Legarda: First Hibla Travelling Exhibition to Open in London

Senator Loren Legarda will lead the opening of the first Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Travelling Exhibition at the Philippine Embassy in London on October 23, 2017.

Legarda said that this is an offshoot of Hibla ng Lahing Filipino: The Artistry of Philippine Textiles at the National Museum of Anthropology, which is her brainchild.

“We have a very rich weaving heritage which we are able to show through the Hibla gallery and the weaving lectures and demonstrations at the National Museum, but we also want to bring it to a wider audience and to Filipinos living abroad,” she said.

The first Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Travelling Exhibition titled, “Piña-Seda: Pineapple and Silk Cloth from the Tropics,” was organized by the National Museum of the Philippines, the Office of Senator Loren Legarda, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), the Philippine Embassy in London, The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS)-University of London, and the municipalities of Lumban in Laguna, Kalibo in Aklan, and Bacnotan in La Union.

It will also feature lectures about piña-seda and demonstrations by weavers and embroiderers from Lumban, Kalibo and Bacnotan.

“The Hibla gallery at the National Museum, the weaving lectures and demonstrations, and this Hibla travelling exhibit are efforts to celebrate indigenous artistry through textiles, provide more Filipinos the opportunity to discover priceless information about our heritage, and bring the challenge of nurturing our weaving traditions into the national stage, to a wider audience,” said Legarda.

Exhibition viewing for the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Travelling Exhibition at the Philippine Embassy in London will be from October 24 to November 22, 2017, 10:00am to 5:00pm. There will be weaving demonstrations from October 24-27, and lectures and embroidery workshops on October 24-26.

There will also be lectures on piña-seda weaving and embroidery at the Brunei Gallery of SOAS, University of London on October 25, 11:00am, and embroidery workshops on October 25 and October 27, 1:00-5:00pm.

About Hibla

The Hibla ng Lahing Filipino: The Artistry of Philippine Textiles at the National Museum of Anthropology in Manila is the country’s first permanent textile gallery. It is a project spearheaded by Legarda.

During the soft opening of the gallery in March 2012, the National Museum also launched the Senator Loren Legarda Lecture Series on Philippine Traditional Textiles and Indigenous Knowledge, which explores the aesthetics, material culture and processes of ethnic identity along with skills and information-generation through fabric. It later evolved into interactive lectures and demonstrations featuring weavers and embroiderers from different parts of the country.

Last July, the National Museum launched the first Hibla regional gallery, the Hibla Iloko at the National Museum Ilocos Regional Museum Complex in Vigan, Ilocos Sur, which was also supported by Legarda.

“We will have more Hibla travelling exhibitions and many more Hiblaregional galleries will soon rise in our country, and we hope that someday we will have not only galleries, but one whole HiblaMuseum. Through these we hope to promote greater support for cultural enterprises and creative industries of our indigenous peoples and deeper appreciation of our heritage,” said Legarda.