Design Center, IA, and CECP to develop Maestranza in Intramuros as a creative hub
The Design Center of the Philippines, a national agency under the Department of Trade and Industry for design, is collaborating with the Intramuros Administration and the Creative Economy Council of the Philippines (CECP) to transform the Maestranza Complex in Intramuros into a creative hub, under a memorandum of agreement signed last January 25 by CECP’s Paolo Mercado, and Atty. Guiller Asido, Intramuros Administrator.
"Basically, the vision for Intramuros in the next five years is to become a dynamic, resilient, and creative heritage district. We are now preparing a conservation management plan in the district and we wanted to make sure that there is an integral element of creativity as well. We want to create a new narrative for Intramuros", Administrator Asido said.
The ultimate goal is to develop the Intramuros,” as the next creative hub/ city much like Baguio, the recently declared UNESCO ASEAN Creative City for Folk Arts and Craft.
Building from this objective, the Design Center helps in this development by expanding the audience of the heritage district to the different creative and design industries.
"We have a commitment to Intramuros to help nurture a creative neighborhood or creative hub. So, a lot of our programs are held in [Intramuros] to drive the design and creative sector to Intramuros," Matute explains.
Putting this together, the Design Center also bridged the partnership between the Intramuros Administration and the Creative Economy Council of the Philippines, an organization geared towards building a sustainable creative economy for the Philippines.
The CECP envisions the Philippine creative economy to be 5th in the AsiaPacific and first in the ASEAN region by 2030.
Founding member, Mercado shares, "Part of the agenda of developing a recognized creative economy is the development of internationally recognized creative hubs. There are several organic creative hubs in the Philippines already but these are very small and sporadic [kalat-kalat]."
He continues by highlighting that the Maestranza complex is a perfect place to start since it was once used as the landing point of the Galleon trade where the Spanish and the Chinese traded in the Philippines.
"For me, taking that to a concept level is where the creative goods of the Philippines will now be traded to a global marketplace." Mercado explains. "It needs to be a place where the story of the Philippines comes alive as the original trading point between East and West for goods [wherein] now we will be making it into the trading point of East and West for creativity. That's the hope."
The development of the Maestranza complex as a national creative hub is a big step towards progress in the Philippine creative industry as it launches the trade forward while also embracing the rich history and culture embedded within the Intramuros.
About Design Center The Design Center of the Philippines, and attached agency of the DTI, is the only national agency for design, and the leading agency committed to cultivating a culture that thrives in creativity, value creation, and innovation.
The Design Center teams up with the Intramuros Administration in various projects aimed at reviving the Walled City of Intramuros, and developing it into a creative hub, where its historical, cultural, and relatively young human assets are leveraged on for urban development.
For more information on Design Center and its programs and services, please log on to www.designcenter.ph. You can also visit the Design Center at the DCP Bldg., CCP Complex, Roxas Blvd., Pasay City or contact them at 832-1112 to 18.