folkLor: Philippine-Inspired Wearable Art

Manila, 1938

2008-06-12T23:58:00.000-07:00

This is both amazing and surreal at the same time. Thanks for sharing this, Maricel!

button maker + 70s children's dictionary

2008-05-02T12:54:00.000-07:00

Proceeds of sales go to the Basilio B. Garrote Library in La Paz, Bohol, Philippines.

button maker + Philippine Stamps

2008-04-20T23:52:00.000-07:00

button maker + PINOY KOMIKS

2008-04-12T11:50:00.000-07:00

International Deaf Education Association - Philippines

2008-03-08T09:16:00.000-08:00

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'm always talking about teaching theatre to deaf kids in the Philippines and how I fell in love with each and everyone of them and how I cried on my last day and how life altering the experience was and blah, blah, blah.

Well, if you hadn't had enough of my jabbering, I invite you to watch these clips that my friends in Paris [long story] made about the non-profit organization I was teaching for, International Deaf Education Association, better known as IDEA Philippines.

And please, do check out their site: http://ideadeaf.org/ And while you're at it, click on 'Sponsorship' and make the world a better place :)

Coconut Safety Pin Bracelets

2007-12-03T19:05:00.000-08:00

Guy jewelry. Coconut heishe beads. Safety pins.

A little bit of the islands. A little bit of punk.

Mom's Library

2007-11-12T08:56:00.000-08:00

Legacies.

Some women have grandchildren, some women build libraries.

Named after my grandfather, the Basilio B. Garrote Memorial Library is located in La Paz, Bohol, Philippines. A man I never knew died of, of all things appendicitis during World War II, was a councilman and avid bookworm. Six decades later, his youngest daughter would want his name and his legacy to live on.

SOLD!

2007-11-11T22:40:00.000-08:00

Turquoise @ The Artform Studio

2007-11-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

Although turquoise is not native to the Philippines, I cannot help but work with it.

Its colors remind me of the gorgeous waters and the vast skies of the Philippines.

Its colors remind me of gathering starfish at Panglao Beach in 1994.

Its colors remind me of being on the SuperCat as I waved goodbye to my friends waving back to me from Tagbilaran Pier in 1999.

Its colors remind me of the sky in Cebu during Sinulog in 2002.

Its colors remind me of a mysterious drink concocted by Filipino-American bar patrons at Asiatika at Metro Centre in 2003.

Its color, the memories, and so much more.

The Artform Studio
716 N. Figueroa
Los Angeles, CA 90012
www.theartformstudio.com

Sirena

2007-09-10T21:32:00.001-07:00

Here's a sampling of my Sirena collection. In Philippine folklore, a Sirena is what is also known as a mermaid, which is definitely no stranger to a country made up of more than 7,000 islands.

Since childhood, mermaids have always fascinated me. I've been obsessed with them pre-Disney. I loved reading Hans Christian Andersen's story and begged my parents to rent the Toei Animation version on Beta over and over again-- even if she did kill herself in the end.

I also had a strong aversion towards seafood because I would feel for guilty eating a mermaid's friends. Understand that second to rice, refusing to eat seafood is considered taboo if you come from a Filipino family. But it was always strange to me how vegetarians ate fish. Fish are people, too, I always thought.

There is a vendor in the central region of the Philippines who makes these jaw-droppingly gorgeous Mother of Pearl pendants. Fishermen catch the shells, the meat is consumed, and the shell which is usually tossed aside (either on the side of the road, back into the ocean or into a garbage dump) gets cleaned out, carved, polished and painted.

I emphasized the beauty of these pendants with beads and semi-precious stones. I like to think of it as wearing a little piece of ocean. A mermaid's wish comes true and she gets to dance on land by living vicariously through her friends who were kidnapped, sold, and consumed.

A small sacrifice in the name of fashion... rather, wearable art.

Left to Right: Hand Painted Philippine Mother of Pearl Pendant with Jade beads; Hand Carved Butterfly Mother of Pearl Pendant with cloisonne beads, Chinese freshwater blue pearls, Czech beads and cultured Chinese freshwater pearls; Hand Painted Philippine Mother of Pearl Pendant with Brazilian Amethyst Beads and Czech Glass Leaf Beads; Hand Painted Philippine Mother of Pearl Pendant with Wood and Acrylic Beads.

logo

2007-09-06T16:52:00.001-07:00

my man spent the last couple days on this.

we conceptualized the idea together.

the elements are inspired by some of my favorite things.

announcing the birth of folkLor's logo.

whatta ya think?

work in progress and photos to prove it

2007-09-06T14:13:00.000-07:00

i'll tell you what you're looking at: turquoise. jade. amethyst. garnet. freshwater pearls. czech beads. south sea pearls. cultured pearls. cloisonne. materials from the philippines: handpainted mother of pearl shells. various wood and seed beads. coconut heishe.