A celebration of Filipino artistry

The Balik Saya project, headed by the Intramuros Administration and Manila Rep. Cristal Bagatsing, recently held a design competition to celebrate Filipino artistry.

The culminating activity was held at the newly opened National Museum of Natural History.  Bagatsing formally launched the night saying, “Now you see the beauty of Manila’s Fifth District, which is rich in history, culture and arts — Intramuros, the National Museum, Rizal Park, National Library, so many museums. But behind and outside this beauty, there is also a beast, the beast of burden which is poverty. Call me idealistic but I truly believe that through promoting my district via tourism, I hope to be able to bring more awareness that more jobs can be generated — livelihood, skills enhancement — and can open so many doors to other opportunities. Also because we have a lot of creative talent here that are honorable, and hopefully all this will create more awareness that you do not need to look very far if you really want to help and make a difference and touch people’s lives.”

Judges for the competition were Inno Sotto (head judge), Criselda Lontok, National Museum director Jeremy Barns, Jo Ann Bitagcol, Leyte Rep. Lucy Torres-Gomez, Lulu Tan-Gan, Rajo Laurel, Randy Ortiz, SoFA Design Institute dean Tobias Guggenheimer and Tweetie de Leon-Gonzalez.

The fashion show opened with the collection of fashion designer and project mentor Jojie Lloren and went on to showcase the creations of the 15 finalists.

Three designers were given special awards. Fashion+Arts+Business Creatives Choice awardee was Christian Bulasag from Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila,  who received a P100,000-scholarship. SoFA Choice (or the Fashion Visionary Award) given to the most creative and innovation piece went to Vianka Lorraine Castro from St. Scholastica’s College. Rana Vashti Sacramento from St. Scholastica’s College got the Rustan’s Iconic Award for her work seen as the most promising in retail design.

(From left) Mikee Cojuangco, Amado Bagatsing, Rep. Cristal Bagatsing, Pia Cayetano, Bianca Zobel and Lisa Rossiter.

Winners for the Balik Saya design competition were Margaux Gustilo from St. Scholastica’s College, fifth place with P20,000 cash prize; Lou Galang from St. Scholastica’s College, fourth place with P25,000 cash prize; Somera Rana from Colegio de San Juan de Letran, third place with P40,000 cash prize; and Alaine Isabelle Leones from St. Scholastica’s College, second place with P60,000 cash prize. The grand winner, Mariah Marella Parayray from St. Scholastica’s College, received P100,000 cash prize, an apprenticeship in Rustan’s, and an extensive workshop from SoFA Design Institute.

Balik Saya is a project of the Intramuros Administration and Manila Rep. Cristal Bagatsing in cooperation with the Department of Tourism, and in partnership with the National Museum of the Philippines, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Destileria Limtuaco, Rustan’s, SoFA Design Institute, The Bayleaf Hotels and Ilustrado.

Learning with the best

GAOC president and CEO Dr. Steve Mark Gan is flanked by (from left) GAOC Doctors Jacqueline Nicole Dos Santos, Katrina Rose Tan, Samantha Leonore Yago, Keslynn Evangelista, Maybelle Paige Lim and Brian Michael Lam at the Los Angeles Convention Center during the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Academy of Osseointegration in California.

Dr. Steve Mark Gan always seeks improvement. Together with his team of dentists at the Gan Advanced Osseointegration Center (GAOC), one of the best dental clinics in Southeast Asia, Gan was in Los Angeles, California recently to participate in the prestigious 2018 Annual Meeting of the Academy of Osseointegration (AO), a gathering of world-renowned international speakers, specialists and leading dental general practitioners.

Even with his numerous affiliations in the field — a member of the American Society of Osseointegration and the American College of Oral Implantology, former chair and member of the Board of Dentistry, Philippine Regulation Commission — Steve Mark Gan never fails to take part in such conferences to keep abreast of the latest global trends and technologies to raise the standards in local dental practice.

Similarly, GAOC annually makes sure that its dentists undergo extensive training here and abroad, to advance their knowledge of the latest trends and developments in the field of dentistry.

Gan said, “We believe that the best way to enhance our dental services is by participating in international conferences such as the AO annual meeting. By keeping up-to-date with current trends and international best practices and through interactions with colleagues from around the world, we aim to bring Philippine dentistry to world-class standards.”

GAOC has 10 state-of-the-art clinics run by a team of dental specialists and is equipped with the most advanced diagnostic and treatment facilities available.  It offers an extensive range of first-class services from oral surgery and periodontics, orthodontics and pediatric dentistry, prosthodontics and general dentistry to cosmetic and laser dentistry.

 (For more information, visit www.gaocdental.com and @gaocdental on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.)

‘Threesome’

Makoto Kuriya, Marlene de la Peña and Jiro Yoshida.

Threesome, a night of classic, timeless and intimate rhythmic tunes of the best jazz arrangements will be held on June 30 at Fairmont Makati’s Ballroom.

The night will be headlined by Filipino Jazz superstar Marlene de la Peña — who has been breaking barriers as one of the most successful foreign singers in Japan. Marlene will perform with accomplished guitarist Jiro Yoshida and world-class pianist and music producer Makoto Kuriya.

Currently, Marlene is reportedly the highest paid Filipino musician and a valued Sony contract artist in Japan with over 30 albums to her name. Yoshida has worked with Cyndi Lauper, Barbara Streisand and Sting. He was also chosen as the 51st United Nation WAFUNIF Goodwill Ambassador for various humanitarian efforts. Meanwhile, Makoto has performed with Donald Byrd, James Moody and Grammy-winner Chuck Mangione. He was appointed by the Japanese government to produce a tour in Brazil in celebration of its 120 years of booming relationship.

The concert is produced by Brightstage Productions, a company that was organized to bring original and culturally relevant events; it will be its pilot dinner-concert in the Philippines. 

The event is in partnership with Fila Philippines, Luxuri Manila and Fairmont Makati, together with Saga Events, Bloomwoods, MCGPI (MC Geometric Proportions Inc.), ES Group and Dexterton.

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(Follow me on Instagram @pepperteehankee.)