Hibla Exhibition Concludes Asian Tour in Singapore

Ambassador to Singapore Joseph Del Mar Yap (tenth from left) together with the members of the diplomatic corps, Embassy officers and staff, and National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) representatives during the special showcase of the Hibla Exhibition organized for the diplomatic corps at the Lim Hak Tai Gallery on 04 September 2019. (National Museum of the Philippines photo)

SINGAPORE 03 October 2019 — In collaboration with the National Museum of the Philippines (NMP), the Office of Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda, the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), and the Textile and Fashion Federation Singapore (TaFF), the Philippine Embassy in Singapore successfully organized the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Traveling Exhibition: Pina-Seda (Pineapple Silk Cloths from the Tropics) from 29 August to 06 October 2019 at NAFA’s Lim Hak Tai Gallery.

Singapore is the 11th stop in the Hibla Exhibition’s international tour and the last one in Asia for this year. Since 2017, the exhibition has been to London, Lisbon, Madrid, Frankfurt, Washington, D.C., New York, Hawaii, Tokyo, Bangkok, Prague, and San Francisco.

The Hibla Exhibition showcases the Philippines’ traditional textiles, namely the Pina-Seda, while celebrating the country’s indigenous artistry and heritage. The event also forms part of the 50th anniversary this year of the establishment of Philippines-Singapore diplomatic relations.

Aside from the exhibition materials on display, demonstrations, lectures, and workshops were conducted by experts from NMP, embroiderers from Lumban in Laguna, and weavers from Balete in Aklan to make it a more interactive and hands-on educational experience for the public.

TaFF then hosted an embroidery workshop and networking event on 30 August 2019 at the Cocoon Space that was attended by members of TaFF from Singapore’s fashion and textile industry, as well as members of the Filipino community. The networking event even showcased a live demonstration of the scraping of a pineapple leaf to show how the fibers are collected to produce a pina-seda fabric.

Ambassador to Singapore Joseph Del Mar Yap also hosted a unique showcase for the diplomatic corps at the Lim Hak Tai Gallery on 04 September 2019, where guests were given a guided tour and demonstrations of the weaving and embroidery followed by a simple reception.

NAFA also hosted several lectures, workshops, and demonstrations for its students from various disciplines, including fashion and interior design. END

Left photo: NMP Deputy Director General Dr. Ana Maria Theresa P. Labrador delivers her welcome remarks during the official opening the Hibla Exhibition at the Lim Hak Tai Gallery on 29 August 2019. Right photo: Raquel Eliserio of Balete in Aklan provides a demonstration of the weaving of pina-seda using a traditional loom. (National Museum of the Philippines photo)

Left photo: Carlo Eliserio of Balete in Aklan demonstrates the scraping process to collect the fibers from a pina leaf during the networking event hosted by the Textile and Fashion Federation Singapore (TaFF) at the Cocoon Space in the afternoon of 30 August 2019. Right photo: Participants attend the free embroidery workshop hosted by TaFF at the Cocoon Space in the morning of 30 August 2019. (National Museum of the Philippines photo)

NAFA students attending one of the lectures conducted by NMP as part of the corollary activities of the Hibla Exhibition. (National Museum of the Philippines photo)

For more information, visit https://www.singaporepe.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.philippine-embassy.org.sg or https://www.facebook.com/PHinSingapore.