CULTURAL LINK A red string serves to link the identities of Cordillerans painted by Tarlac-born artist Vena Martinez on blank walls in different spots in Baguio City. The images are based on friends she encountered when she took fine arts at the University of the Philippines Baguio. 鈥擟ONTRIBUTED PHOTO
BAGUIO CITY 鈥� Visitors arriving in this mountain resort city are greeted by figures of a Kankanaey man and an Ibaloi woman in traditional attire painted on the walls outside a bus terminal.
The figures are not just figments of the imagination; they are friends in real life who have a chance encounter with 21-year-old artist Venazir 鈥淰ena鈥� Hannah Martinez.
Martinez has been using street art to depict the cultural diversity in Cordillera for almost two years now. Sometimes, she is seen late at night with a spray can and an emergency light to help her bring the murals to life.
Social experiment
鈥淚 got tired of the traditional media where you鈥檙e just inside a studio. I didn鈥檛 want to conform to that so I thought of street art,鈥� she said.
She started her artworks in 2017 as part of a 鈥渟ocial experiment鈥� for her thesis at the University of the Philippines Baguio where she took up fine arts.
Her first work 鈥� paintings of the traditional Kalinga tattoo called 鈥済ayaman,鈥� or centipede 鈥� was sprawled all over the streets.
鈥淚 vandalized a whole town because I wanted to start a conversation and initiate different visual perceptions. For people to ask: Is this vandalism? But it has cultural relevance,鈥� Martinez said.
鈥淪ome were able to recognize that it was the Kalinga tattoo. That it was made by an artist and that one part is connected to the other,鈥� she said, adding that it proved her social experiment worked.
NOT VANDALISM Martinez believes public art is meant to be appreciated by ordinary people. 鈥擪RIZZA MAE PACLEB/CONTRIBUTOR
Project Hila-Bana
Now her street art can be seen in public areas, such as a caf茅 near Baguio Cathedral and along Session and Military Cutoff roads.
A native of Tarlac province, Martinez was fascinated by the unique indigenous groups in the Cordillera.
鈥淚 felt alienated at first so I started to learn about the complexity of the cultures we have. I want to share this with other people who don鈥檛 have an idea about these cultures,鈥� she said.
With the urge to widen her scope and to promote indigenous traditions, Martinez鈥檚 art soon emerged in various places around the city. This evolved into an advocacy she called 鈥淧roject Hila-Bana.鈥�
STREET ART
Red string
Hila-Bana was coined from the Filipino terms 鈥渉ilbana,鈥� or temporary stitching, and 鈥渉ila,鈥� or pull.
The identity marker of her art is a red string that suggests the connection to different cultures into one identity as Filipinos.
The string is inspired by traditional weaving. But it also signifies loss of cultural identity, hence the 鈥渉ila鈥� in Hila-Bana, Martinez said.
鈥淔ilipinos are so porous that we are slowly forgetting our identity due to external influences,鈥� she said.
She portrayed this in a street art near the Special Education (SPED) Center on Military Cutoff Road.
On the wall is a painting of an Ibaloi girl in full color because the SPED Center uplifts culture as it hones children to appreciate their identity, Martinez said.
鈥淏ut as the girl moves toward a Chinese-owned establishment, she slowly loses her color. As if the strings are coming off and along the way she forgets who she is. That is the message of Hila-Bana,鈥� she said.
Her works have since become popular, owing to a mural she made near the bus station. Her works also have become favorite spots for tourists who take photos that are shared online.
STREET ART Vena Martinez chose street art to examine the culture and core identity of Cordillera communities. She began experimenting with mural art for her school thesis. 鈥擯HOTOS BY VALERIE DAMIAN
Criticisms
The murals were not accepted at first, however. 鈥淧eople 鈥� thought it was vandalism,鈥� she said.
Martinez said she had also been criticized by some local artists. 鈥淣ow that I鈥檝e become a public figure, some called me a sellout,鈥� she said.
She does not charge anything for her murals. She sustains her work and lifestyle by accepting other projects that offer payment.
Martinez said she was just starting to create murals and that she wanted to paint the empty walls in the city with red strings and colorful figures.
鈥淪treet art is a very strong medium where everyone has access to it. Not everyone has access to a museum or a gallery, and I want people to see that,鈥� she said.
鈥淪o it鈥檚 not necessarily just for me. It鈥檚 for people to start a conversation and to appreciate that piece of art,鈥� she said.