Four of Ballet Philippines’ artists have been accepted to the 1^st Boston Ballet International Ballet Competition, slated on May 12 to 16, 2011. The artists were pre-selected via a video elimination round.

An open-to-the-public fundraiser event for the benefit of the delegates will be held on April 15, 2011 at 8pm at Arts in the City, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. Cocktails will precede the show which will feature the competitors, as well as guest artists.

The accepted competitors include principal dancer Candice Adea, who won the silver medal at the prestigious USA International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi last year; principal dancer Jean Marc Cordero, who made it to the semi-final in Jackson; soloist Cyril Fallar, 1^st Place Winner at the 2010 NAMCYA-Senior Ballet Division; and company member Philip Joseph Rocamora, 3^rd Place Winner at NAMCYA.

To join them in Boston is the team’s coach, BP Ballet Master Victor Ursabia, who mentored Adea and Cordero in Jackson.

“I am excited to expose our dancers to international competitions because they learn from others what they are capable of achieving. Win or loose, they grow to become world class dancers,” says BP’s indefatigable president, Margie Moran Floirendo.

The Boston International Ballet Competition is founded and directed by Valentina Kozlova, former principal dancer of the Bolshoi Ballet and New York City Ballet. Kozlova has danced in the Philippines, as guest artist in Ballet Philippines’ 1994 production of Swan Lake (restaged by William Morgan).

The BIBC is composed of three categories: the Student Division, Junior Division, and Senior Division. BP’s artists will join the Senior Division, which is expected to draw competitors from around the world. Judges include Mikko Nissinen, artistic director of the Boston Ballet, Violette Verdy of France, Andris Liepa of Russia, Hae Shik Kim of South Korea and Septime Webre of the USA.

The fundraiser will feature the dancers’ competition pieces, as well as guest musicians Jay Gomez and Katherine Fernandez Asis. Donations start at P1000.

To inquire about supporting the delegates, please contact Rej Malay at rejinamalay@gmail.com or (2) 551-1003.

April 13, 2011: Wind Serenades

“Listen to the transparent tones of flutes, the piercing strains of oboes, the velvet voice of clarinets, the robust timbre of bassoons and the mellow sounds of French Horns with the Manila Symphony Orchestra’s “Wind Serenades” at Arts in the City, Taguig on April 13, 2011 at 7:30PM. Experience Chamber Music at its very best under the direction and guidance of Prof. David Johnson.

The Manila Symphony Orchestra
In cooperation with
Arts in the City
Presents

Chamber Classics Series At Arts in the City

Concert no. 1:  “Wind Serenades”
featuring the
Manila Symphony Orchestra Wind Ensemble
Prof. David Johnson, concert director/ flute/ annotator

April 12, 2011      7:30PM
FVR Hall,  Arts in the City, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig

Programme

Trevelyan Suite…………………………………………… by  Malcolm Arnold  (14 mins)
1. Palindrome
2. Nocturne
3. Apotheosis

Serenade in E-flat Major Op. 7…………………………..…by  Richard Strauss  (9 mins.)

Sinfonietta ……………………………………………….…….by Joachim Raff  (6 mins.)
Finale-Vivace

*Seascape Opus 53 ………………………….…………………..by Ruth Gipps  (6 mins.)

*”Old Wine in New Bottles”……………………………….by Gordon Jacob   (20 mins)
1. Raggle Taggle Gypsies
2. The Three Ravens
3. Begone Dull Care
4. Early One Morning

Performers
Flutes: Prof. David Johnson, Raymundo Sison, Billy Joel Del Rosario
Oboes: Jayson Pagtakhan; Ritzi Anne Pascual
Clarinets: Randolf Lopez; Kevin Espiritu
Bassoons: Noel Singcuenco; German De Ramos
French Horns: Celso de Leon; Dennis Cruz; Dondon Lucena; Vincent Ramos
Contrabass: Vincent De La Cruz

Tickets: P500, regular tickets; P200 students and senior citizens
For Reservations and inquiries pls. contact: 5235712 (MSO Office); 3992211 (Arts in the City).0916-7015628 (Ms. Jedi Villar)

Here is the FB Link for the invite.

http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=105042962912918&notif_t=event_invite

Red Star Gymnastics is a recreational program for boys and girls from 3 year-old beginners to the advanced junior gymnast covering fundamental skills such as flexibility, strength and endurance.

Gymnastics is an excellent physical activity not only for children but for adults that encourages body coordination, strengthens the core muscle and gives cardiovascular endurance. With gymnastics, a person can learn balance and control not just physically but mentally as well.

What can we gain from learning gymnastics? Participation in gymnastics classes provides children with many physical, cognitive and psychological benefits. Gymnastics is a sport where one uses the mind and every part and muscles of the body. The skills children gain from gymnastics will continue to benefit them throughout their lives.

Physical Benefits
* Strengthens core muscles.

* Flexibility and gracefulness.

*Cardiovascular endurance.
* The ability to relax and internalize.
* Learning correct body posture.

*Body alignment while standing, jumping, walking and running.
* The knowledge of how to fall and roll safely.
* Increased agility and coordination.

Cognitive Benefits
* Total awareness and understanding of body movements.
*Precise body movements.

*The ability to adjust to environment.
* Mind and body coordination.

*Adjustment to apparatus and equipment.

*Good exercise habit.
* Good sportsmanship and camaraderie.

Psychological Benefits
*Goal oriented.

*Increased and improved the ability to focus.
* Learns to respect and be respected.

* Learning to listen.

*Discipline and self control.
* Self confidence, self-esteem and positive attitude.

*Contentment and self achievement.
* Move from a world of “I can’t” to “I can”.

Red Star Gymnastics is endorsed to award the Gymnastics level Certificates which provides the opportunity for gymnasts to achieve progressive awards. These award schemes are not only a great incentive and motivator for participants, but also provide a systematic approach to gymnastics. The following age groups give an indication of class description although streaming of classes in line with ability and awards shall take place particularly in the senior age groups.

What makes Red Star Gymnastics class different from other Gymnastics class? The difference is that the coaches were former gymnasts. Their experience as a gymnast has helped them greatly in teaching. They have also been teaching basic and competitive gymnastics here in the Philippines and some coaches have coaching experience in Shanghai and Beijing, China. Though those coaches only taught basic gymnastics in China, the experiences gave them a lot of ideas that can be incorporated here in the Philippines where no other Gymnastics class can offer.

CLASS DESCRIPTION

Ages 3 & 4
Through a series of fun and imaginative movements and balances, children develop agility, flexibility, coordination and gain confidence and self-esteem. This course is an invaluable start to school and sport.

Age 5-6
Good body posture and flexibility are developed as children are introduced to floor work, beam drills and vault.

Intermediate
A more disciplined approach to gymnastics is adopted. As more skills are acquired, the routines are further developed. The improvement in coordination and agility at this important developmental age has a tremendous carryover of skills to other sports.

Advanced
More complex skills on floor exercise and balance beam are taught. Conditioning work is increased as student’s progress through their Gymnastics awards program. Preparatory skills for a competitive program.

OTHER ADDITIONAL CLASSES (OPTIONAL)

Gym for Tots is a Physical Education Program specifically designed for infants who can walk, to the age of three years. The program has been developed to include many creative and imaginative ways to encourage physical activity, exercise and movement in a stimulating, safe and positive environment. The program aims to develop self esteem confidence, social, listening and cognitive skills as well as physical skills such as coordination, agility and core strength. This class will always be accompanied by a parent or a guardian as we will teach them how to guide the children while on the floor or balance beam, by this they will learn the proper ways of supporting a child while doing activities like tumbles and balancing.

Cheer Camp popularized by cheer dancing competitions and break dancing, this class will help dancers fulfill difficult moves and tumbles. To meet the goals they have set for themselves, they can achieve them by doing workouts and strengthening conditioning program specified for a gymnast. Gymnasts have upper body strength like no other athletes have and the endurance to do multiple moves in one go.

Fun Camp this offers multiple sports and arts and craft activities in one day in span of the whole summer. In order for a child to experience, understand and be more knowledgeable in different kinds of sports. Exposure to multiple sports will give a child a wider, diverse and broader choice of sport in the future. This will also bring out and develop the creative side of them and will stimulate an artist within them that they have never discovered before. The fun camp will not only be holding sports and arts but will also be doing a lot of fun and games. Let us put the “fun” in “fundamental”!

CLASS FEE

Registration fee – Php 500

Class – Php 450 (1 hour)

Classes begin on April 5, 2011. For inquiries or enrollment, you mat call Ms. Annabelle or Ms. J.Lou at 399 22 11.

CLASSICAL BALLET

BABY BALLET (4 to 5 yrs old)

Saturdays 9:30am-10:30am  and Mondays 3:00pm – 4pm

1 hour sessions

Course fee:

1 class a week: P1600 (Monthly) or P3900 (Quarterly)

2 classes a week: P2200 9Monthly or P6000 (Quarterly)

PRE-BEGINNERS (6 to 7 yrs old)

Saturdays 8:30am – 9:30am and Mondays 4:00pm – 5:00pm

1 hour sessions

Course fee:

1 class a week: P1600 (Monthly) or P3900 (Quarterly)

2 classes a week: P2200 (Monthly or P6000 (Quarterly)

BALLET 1 (8 to 9 yrs old)

Saturdays 8:00am – 9:30am

1 ½ hour sessions

Course fee: P1800 (Monthly) or  P4900 (Quarterly)

BALLET 2 w/ background (10 yrs and up)

1 ½ hour sessions

Tuesday and Thursdays, 4:00pm – 5:30pm

Course fee:

1 class a week: P1800 (Monthly) or P4900 (Quarterly)

2 classes a week: P2500 (Monthly or P6400 (Quarterly)

BALLET 3&4 beginning Pointe w/bbackground (14 yrs and up)

1 – 1 ½ hour sessions

Saturdays 1:30pm – 2:30pm and Mondays 5:30pm – 7:00pm

Course fee:

1 class a week: P1800 (Monthly) or P4900 (Quarterly)

2 classes a week: P2500 (Monthly or P6400 (Quarterly)

LADIES BALLET (16 yrs and up)

1 ½ hour sessions

Mondays 9:30am – 11:00am and Fridays 10:00am – 11:30am

Course fee:

1 class a week: P1800 (Monthly) or P4900 (Quarterly)

2 classes a week: P2500 (Monthly or P6400 (Quarterly)

*All Classical Ballet courses are subject to a P500 registration fee

CONTEMPORARY/ MODERN DANCE

MODERN BALLET (10 yrs and up)

1 ½ hour sessions

Mondays 4:00pm – 5:30pm and Fridays 4:00pm – 5:30pm

Course Fee:

1 class a week: P1800 (Monthly) or P4900 (Quarterly)

2 classes a week: P2500 (Monthly or P6400 (Quarterly)

HIP-HOP KIDS (5 to 10 yrs old)

1 hour sessions, once a week

Saturdays 10:30am – 11:30am

Course fee: P1600 (Monthly) or P3900 (Quarterly)

HIP-HOP TEEN/LADIES (10 yrs old and up)

1 hour sessions, once a week

Saturdays 10:30am – 11:30am

Course fee: P1600 (Monthly) or P3900 (Quarterly)

LATINHEAT WORKOUT (Open for all ages)

1 hour sessions

Fridays 3:30pm – 4:30pm and 7:00pm – 8:00pm

Course fee: P1800 (Montly)

Instructor: Sherwin

JAZZ

1 hour sessions

Thursdays 4:30pm – 5:30pm

Course fee: P1800 (Monthly)

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT COURSES (One-on-one classes)

CLASSICAL GUITAR TECHNIQUE

Tuesday and Saturday 2:00pm – 6:00pm

8 sessions per course

Course fee:

½ hour sessions for KIDS                P 5000

1 hour sessions for ADULTS                       P 7000

ELECTRICAL & ACOUSTIC GUITAR TECHNIQUE

Tuesday & Saturday 2:00pm – 6:00pm

8 sessions per course

Course fee:

½ hour sessions for KIDS                P 5000

1 hour sessions for ADULTS                       P 7000

VIOLIN

Wednesday and Thursday 1:00pm – 4:00pm

8 sessions per course

1 hour session for kids and adults

Course fee:  P 7000

DRUMS

Wednesday 2:00pm – 6:00pm

8 sessions per course, 1 ½ hour per session

Course fee:

Kids (7 to 12 yrs old)                       P 8000

Adults (13 yrs old and up)   P 9000

ARTS / PAINTING (One on one courses)

PAINTING LESSON

Wednesday 1:00pm – 6:00pm

10 sessions per course, 1 ½ hour per session

Course:

Kids (7 to 12 yrs old)                       P 8000

Adults (13 yrs old and up)   P 9000

FUNDACION CENTRO FLAMENCO

FLAMENCO

Instructor: Emma Estrada

Course fees:

8 classes of 1 hour                P 2800

8 classes of 1 ½ hour                       P 3500

12 classes of 1 ½ hour         P 4200

*Registration fee of P700 applies

CLASE ARTISTICO (Artistic Class)

Wednesdays 6:30pm – 8:00pm

A class for everyone, for a new student experiencing flamenco for the first time to more advanced students

BASICO I (Basic I)

Saturdays 2:30pm – 4:00pm

For the students with little or no knowledge of flamenco and its rhythms

BASICO II (Basic II)

Wednesdays 1:30pm – 3:00pm

For the students with the basic knowledge of footwork and hand movements

MEDIO / AVANZADO (Intermediate/Advance)

Mondays 6:30pm – 8:00pm

For the students who have an in-depth knowledge and more comfortable with the foot work and hand movements

POLE ACADEMY

POLE DANCING

Instructor: Mr. Ed Aniel or Mr. Geri Gil

Course fee:

Per session                P 600

8 sessions                  P 3200

12 sessions                P 4500

*Registration fee of P700 applies

INTERMEDIATE

Mondays and Wednesdays 8:30pm – 10:00pm

BEGINNERS

Tuesdays and Thursdays 7:30 – 9:00pm

Outfit: Any top, short shorts, high heels, no lotion/oil in any part of the body

For information and class schedules, you may call:

Landline: 399 22 11 (look for Ms. Anabelle or Ms. J.Lou)

Mobile: 0922 8577424

Website: www.artsinthecity.ph

Email: artsinthecity.info@gmail.com

Address: FVR Park, 26^thstcor 7^thave. Bonifacio Global City

“After the Loving”, the post-Valentine concert featuring Jacqui Magno, Pat Castillo, Ding Mercado and Eugene Villaluz premiered to a sold-out crowd of 200 people at Arts in the City’s FVR Hall last February 23, 2011.

Due to insistent public demand, we will stage a repeat performance this April 2, 2011.

For more info and tickets please call 399 22 11 or 346 3684.

Burlesque by Lady S is the first burlesque workshop being offered in the Philippines. It follows the current resurgence of Burlesque aptly called Neo-Burlesque. Burlesque by Lady S is a hybrid of exotic dancing, chair dance, striptease, performance art, character and narrative development etc. The focus of the Burlesque classes is in the art of tease, a subtle play between concealing and revealing maximizing each person’s unique personality. Add some spice to your life take the leap, unleash your Dyosaness.

Startle, sparkle and sizzle. Lady S is Succulent Imagination, Sophisticated Seductions.

The alias Lady S came into conception in 2008 in New York City. She was then an apprentice in painting and drawing at the Arts Students League of New York while training to be an exotic dance mistress to all-women parties. The Lady S graffiti tags can be found on the poles and ceilings of Manila, Brussels, Sint-Niklass and soon in Berlin. She will be collaborating and modeling for Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School Manila, the first platform in the Philippines that combines live drawing, burlesque, cabaret, performance art, tattoos, piercings, etc.

* Only for a limited time: Five (5) Burlesque Saturdays (March 26, April 2, 9, 16 and 23) 6-7pm Arts in the City, Bonifacio Global City.

* Learn two sizzling sophisticated burlesque routines. With an intimate performance party for the participants on the last day.

* Requirements: gloves, thigh high stockings, heels, corset and a smashing outfit.

* P2,500/head (5 Burlesque Saturdays) with a one-time registration fee of P700 for new students.

* Per session rate of P600 with a one-time registration fee of P700 for new students.

0916.439.6352
poleacademyphilippines1@gmail.com

“Burlesque by Lady S.”
Music “Wash Jones” by Squirrel Nut Zippers
Directed by Dan Gil
Performed by Eisa Jocson
Shot with a 5D and an iPhone

This summer, we invite you to let loose the artist in you, discover the exhilarating world of theater and experience the joy of performing on stage. Tanghalang Pilipino’s 2011 Summer Theater Adventure is composed of classes facilitated by some of the country’s most outstanding thespians and practitioners in the field. The time-tested syllabus is carefully designed, reviewed and revised to provide students with the most up-to-date theater performance techniques and enable them to develop their own style.

TANGHALANG PILIPINO, the resident theater company of the Cultural Center o the Philippines, has been acclaimed by parents and students for the excellent experience and intensive training it imparts on the participants.

For ARTS IN TAGUIG CITY, we are offering CHILDREN’S THEATER WORKSHOP: creative dramatics for children using games, storytelling techniques, movement, music and masks as tools of expression. The workshop, which starts on April 4, 2011 culminates in a recital/production showcase at the end of the course on April 30, 2011. Students, who enroll in the 2011 Summer Theater Adventure, get the chance to be invited to audition or perform in the regular season plays and special shows produced by TANGHALANG PILIPINO. They also get the chance to be seen by talent scouts during the workshop recitals.

For schedules, discounts and other inquiries, you may reach TANGHALANG PILIPINO through the following contacts:

Phone: (02)832-3661 or (02)832-1125 local 1620/1621

Telefax: (02)832-3661

E-mail: ccptanghalan@yahoo.com

ARTS IN TAGUIG CITY is located at FVR Park, 26th Street. Bonifacio Arts Center, Taguig City. For inquiries, call 889-3028.

BABY BALLET (4 to 5 yrs old)

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 3:00-4:00 pm (1 hour sessions).

Course fee:     P    13,245.00

Teacher: Rhea Bautista

PRE-BEGINNERS (6 to 7 yrs old)

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 3:00-4:00 pm (1 hour sessions)

Course fee:     P    13,245.00

Teacher: Karla Javier

BALLET 1 w/ ballet background (7 yrs and up)

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 4:00-5:30 pm (1 ½ hour sessions)

Course fee:     P    14,350.00

Teacher: Rhea Bautista

BALLET 2 w/ ballet background (10 yrs & up)

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 4:00-5:30 pm (1 ½ hour sessions)

Course fee:     P    14,350.00

Teacher: Karla Javier

BALLET 3 & 4-Beg. Pointe w/ background (14 yrs & up)

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 5:30-7:00 pm (1 ½ hour sessions)

Course fee:     P    14,350.00

Teacher: Rhea Bautista

*ALL COURSES SUBJECT TO 500 REGISTRATION FEE*

**minimum enrollment of 7 students**

The Dance Camp is a two-week intensive camp that includes classes in Jazz, Hip Hop, Contemporary Dance and Creative Movement. Classes are daily, from Monday to Friday at 8 am to 2 pm, and an informal show culminates the camp on Saturday, May 5.

All children—boys and girls—ages 7 to 12 are invited to join. No background in dance is needed. All one needs is the interest to dance.

A snack and meals is provided with the tuition and fees. Those who enrol on or before April 23 get a discount on tuition.

For more information, call Rubylee Gomez at (2) 832-3689 from Tuesday to Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm, or email rubylee.gomez@balletphilippines.org. Visit balletphilippines.org orartsintaguigcity.com. Watch out from promos on facebook.com/balletphilippines

Bonifacio Global City, Manila – March 3, 2011 – ARTS in the City Gallery is proud to present wood, textile, iron, prints and photoposters in “ Medium: an exploration of materials.” The exhibition opens on March 3, 2011 and runs through the end of April 2011, featuring the works of Valeria Cavestany, Rocky Camus, Lenore RS Lim, Felice Prudente Sta. Maria, Alma Quinto and Jerusalino Araos.

medium

Artists turn to painting and sculpture because what they have to express is inexpressible in words. — David Piper. Understanding Art.

And artists turn to various materials, which they invest with substance and meaning, with imagery that for artists represent their interaction with the world around them.

The imagery is sometimes interrogative or analytical or critical of social issues or situations. Sometimes there is a hint of illusionistic representation, of conveying an artist’s fantasies, his/her recollections and memories. At times humanistic content is given to non-human forms, as there are human forms rendered on antithetical material. And thankfully there are also artists who have an innate sense of humor, of wit, and double meanings can be gleaned from their art.

The materials that artists turn to are as infinite as the creativity and the resourcefulness of an artist, the range of imaginative expressivity. There are metals, wood, fabric, and paper upon and with which artists speak without words.

JERUSALINO V ARAOS characterizes himself as a gardener and carpenter. In reality, he is one of the most accomplished Filipino landscape artists, and sculptor, who does create furniture as well from “abused, misused and discarded” old wood from old wooden bridges and 19th century and early 20th century houses. He also uses trees felled by nature; he prides in not causing the killing of any tree in the practice of his art.

Jerry is featured in the Bonifacio Global City through a garden, which was realized as a special prize during the first international public art competition implemented by the Bonifacio Art Foundation, Inc, in the early 2000s.

A writer and thinker, Jerry has been a noted public speaker, specially for his lectures/talks on the philosophy of art, and the social and personal impact of art.

He is the president and founder of the Sanayan Lapat Kamay, Inc or SALAKAI, a group of artists and artisans.

Jerry was the Philippine representative to the Fifth ASEAN Sculpture Symposium, in Kuala Lumpur in 1987, and to the Ecological Art Workshop in Kuala Lumpur in 1994. He has exhibited in many art spaces in the country, such as the Vargas Museum, the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Metropolitan Museum of Manila, National Museum, Crucible Gallery Hiraya Gallery, Pinaglabanan Galleries, Nayong Pilipino, and various alternative exhibition spaces within the Diliman and Los Banos campuses of the University of the Philippines.

Above: Jerusalino Araos, Torso, Wood

LENORE RS LIM graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of the Philippines (UP) in 1967. Among her over twenty solo exhibitions were those held at the Abu Dhabi Culture and Heritage Foundation, “Evocations” at Paul Sharp Contemporary, the Philippine Center and the United Nations in New York City, Delta Gallery in Ottawa, the Colegio Filipino in Rome, Avenida de los Artistas Gallery in Vienna, the Vancouver Public Library in BC Canada, and in Yale University Asian American Cultural Center, New Haven, Connecticut.

She was awarded the prestigious Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant in 1999, the Pamana ng Pilipino, Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organizations Overseas in 2004, UP Alumni Association Award for Outstanding Professional in the field of Visual Arts in 2007, Outstanding Artist Award from the College of the Holy Spirit in 2001, and one of the One Hundred Most Influential Filipinas in the USA in 2009. She is president of the Society of Philippine American Artists the second time around. For her contributions to the development of printmaking, she is member emeritus of the Board of Directors of the Philippine Association of Printmakers.

Above: Lenore RS Lim, Norway, Photoetching, 1998

ALMA QUINTO Is a visual artist and art educator who collaborates with marginalized children and women in her art projects to empower them through their stories, dreams and art. She has worked with young female survivors of sexual abuse in CRIBS Philippines since 1995 and with similar groups like the Bantay Bata 163, young prostitutes of FORGE Cebu, the Philippine Association for Citizens with Developmental and Learning Disabilities (PACDLD), evacuees from Bicol, Japanese Filipino children and their mothers from DAWN, women from MAKALAYA, abused street children at Tahanan Sta. Luisa, with the Itneg of Abra through PLAN International, to name a few.

Alma represented the Philippines in the 8th Havana Biennial in Cuba in 2003; in Norway in 2004; and, in the 2nd Yokohama International Triennale of Contemporary Art in Japan in 2005. From 2006 to 2007, she conducted workshops for her House of Comfort Art Project with marginalized communities all over the Philippines. In January 2008 she was invited to exhibit her House of Comfort Art Project in Nagoya, Osaka and Kobe where she conducted workshops with Japanese women and high school students and with marginalized Filipino children, and delivered a lecture on Women Artists and their Collaborative Community Projects in the Philippines at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto.

She was past president of the Philippine Art Educators Association (PAEA), and KASIBULAN (Kababaihan sa Sining at Bagong Sibo! na Kamalayan), a progressive women’s art organization. She collaborates with PETA through its Children Theater Education program. She was also an executive council member of the Committee on Cultural Education and Committee on Visual Arts of the NCCA. She has also facilitated workshops to stimulate global warming/climate change awareness through the arts. She is a Master Facilitator for NCCA’s Artists for Crisis Program, training artists and cultural workers on the process of creative intervention. Last June, she trained Moro artists in Mindanao to utilize arts to help the healing process for survivors of man-made and natural disasters. She is a member of Greenpeace.

She graduated from the University of the Philippines in Diliman with a bachelor’s degree in Philippine Studies and has taken up MA units in Art Studies major in Art History and undergraduate units in Studio Arts.

Above: Alma Quinto, Pusang Galawgaw, Polyurethane, Foam, Textile and Yarn, 2009

VALERIA CAVESTANY FREIXAS was born in Barcelona, Spain, of a Catalan father and Filipino mother. She studied textile design in Barcelona’s School of Textile Design. In the late 1970s she came to the Philippines in search of her roots and chose to make Manila her home.

In the Philippines, she studied Chinese painting with Professors Chen and Hau Chiok. In the 1980s, she earned a bachelor’s degree in Asian History from the University of the Philippines. She continues training through workshops in lithography and other art forms in Spain and the USA.

Valeria has exhibited her artwork in Philippine galleries and museums, such as Galeria de las Islas, Pinaglabanan Gallery, Finale Art File, Alliance Francaise, Hiraya Gallery, Galeria Duemila, The Drawing Room, Manila Art Contemporary, the Ayala Museum, the Lopez Memorial Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum of Manila. Abroad, her art has been seen in galleries and various art spaces in Spain, Singapore, England, Mexico and Turkey.

Valeria continues to work with various mediums — metal, paper, textile, canvas — to name just a few of the materials that experience the exuberance of her creativity and inimitable sense of color.

Above: Valeria Cavestany, Fish, Iron with Lights, 2009

FELICE PRUDENTE STA. MARIA is an internationally awarded author and an occasional photographer whose works have been included in publications and group exhibits since the 1970s. Last year, Camera Club of the Philippines, for which she was the lone female member for decades, hosted her first solo show, Pana-Panahon (From Time to Time), featuring her photoposters. She trained in photography at International Center of Photography and New York University in 1976 and 1977. She has always delighted in still life, fantasy, and expanding the audiences for art. Her previous positions have included President and Vice Chair of Metropolitan Museum of Manila, Commissioner for Cultural Heritage at National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and Commissioner in the Social and Human Sciences Sector of UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines.

Above: Felice Prudente Sta. Maria, Singkamas in Orange, Photograph, 2010

JOSE FAVIS CAMUS or Rocky has been inspired by his passion for nature and somewhat opposite of that, by a growing knowledge and experience in the real estate industry.

His life and thoughts have been highly influenced by a few people, such as Jerusalino Araos and Jenny Cortez. Rocky also looks up to his father, who has more than 30 years experience in real estate, and whom he credits for his knowledge in that field. His cousin Carina with whom he maintains close familial ties has greatly inspired Rocky to keep on exploring nature.

It is through the work (and life) of certain people and their examples that Rocky sees light and growth. Although many times conflicting in ideals and objectives, it is in Art that he sees the opportunity to communicate and integrate the various lessons he has personally absorbed throughout his formal and informal studies and training.

Above: Rocky Camus, Play of Wood, Wood, 2011