Bee farm opens doors for a free tour

A bee farm tour that takes guests into an informative journey on beekeeping and the motivations of Filipino artist Issay Rodriguez’s bee-inspired sound installation, Bee There opened doors to the public via a free event.

The bee farm, which is approximately two hours away from Manila, is located at the heart of the Cavite State University (CVSU) Bee Research, Innovation, Trade, and Extension (BRITE) Center in Indang, Cavite.

It focuses on bee information, research, innovation, product development, trade and mentorship of seasoned and budding researchers and extensionists. It serves as an exemplary learning ground for apiculture and meliponiculture.

The activity commenced with a series of lectures to be facilitated by BRITE Center Director Michele T. Bono and BRITE Center Extension and Training Unit Head Dickson N. Dimero. They will provide guests with a comprehensive understanding of responsible beekeeping, breeding and management. They will likewise introduce the different kinds of bees, as well as the diverse beekeeping products available.

The second phase was an artist talk of Rodriguez, who walked visitors into the creative process of her work Song of Increase.

The sound installation, which features the musical humming of the bees captured at the Indang farm, was inspired by the 2016 book Song of Increase: Listening to the Wisdom of Honeybees for Kinder Beekeeping and a Better World by biodynamic farmer and natural beekeeper Jacqueline Freeman.

It is currently exhibited at Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MCAD) as part of the ongoing Adaptation: A Reconnected Earth. It is a show that proposes an approach to determining the present within the realities of a changed climate, a despairing planet and a recently renewed humanity.

The activity was organized by MCAD of the De La Salle-college of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) in partnership with the CVSU BRITE Center.

More information is available via mcad@benilde.edu.ph.