OCAD UNIVERSITY 100TH GRADUATE EXHIBITION

REVIVAL+SURVIVAL FINAL COLLECTION

Thank you to everyone who came to visit me. I'm so happy I could make you all proud, especially to my family who have always supported me and what I want to do, although most of you wished for me to take another path, you all still allowed me to do what I wanted. Now that I'm done university, I hope you all continue to support me.

REVIVAL+SURVIVAL began as an attempt at reviving and sustaining my Philippine culture within myself. However, it slowly transformed and added the questions of who I am, not only as a designer, but also as a person. During the experimentation process of trying to replicate traditional Philippine textiles, I came to the realization that I do not want to be a traditional Philippine textile artist; I do not want to force myself to be something I am not.
The end result is a three-dress collection taking the traditional Philippine garments, the Barong-Tagalog, Maria Clara, and Terno, as inspiration. This collection, and more importantly the concept and processes used is not only about researching and honouring my Filipino heritage, but it is also about finding out who I am as a designer and the priorities that I have in the design process.
With weaving and dyeing my own fabrics, I am aware of how the fabrics were made, without having to worry about whether the fabrics were unethically, or unsustainably made, I believe that this knowledge will always be my top design priority.
Materials played a very important part in my thesis work, as I knew it would be important to utilize traditional materials in the final collection in order to display the beauty within the materials and why these materials are important to the Philippine culture.
I had done dye experiments with leaves that I know I would be able to attain from my family’s lands in the Philippines; mango, avocado and banana leaves. Sourcing my natural dye stuff from my familial home was very appropriate for this project, as I strongly believe my family has helped me become who I am. I wished for this project to not only have a connection to my culture, but to my family. Weaving was also an important aspect to me in terms of familial ties; my late grandmother, whom I never had the opportunity to meet, was also a weaver.
With the final collection, I wish to celebrate my culture, the Philippines. I also used this project as not only a learning and teaching tool of the Philippine culture, but as a learning tool of who I am as not only a designer, but as a person. What I have learnt through this experience is I still have a lot to learn about myself, and that is okay because like design, people change and change is inescapable. History however, does not change, and the people from the past and what they have done will always be there, just as long as the people of the present wish to acknowledge and learn from and about them.