativity inherited or learned? Whatever you think the answer is, it is interesting to see how what various generations come up with, as well as the similarities and differences between themes, mediums and style.

Here's the press release from the Yuchengo Museum about the exhibit:

Full Circle: Creativity Moving Through Generations

April 13 – June 30

Exhibit Opening:

April 13, Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.

Does creativity run in the family? Or is it a matter of elders passing on their trade or inspiring their children?

The Yuchengco Museum highlights Tsinoy and artists and designers through a special exhibit titled Full Circle: Creativity Moving Through Generations, which opens on April 13. Full Circle brings together five families of Sino-Filipino artists whose works highlight the flow of creativity from one generation to the next.

Full Circle presents the creative expressions of an older generation of Filipino-Chinese artists and designers juxtaposed against the creations of their sons and daughters. Illustrating both common themes and individual styles, the exhibit also examines the artists’ work within the context of their times and pursuits. Among the featured creative kin are the Cobonpue, Goy, Lim-Higgins, Magsaysay-Ho, and Syjuco families.

Full Circle: Creativity Moving Through Generations runs until June 30. The Yuchengco Museum is at RCBC Plaza, corner Ayala and Sen. Gil J. Puyat Avenues, Makati City. Museum hours are Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. To RSVP and for more information, call 889-1234 or e-mail info@yuchengcomuseum.org.