There’s a growing demand and appreciation for arts here in the Philippines. The success of this year’s MaArte Fair held last Aug. 2-4, 2023, at The Peninsula Manila is a testament to that.
In fact, because of its success, the officials behind the Museum Foundation of the Philippines, Inc. (MFPI), the organization that mounted the MaArte fund-raising event, have announced that 2023 “is a good year for PH arts and culture.”
“Judging based on the output of MaArte Fair this year, we can confidently say that compared to years past, Filipinos have become more open to supporting our own artists, artisans, and other things endemic to the Philippines,” Danny Jacinto, president of MFPI says in a press statement.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, Max Ventura, trustee of MFPI, disclosed that MaArte increased its sales compared to last year.
“We have more exhibitors this time around. From the previous 94 tenants, we had 120 this year, and we had 10,000 foot traffic for the three day fair,” he says. “We had more varied categories in exhibitors, we even had plants and liquors. We offered a more varied experience for the shoppers. Lastly, in terms of revenue we hit more than double of what we have earned in the previous years.”
MaArte and the success of the local art scene
But what is the significance of this fair’s success in the overall success and promotion of arts and culture in the Philippines? Max then shared the other initiatives the organization is doing to help preserve and promote local artisans and their work.
For those unaware, the Museum Foundation is a non-stock, not-for-profit membership and volunteer organization that provides funding support for the special projects of museums in the Philippines—with the National Museum being its primary focus. The organization also assisted during the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Pasinaya Festival in February.
During the same month, they also served as a sponsor and education partner for Art Fair Philippines. In April, they extended support for the production of “Threaded Traditions: The Inabal of the Bagobo-Tagabawa,” a 30-minute documentary whose main goal is to help preserve weaving traditions and honor the late Salinta Monon, a weaving virtuoso. The documentary is slated to be completed next month and was filmed entirely in Bansalan, Davao.
On youth and democratizing arts
In July, they provided a scholarship grant for one National Museum employee to study Master’s in Heritage and Exhibit Design at the Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland. The organization is eyeing to do more, including democratizing arts for Filipinos and enticing more and more young people to delve into the world of local crafts.
“We want the youth to be involved and be aware that there is a Museum Foundation that can actually protect and preserve historical artifacts. Getting the younger generation is very important because we need people after us to continue the work,” Blen Fernando, MFPI, trustee says. “So far we see the involvement of youth but that’s not enough. We need to be three-steps ahead to secure the future. We want to engage the younger generation. And that’s one of the plans, to discuss how we can have an active campaign to reach the younger sector.”
She also said that 30 percent of the 10,000 visitors to this year’s fair were from the youth sector who supported those tenants and exhibitors from the same age bracket. Moving forward, the organization plans to include more and more artisans from the youth sector.
“Our advocacy includes encouraging young people that if they can, turn their artisanal talent into entrepreneurship so there will be a preservation of arts and culture,” Fernando continues.
Despite these efforts, MFPI is aware of a gap in democratizing arts and making it available and affordable for the mass market to reach and appreciate.
“We admitted that MaArte is successful but we reached a middle class market,” Fernando says. “We are also thinking on how to democratize MaArte, by maybe finding products, items, or services, or exhibitors in different pricing instructure so it would be more accessible. It’s a dream actually.”
In the end, MFPI officials agreed that this year’s MaArte made them see more how beautiful the Philippines is regarding crafts, food, and artistic talents. Hence, they are excited to bring a bigger and better MaArte Fair this 2024.
“Our heritage and culture really bring us together. You have designers, you have artisans, business owners brought artisan products, Museum Foundation brought talents, marketers, advertisers, and bankers coming together for one common goal to preserve heritage and culture,” Tanya Pico, executive director, MFPI ends.