Debbie Palao . Blog

THE TITAY CHAPEL • A LIGHT IN GLOAMING PLACES

2011 January

• • • • • A Gong Xi Fa Cai to all of you! I was born on the year of the Dragon myself, and wish only the best in in business and health. What better way to welcome the new year (for the second time!) than to talk about the blessings we were given? And not all blessings are things that we receive; sometimes we are blessed with the opportunity to contribute, to give, to show what we can do for others.

• • • • • My first trip to Zamboanga City [»] was in the 80s, and looking back now it feels like ages ago. I made another trip again in 2010 with my good friend and interior designer Corito E. Yu, but this time we went past the city proper, all the way to the township of Titay (a good hour or so drive on a private vehicle, two on the common bus), where the the Capuchin Tertiary Order [»] has their Friendship home for orphaned girls. This was to be the site of my 3rd chapel and major project for them, the first being their worship space in their dormitory in Cebu [»] and the second in Cabug, Talisay in Bacolod [»].

I’ll be honest, I was a little apprehensive about this. The Philippines is a big country after all, and Cebu is blessed with its location, its weather, and its work-focused, mild-tempered but spirited people. The unpleasant things that make their way to international news (sadly overshadowing the pleasant ones) only happen to a fraction of the country. So it’s understandable for a true-blooded Cebuana to feel a bit nervous about going to an area closer to that fraction!

We were met by Sr. Incarnacion “Encar” (above, posing with the tabernacle), who presides over the orphanage in the area. A bright and bubbly nun (who is also a certified professional nurse), her role as the headmistress of the institution is priceless in the community, and many little girls from broken homes have found in her a mother and a guardian. The unsure little girl inside me was likewise placated, when we met! Over endless cups of coffee, fresh fruits and a simple but delicious lunch, we agreed on the location of the chapel.

Sr Luz Maria (seated with her back to the camera), Sister Superior of the Philippine chapter Sr Elena, and Sr Encar chat leisurely in the facility’s verandah, overlooking the garage where the communal vehicle is parked—soon to be the site of the Titay chapel.

Sr. Luz beams over our meal, reflecting the happy vibe of the place. They share their bounties graciously and without restraint, and likewise comes back to them! This is truly “attitude of gratitude” in practice.

Of course that was only the beginning, as they say, of a beautiful (but at times testing) project. I’m used to being hands-on with my work; my office desk sits directly in front of glass windows which overlook the production floor, where my pieces literally rise from the raw materials. Remote-monitoring takes a bit of getting used to!

While architectural drawings were being done, interior details were finalized and custom furniture and light works were on hold while we had a show to do.

On paper we drew perspectives of the chapel all around, and conceptualized hanging lights. There are ‘themes’ per chapel, with bamboo for the 1st, creme+bamboo and leaves for the 2nd, and symmetrical arurog for this, the 3rd.

Construction of the chapel began, but with the help of several very generous souls who are partial to the Capuchin cause. This chapel is by and large standing because of LOVE, and open hearts. As with many things that require dedication there were snags to overcome of course.

The lights took a bit more time to mock up.

These were the lights in the factory, when we did mock-ups to see how they would hold. The boys who worked on these at first did not understand what we meant to do with them (except our trusty draftsman, who knew from the drawings), until we raised them all up…

and everyone took a quick step back in the deepening twilight to appreciate just how they are supposed to be…

Bright lights are a universal symbol of hope and warmth, of welcome. In several cultures all over Asia for instance—like the Yuanxiao celebrations [»] that mark the official beginning of the Lunar New Year, the Deepavali [»] of India, Seoul’s Lantern Festival [»] and even our parols in the Christmas [»]—lanterns are publicly released at least once a year.

I like to think that these too are lanterns, and these lights call out to all the girls in the area, who have been hurt and who need a home. I hope they will carry the message that “you are welcome” and “you can stay and be safe”, and “this can be your home if you want it.” There is a child in all of us, who is scared at least once (for example, coming to a new place), and needs light.

The pews, of course, were likewise donated by many kind souls:

I will be posting a Part 2 of this endeavour (as they say it in Japan, otsukaresama!), mainly focusing on the interiors this time and how the sisters and I conceptualized it, in terms of not just space and ID technicalities, but also the spiritual. Also, of the magnificent Sr. Encar.

Ending The Year Right… Down Under!

2011 December 〜2012 January

• • • • • One of the things I love, that I always encourage the people around me to be as enamored over it as I am, is travel. In many ways it has influenced the way I see things, the way I approach a situation, the way I design. If I could compare designing to cooking (another pasttime I enjoy), knowledge and experience are the tools of the trade, hard work shows in technique, and travel adds character to it.

In a way I try to chronicle how each place has affected me, through my designs. It’s important, I find, to keep an open mind always. My stay in South Africa, for instance, was a very profound experience for me, giving me direct contact to the esoteric nature that is the world’s most naturally-rich continent. When Kae and I traveled to India [»], we left mesmerized by their fabric craft, and their pattern making with woodblocks.

The Congo Weave is my tribute to the lovely country of South Africa that I had the pleasure of living, and learning from at some point in my life. The boldness of their patterns and colours taught me to be likewise unafraid to show my own, and to celebrate the diversity of people living together.

The vibrant, tactile culture of India impressed greatly upon me, and gave birth to not just a single collection (Tattoo) but greatly influenced several older ones, and even the newer installments and re-makes. I must admit to using bold colours to accentuate, being more conservative with my neutrals… but India dared me, dared me to go beyond the colour wheel.

Travel is the little reward I promise myself (more like bribe!) to get more work done. I’m blessed to be in a business that not only is a creative one at the core, but one which allows me to actually mix pleasure (travel) and business (export) in one blow. There’s such a big world out there to explore!

In the Doumo square after a long day at work. Doesn’t look it, but this was a very chilly evening! How to counter the cold that knocks your knees? Eat gelato of course!

On the way to Milano. It’s important to be relaxed on the long journey from work… to more work! It’s also important to be comfortable.

• • • • • • The tumultuous situation of the world economy has all of us in the industry reexamining our options, and getting to know our market, as well as discovering new ones. While we export heavily to South America and Europe (which is how we base our size standards), our contact with Australia has been touch-and-go, a light and limited one which we intended to explore.

This coincided with many things—signs, one could say—that told us we needed to go Down Under soon. And because that was the case, a sidetrip to New Zealand (where my friend from many, many years lives with her family) for a bit of R & R as well as light business was in order.

The Dotarté, a recent addition to our furniture family, continues to be a success, for which I am grateful to God for. Kae likes to think of it as an appropriation of Kusama Yayoi [»]’s round-pixel world, and that’s one way of looking at it. I was inspired vastly by the aboriginal drawings I’d seen in my brother-in-law’s art book.

A selection from the Natonal Victorian Gallery [»] section for Aboriginal art, featuring Tjurkurrtjanu art [»] from the Western Desert (above) which I fell madly in-love with. You know what Jung says that there is a collective archetype people dip into when they get creative? I’ve never seen this painting before but I felt very connected to it, felt it like it was the ancestor to my Dotarté. Kae is taking photos (below).

Dotarte swatches (second from bottom) and Noah lamps (above).

Like kinder, more ergonomic pixels. I wanted to be closer to the source of this inspiration, because every culture has a way of expressing art and history, and if I were to create something spurred by this, I needed to know the place where it originated. I’ve come to realise that this is how a designer can be kind to her design… by understanding how each component works, and what they are supposed to mean.

Gus poses beside a surreal (much to Kae’s amusement) tractor sculpture, identifying with his farm-boy’s roots (and the yellow of his clothes visavis the tractors’… earth colors!)

Following will be a bit of travelogue of sorts, detailing the little lovely places and faces we’d met in our pre-Christmas sojourn Down Under (which involves meandering down Melbourne’s galleries [»], windy Surrey Hills [»] in Sydney, finding friends in Auckland, and Billy Kwong [»]).

I remember carpets of purple flowers like these in my friend’s gated community in Cape Town, back when I apprenticed for an antiques shop! Their scent, their stark colour, was to me like coffee for the brain, rousing it from morning lethargy.

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