“Pina, The Enduring Philippine Fabric” Launched at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco

Members of the San Francisco diplomatic corps and special guests were treated to the opening of The Hinabi Project, a unique and special project of Philippine American Writers & Artists, Inc (PAWA) yesterday Thursday, September 24, 2015. The project was launched in conjunction with the Philippine Department of Tourism and the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco. PAWA, a recognized leader of cultural events in the Bay Area, is a 501(c)(3) organization. It will also host a panel talk on piña and other Philippine textiles by known experts in the field on October 4 during the Third Filipino American International Book Festival at the San Francisco Public Library (<filbookfestival.org>).

In partnership with the Asian Art Museum, PAWA launched the educational display of “Piña, the Enduring Philippine Fabric” at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. Spearheaded by its volunteer members, Anthony Cruz Legarda, Maya Ong Escudero, Christina Laskowski, Michael Gonzalez, Edwin Lozada, Caroline Ocampo, Maria Beebe, Camille Escudero, and Patricia Araneta Gonzalez, the display is currently shown at the Asian’s Education Resource Room until October 11, 2015. It features the development of 300 years of piña fabric production from its early origins in the 1500s to contemporary times.

On exhibit are fibers that are used for weaving, the color dye examples, an antique pañuelo (short shawl), a christening gown and an evening dress made during the 1930s. These are juxtaposed with a newly constructed piña shawl, a handkerchief with an embroidered Golden Gate design, a Barong Tagalog, and evening gowns all designed by Anthony Cruz Legarda, the project’s design artist.

Expressly for this event, three large panels of piña and mixed fibers (hyacinth, silk) were specially woven by master weavers and embroiderers from Aklan and Laguna in the Philippines. The panels represent popular folk motifs of the Philippines—the malakas and maganda (male/female) myth and the sarimanok (magical chicken). Also special to this exhibit, as a bow to technology, the Creation panel has a QR code that will take your cellphone scanner to The Hinabi Project site (<http://thehinabiproject.org>) where more information about its mission and plans can be read.

For more information, and to arrange for a guided tour, please contact:
Dr. Michael Gonzalez, Dept. of Philippine Studies, City College of San Francisco Email: michael.gonzalez@mail.ccsf.edu .

** Download the Filipino Heritage Postcard here.