PH Embassy in Portugal in Partnership with Filipino Artist Conducts Art Workshop “Biyahe” with Children of Escola Básica Fernão De Magalhães
Art workshop “Biyahe” with the children of Escola Básica Fernão De Magalhães on 06 December 2019. Standing foremost, from left: Filipino artist Kristoffer Ardeña, President of the Estrutura de Missão para as Comemorações de Fernão de Magalhães Dr. Jose Manuel Marquez, Professor Adelino Tome, Director of Escola Básica Fernão De Magalhães, Sabarosa Vice Mayor António Ribeiro da Graça, Philippine Ambassador to Portugal Celia Anna M. Feria, and Dra. Maria Joao Monteiro. (Lisbon PE photo)
LISBON 06 January 2020 — As part of the cultural diplomacy initiative of the Philippine Embassy in Lisbon, the Embassy partnered with a Filipino artist and founder of Moving Image Lab Filipinas Kristoffer Ardeña for an art workshop entitled “Biyahe” on 06 December 2019 at the Escola Básica Fernão de Magalhães.
Ths initiative aims to continue to raise the level of awareness of the Philippines in Portugal under the ambit of the commemorative activities in relation to the 500th Anniversary of the circumnavigation of the world by the Magellan expedition.
The first phase of the workshop took place in Sabrosa, in Northern Portugal, where Ferdinand Magellan is believed to have come from. Sabrosa is also a sister-city of Cebu City.
On 06 December 2019, Philippine Ambassador to Portugal Celia Anna M. Feria and Kristoffer Ardeña, accompanied by Estrutura de Missão para as Comemorações de Fernão de Magalhães President Dr. Jose Manuel Marquez, and Sabrosa Vice Mayor António Ribeiro da Graça visited the Escola Básica Fernão de Magalhães to implement the art workshop, “Biyahe”.
Each student was tasked to create an artwork on their perception of Ferdinand Magellan. During the art workshop, the children of Escola Básica Fernão de Magalhães were told of the Philippine narrative on Magellan, how the ancient Filipinos welcomed Magellan and received the members of his expedition, and how Magellan lost his battle against a Philippine chieftain, Lapu-Lapu.
Ambassador Feria stressed the significance of challeging the younger generation to develop criticial and artistic thinking. She also expressed the importance of such projects that help promote a new innovative approach to appreciating and learning history, and its role in facilitating relationships and linkages between countries and their peoples and cultures.
The “Biyahe” art workshop will continue with its second phase in Cebu wherein Kristoffer Ardeña will ask Filipino students to also create artworks on their perception of Ferdinand Magellan. Subsequently, all artworks will be sewn together to create a banner done by the children where it is said Ferdinand Magellan is from; and by the children where Magellan ended his expedition. END
Filipino artist Kristoffer Ardeña conducts the “Biyahe” art workshop with children from the third and fourth grade of the Escola Básica Fernão De Magalhães on 06 December 2019. (Lisbon PE photo)
Artworks done by the students of Escola Básica Fernão De Magalhães on 06 December 2019 for the “Biyahe” art workshop. (Lisbon PE photo)
Philippine Ambassador to Portugal Celia Anna M. Feria gives lootbags to the students containing the Philippine flag, dried mangoes from Cebu and Philippine destination bag tags after the art workshop. (Lisbon PE photo)
For more information, visit https://www.lisbonpe.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHLinPortugal/.