ARTS MONTH. Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez addresses the crowd during the Arts Month Visayas leg launching in the city on Saturday (Feb. 1, 2020). The event is anchored on the theme Ani ng Sining: Philippine Arts Festival 2020. (Photo courtesy of Ormoc City government)
ORMOC CITY, Leyte -- The city government here hosted the Visayas leg of National Arts Month launching with theme “Ani ng Sining: Philippine Arts Festival 2020”.
Highlighting the event’s launch here on Saturday at the Ormoc Superdome was the presentation of the seven national committees namely Architecture, Cinema, Dance, Literary Arts, Music, Dramatic Arts, and Visual Arts.
Leading the launching were Mayor Richard Gomez, Leyte 4th District Rep. Lucy Torres-Gomez, National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Deputy Executive Director Marichu Tellano, and Department of Tourism (DOT) Regional Director Karena Rosa Tiopes.
“Not all local government units celebrate the Arts Month the way we celebrate it here in Ormoc. The fact the NCCA chooses Ormoc for the launching of celebration is a testament that the activities and programs that we implement in relation to arts and culture are on the right track,” Gomez told reporters.
In 2016, the city government conducted a cultural mapping, which was recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) as a technique in protecting the “intangible and tangible” local cultural assets.
The University of Santo Tomas Graduate School-Center for Conservation of Cultural Property and Environment in the Tropics and teachers in Ormoc helped in the gathering of data and information, which they categorized into natural heritage, built heritage, intangible heritage, and movable heritage.
“We take pride on our program on peace and order, but our program on education, arts and culture and sports are also equally important,” Gomez said.
The celebration of Arts Month every February is a manner of giving platform and venue to allow people to recognize and experience our own creativity, according to Tellano.
“For the whole year that the NCCA is going around, what we do is the conduct workshops and the people remain as an audience. But during the month of February, what we do is we make the people a part of the creative process,” she said.
Tellano further said Ormoc is providing the best facilitator who will share their talents and learn from them.
“So take advantage of this opportunity because not all local governments are doing,” she added.
Activities for the entire month of February include exhibits, workshops, shows, concerts, lectures, and tours. These are Philippine Visual Arts and Festival on Feb. 19-23, Dance workshop with Powerdance on February 20, installation art workshop with Leeroy New on Feb. 21, 22, and 23, Mga Sayaw ng Puso at Kaluluwa Dance Tour with Douglas Nierras and Powerdance on Feb. 21, and the performance of Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra outreach concert on February 28.
Tellano is optimistic of a stronger partnership and collaboration with Ormoc after the local government accepted the hosting of the Arts Month Visayas leg launching.
Tellano said she had an initial talk with Gomez on how they can help in improving and making the city’s museum more beautiful.
The Ormoc City Museum or People’s Museum is their old city hall built in 1947, which was rehabilitated and transformed into a place for people to appreciate arts, culture, and history.
Inside the museum are various paintings of local and national artists, images of Super Typhoon Yolanda’s devastation in Ormoc, costumes of Piña Festival lead dancers, World War II photos, and memorabilia, among others.
Other venues of Arts Month launching are Rizal Park in Manila, Puerto Princesa City in Palawan for Luzon leg, and Tangub City in Misamis Occidental for Mindanao leg. (PNA)
