Renowned Cebu-based fashion designer Philip Rodriguez and Manila-based artist Jane Ebarle showcased their respective talents and artistry in “Bisti,” a joint show that not only paid homage to Filipino wear, but also virtually mirrored the joy and magic of the Christmas season.
Text and photos by ALEX Y. VERGARA
It won’t be Christmas until another five weeks or so, but the holiday mood was already quite palpable Thursday evening at the second level of The Mall NUSTAR Resort and Casino, Cebu City’s biggest luxury shopping, dining, gaming and entertainment destination, as renowned Cebu-based fashion designer Philip Rodriguez and Manila-based artist Jane Ebarle showcased their respective talents in a joint show dubbed as “Bisti.”
“Bisti,” which means garments in the Visayan language, also paid homage to Cebu’s “creative month” in the form of fashion and the visual arts.
With her trademark abstract expressionism using textured acrylic on full display, Ebarle unveiled 10 new artworks depicting Filipino wear with such titles as “Bisti ni Rowena,” “Bisti ni Olivia,” “Bisti ni Milagros,” and two three-dimensional pieces such as “Bisti ni Karen” and “Bisti ni Maria Clara.”
“They’re not mixed media,” Ebarle shared with PeopleAsia soon after the show, referring to “Karen” and “Maria Clara” and their head-turning, almost real skirts virtually jumping out of the canvas. “I didn’t use fabric or lace in any of my works. The skirts that you see are also painted over.”
As a tribute to her collaborator, Ebarle did one artwork celebrating Filipino men’s wear. Titled “Barong ni Filippo,” the piece was obviously named after Rodriguez, who invited Ebarle several months back to stage a joint show with him that marries art with fashion.
Before the evening was over, Ebarle, a native of Pangasinan who once worked in Cebu for a good number of years as head of advertising and promotions for Robinsons Galleria, wasn’t only able to sell several artworks. She was also commissioned by several Cebu-based art collectors to do artworks for them.
For his part, Rodriguez, who initially told this writer in an earlier interview in Manila that he would be presenting 10 looks in “Bisti,” blew away guests, especially women in the audience led by Cultural Center of the Philippines Kaye Tinga and Councilor and lawyer Joy Pesquera, as he presented 22 looks, including two barongs.
Tinga and Pesquera, together with Rodriguez, Ebarle, May Adolfo, GM of The Mall NUSTAR, and Cristina Ong Cruz, cluster – director of sales and marketing, Hotels NUSTAR Resort Cebu, cut the ribbon formally opening the show-slash-exhibit. Tinga, among others, also gave brief welcome remarks prior to the ribbon-cutting.
“You’re the one to blame for it, Alex,” Rodriguez said laughing, during a post-show exchange between him and this writer. “When I told you I’d be doing 10 looks, you immediately told me that that wouldn’t be enough. That it would look bitin. And you do have a point. That led me to think. So, there, I did 22!”
And what a collection it was! Apart from celebrating Filipino tradition through fashion, the designer made his clothes more exciting and relevant to today’s wearers through the clever and judicious juxtaposition of colors, fabrics, treatments, textures and silhouettes.
In several looks, he combined beadwork, embroidery and a bit of applique for maximum effect. Some were a bit subdued in terms of embellishments, but were head-turners just the same, thanks to Rodriguez’s expertise in cutting and fabric manipulation.
He also updated the Filipiniana for today’s millennials and zoomers, making sure that his ternos, Maria Claras and balintawaks were not only meant for their mothers and grandmothers, but also for them. How? By tweaking not only textures, but also a bit of proportions in the form of cropped tops and sometimes big, exaggerated sleeves.
In lieu of canned music, models strutted about accompanied by live music, including a few original Visayan songs and Visayan adaptations of Tagalog songs, from singers and musicians from the Tabor Hills College of Music. The group also played one of the late Emilio Villareal’s classic pieces “Langit ug Yuta,” or “Heaven and Earth.” The legendary Cebuano musician was Rodriguez’s uncle.
Near the end of the show, 22 models, including two gentlemen wearing Rodriguez’s pants and barong ensembles, made their way back to centerstage carrying mini parols (Christmas lanterns) that matched the dominant shade of their respective outfits. Indeed, it was a fitting finale to a festive show celebrating two art forms.
Those who missed “Bisti,” the show, can still marvel at both featured talents’ creations, as their works will be on exhibit until November 30 at the second level of The Mall NUSTAR, Cebu City.
