PILIPINO
DESIGN AESTHETICS
I
am taking on Tibor Kalman's challenge to widen the lens
of design. Tibor asked designers to relearn what was
taught to us in design schools and to look beyond design
annuals for inspiration. Tibor felt that only a very
small segment of designers' work gets highlighted and
praised, while most work--which could be stronger, more
important examples--is left out of design schools, shows,
publications and, eventually, the design history. I
want to take on Tibor's challenge because I would like
work from hot, humid, tropical countries, like the Philippines,
to become part of the mainstream design community. Pilipino
designs should begin to win international design awards.
Good design is good design and it should not come only
from colder climates.
My
first extensive Pilipino aesthetics based project was
my computer animated graduate thesis entitled, "Bahay
Kubo" .
However, it wasn't until 2001 that I decided to go full
time in researching Pilipino design aesthetics, as they
pertain to graphic design. The project that prompted
me to dive deeper into the topic was the calendar design
(see image on the left for sample and explanation) I
created with 11 other designers in San Francisco. The
calendar project pushed me to face and consider many
important things: what it means to be a Pilipino American
designer; what unique offerings Pilipinos and Pilipino
Americans can contribute to the design community; and,
most importantly, what are Pilipino/Pilipino American
aesthetics? It is this search to find our true voice,
based on culture, in design that made me commit to the
research.
It
was a challenge to start the research on Pilipino design
aesthetics; it is such a broad topic. In the beginning,
I thought the best way to start learning about these
aesthetics was to interact and communicate with other
Pilipino designers, in the U.S. and the Philippines.
And so I helped form an organization, Pildesign, for
Pilipinos in graphic design. Pildesign serves as a venue
to share and express experiences as Pilipinos in the
design field. Our initial goals are to define Pilipino
design aesthetics and uplift the culture through our
work. Within the course of a year, Pildesign began to
give talks and exhibits. The organization helped my
research immensely, and it also enabled me to touch
base with designers and programmers in the Philippines--some
of whom I regularly collaborate with now.
Since
going full time on my research and forming Pildesign,
I have created hundreds of layout treatments based on
Pilipino design aesthetics. Bataclan.com features highlights
of my Pilipino-based work, ranging from designs shown
in exhibits to client-related work, as well as showcasing
my extensive sketchbook documentation of my design process,
from ideas to final treatments. Aside from producing
work based on Pilipino aesthetics, I also have given
talks about the subject in Manila, Seattle, San Jose
and San Francisco. In the midst of the research, I still
create daily design exercises, experimenting with the
latest gadgets, drawing techniques, photography, type
manipulations, etc....
Stefan
Sagmeister asked, "Is it possible to touch somebody's
heart through design?" For me, the answer is "yes,"
because from here on out, my work is finally coming
from the right sources: the heart, Pililpino culture
and a focused mission, widening the lens of design.
Enjoy
the series of work and please give me your feedback
about my research on Pilipino design aesthetics. Maraming
salamat, thank you very much.
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