The best and worst of times

“I was glad to see the textiles rooms at the National Museum, and we had a lovely guided tour of the exhibition. I thought the textiles rooms were very thoughtfully layered with meaning. Beyond an exhibition of the history of textiles in the Philippines and the skills and creativity of textile workers, there was a sense that the display was that of a social, cultural, and also in some ways political history of the Philippines itself. For me it was a clever and creative way to understand different facets of Philippine history and culture, and the diversity of the Filipino people. These stories seemed to be “interwoven” effortlessly throughout the exhibition, so that in the end one experiences much more than simply the objects, artifacts, artwork and textile pieces on display.”

– Renaud Proch, Executive Director of Independent Curators International, in his message to Sen. Loren Legarda about the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino: The Artistry of Philippine Textiles gallery at the National Museum.

Mr. Proch visited the Hibla gallery, a brainchild of Legarda, during his visit to the Philippines as part of the panel that reviewed the curatorial proposals for the Philippine participation in the Venice Biennale 2015.

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