Traditional Folk Architecture

Traditional Folk Arts

• Simple structures utilize local materials and available tools to provide shelter for inhabitants.

Folk Architecture

• Bahay Kubo/Nipa Hut is also known as kamalig and serves as an icon to Filipino lowland and rural culture.
  • It is a stilt house with bamboo walls or bamboo mats and a thatched roof of anahaw or nipa.
• Bale/Ifugao House is a one-room house with an attic for storage.
  • The exterior looks like a pyramid on four posts, while the interior is enclosed by slanting walls and ceiling that appears spherical from the loft.
  • Located at the contour of the rice terraces.
• Ivatan houses are built with limestone walls and cogon roofs to withstand typhoons and earthquakes.
  • They have narrow doors and windows with wooden shutters.
• Torogan/Maranao House literally means a "place for sleeping,” for the elite Maranao tribe members in Mindanao.
  • It is a symbol of status and leadership as the house of the datu or sultan.
  • It serves as a courthouse for community meetings, and its courtyard as ritual areas for weddings.
• Badjao, the sea gypsies of the Philippines, cruise along the islands of Sulu.
  • Their unique setting and fishing economy compel them to adjust to the limited space of their floating homes or lepa.
  • Platforms are made on both ends of the boat for fish, kitchen utensils, and fishing gadgets with the kitchen area in the back.
  • Some Badjaos live in stilt houses built of driftwood and debris from coastal cities, with foundations carefully placed between coastal rocks and corals.

Maritime Transports

• Simple marine vessels transport goods and people by sea and other waterways.
• Wooden Banca is a small, sometimes highly decorated, outrigger canoe used for transport in daily activities near the coast.
• Vinta is a traditional boat by Sama-Bajau (Badjao) and Moros in the Sulu Archipelago, Zamboanga peninsula, and southern Mindanao.
  • The assorted vertical colors in the sail represent the colorful culture of the Muslim community.
  • These boats are used for inter-island transport of people and goods.

Weaving, Textile Making, and Fabric Art

• Early Filipinos weaved fibers from abaca, cotton, pineapple, and bark; a process spanning from a week to months.
• Piña weaving is the oldest industry of Aklan.
  • Piña cloth is soft, delicate, durable, and long-lasting, often used for national costumes like baro't saya and barong.
  • When piña fiber is blended with silk, it is called “piña silk" and when mixed with abaca it is called “piña jusi.”
• T'nalak woven cloth is woven by the T'boli women of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, Mindanao.
  • It represents the tribe's culture and tradition with patterns bestowed upon them through dreams.

Baskets and Weaving

• Tingkep baskets serve both practical and spiritual purposes in the Pala’wan community life.
  • Used for storage and to house the female spirit Linamin et Kundu during the Kundu healing ritual.
  • Handcrafted by women from fine bamboo strips in natural colors.
• Hinabol weaving is a happy activity for the Higaonon hinabol weavers of Bukidnon.
  • They use abaca as a raw material for clothing, footwear, blankets, and fishing gear.
  • Textile production is considered sacred, reflecting the weaver's moods and feelings.
  • The cloth is an offering to the spirits, a gift, dowry, and used to bring peace during tribal conflicts.
• Yakan-weaved cloth is made by the Yakan tribe from Basilan.
  • It features elaborate geometric designs inspired by nature.
  • The fabrics are used for religious, ritual purposes, bartered, given as gifts, and used for peace offerings.
• Tapis of the Kalinga Tribe involves weaving, a sacred tradition passed from mother to daughter.
  • The tapis, a costume indigenous to Kalinga and Apayao, is a rectangular cloth woman wear as a wraparound skirt.
  • The garment is woven using a backstrap loom and embroidered with nature-inspired patterns.

Art Forms

• Carving is common from northern to southern parts of the country.
  • Paete in Laguna is the woodcarving capital.
  • Other materials such as stone and metals like silver and bronze are used in regions abundant in minerals.
• Performing Art includes folk dances and music that reflect traditions and culture.
• Literature refers to traditional oral literature of various ethnic groups, including the story of "Malakas at Maganda” and epics such as “Hudhud."
• Graphic arts are mainly two-dimensional (2D), while plastic arts like sculpture or ceramics have three dimensions (3D).
• Ornament embellishes parts of a building or object.
  • Ifugaos carve Anito figures or Bulul representing their ancestral spirit and granary gods, placed in rice granaries to guard the harvest.
  • Kapampangans are famous for their parol, an iconic symbol of the Filipino Christmas.
• Pottery has been created by native Filipinos since 3500 years ago.
  • These potteries serve as secondary burial jars, some decorated with anthropomorphic designs.
• Manunggul Jar is a secondary burial jar found in Manunggul Cave, Lippun Point, Palawan in the early 1960s.
  • It is incised with curvilinear scroll designs and painted with natural iron or hematite.
  • The lid has a boat with two human figures representing two souls on a voyage to the afterlife. The boatman is seated behind a figure whose hands are crossed on the chest.
  • The hand position is a traditional Filipino practice for arranging the corpse.
• Maitum Anthropomorphic Potteries are earthenware pots resembling human figures found in Ayub Cave in Pinol, Maitum, Sarangani Province.
  • Dated to the Metal Age (5 BC – 225 AD), they were used for secondary burial.
  • There were 29 jars discovered, each with head-shaped covers portraying different kinds of expressions and were either plain or coated with red or black paints.
  • Some have earrings, others are tattooed, and some covers depict teeth, arms, female breasts, and male genitalia.

Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan (GAMABA) or National Living Treasures Awards

• Institutionalized through R.A. No. 7355, GAMABA is awarded to a citizen engaged in uniquely Filipino traditional art.
• The recipient must have distinctive skills, high technical and artistic excellence passed on and practiced by the community.
• The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) administers the award through the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan Committee and an Ad Hoc Panel of Experts.
• The award's main objective is to honor and support traditional folk artists and ensure their skills and crafts are preserved, with a program for transferring skills to new generations and promoting the craft locally and internationally.
• The Award is given in categories such as folk architecture, maritime transport, weaving, carving, etc, with consideration for geographical distribution and balance.
• To become a Manlilikha ng Bayan, the candidate must;
  • Inhabit an indigenous/traditional cultural community with preserved customs, beliefs, rituals, and traditions.
  • Engage in a folk art tradition in existence for at least 50 years.
  • Consistently perform or produce works of superior and distinctive quality.
  • Possess mastery of tools and materials, along with an established reputation as master.
  • Pass on skills in the folk art to other community members.
• A traditional artist who possesses all the qualities of a Manlilikha ng Bayan candidate, but due to age or infirmity has left him/her incapable of teaching further his/her craft, may still be recognized if:
  • They created a significant body of works/ displayed excellence with important contributions.
  • They were instrumental in the revitalization of their community's artistic tradition.
  • They passed on skills to others in the folk art for which the community is traditionally known.
  • The community has recognized them as master and teacher.

Honors and Privileges for Awardees

• An awardee receives a specially designed gold medallion, an initial grant of P100,000, and a P10,000 monthly stipend for life.

Recognised Manlilikha ng Bayan

• Ginaw Bilog (1993)
  • He is a poet from Panaytayan, Oriental Mindoro; he contributed to the preservation and promotion of ambahan, a poetic literary form composed of seven-syllable lines.
• Masino Intaray (1993)
  • He is a musician and storyteller from Brookes Point, Palawan; he has been recognised for his mastery of musical instruments such as basal, kulilal, and bagit.
• Samaon Sulaiman (1993)
  • A musician from Mamasapano, Maguindanao, learned to play the kutyapi at 13 and became a master and teacher of the instrument.
  • Also proficient in kulintang, agong, gandingan, palendag and tambul. He was also a barber and served as an Imam.
• Lang Dulay (1998)
  • A textile weaver from Lake Sebu, South Cotabato knows a hundred designs, including clouds, hair bangs, and butterfly designs.
  • Textiles reflect the wisdom and visions of her people, and are judged excellent based on the quality of the yarn, interweaving, precision, dye integrity, and finish.
• Salinta Monon (1998)
  • A textile weaver from Bansalan, Davao del Sur, she was taught how to weave by her mother starting at age 12.
  • She developed a keen eye for traditional designs and can identify the design and author of a woven piece simply by sight.
• Alonzo Saclag (2000) -Musician and Dancer, Kalinga from Lubugan, Kalinga, he is a Kalinga master of dance promoting appreciation of Kalinga culture.
  • He mastered Kalinga musical instruments and dance patterns without formal instruction and urges the community to preserve artifacts and archaeological sites. He helped for the Lubuagan branch of the National Museum was established.
• Federico Caballero (2000) -Epic Chanter, Sulod-Bukidnon from Calinog, Iloilo ceaselessly works for documenting oral literature, like the epics Labaw Dunggon, and Humadapnon. He strives to dispense justice as a manughusay – an arbiter of conflicts.
• Uwang Ahadas (2000) -Musician, Yakan from Lamitan, Basilan, he is a talented musician from the Yakan tribe of Basilan who teaches others to learn kwintangan, kayu, and tuntungan.
• Darhata Sawabi (2004)
  • Textile Weaver, Tausug from Parang, Sulu is a Tausug weaver of pis syabit, remaining faithful to the art.
• Haja Amina Appi (2004)
  • A Mat Weaver of Sama descent from Tandubas, Tawi-Tawi, she is recognized for unique designs, straight edges, and fineness of sasa and kima-kima. The process is exclusive to women, requiring patience, stamina, eye for detail, color instinct, and math skills.
• Eduardo Mutuc (2004)
  • A Metalsmith of Kapampangan descent from Apalit, Pampanga, he dedicated his life to creating religious and secular art. His works include retablos, mirrors, altars, and carosas are in churches and private collections.
  • Craftsmanship begins with respect for tools and medium, and he teaches students to hold tools properly.
• Teofilo Garcia (2012) -Casque Maker, Ilocano from San Quintin, Abra, he a master artisan of gourd casques (kattukong), a traditional all-weather headgear. He takes pride in crafting by executing work phases, plants raw materials to finishing the manufactured form.
• Magdalena Gamayo (2012)
  • A Textile Weaver from Pinili, Ilocos Norte is a weaver of inabel who exhibits mastery and exceptional skill when producing abel, with a fine finish and blanket with intricate designs.