Hibla in Bangkok & Prague
The Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Travelling Exhibition has made its back-to-back inaugurations in Bangkok, Thailand and Prague, Czech Republic.
The National Museum of the Philippines, in partnership with the Office of Rep. Loren Legarda, launched the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Travelling Exhibition titled Piña-Seda: Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Tropics at the Museum Siam, Bangkok last July 4, and at the Naprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures, Prague, last July 15. The Bangkok exhibit was launched in partnership with the National Discovery Museum Institute, while the one in Prague was done in partnership with the Naprstek Museum.
The exhibit in Bangkok highlights piña-seda woven fabrics including those hand-woven and embroidered by Balete, Aklan weavers Raquel Eliserio and Carlo Eliserio and Lumban, Laguna embroiderers Lolita Pereza and Loreto Maestre Jr. Meanwhile, the exhibit in Prague features expert
piña-seda weavers from Tibiao Antique, and hand embroiderers from Lumban, Laguna.
“I am proud to witness the promotion of our local weaving traditions in the international community and to see that it is brought closer to Filipinos abroad through our Hibla traveling exhibitions,” said Legarda.
“Our rich weaving heritage and traditional textiles are ties that bind. They link the past to the present and bring together cultures which, no matter how diverse, have a commonality. It is in this premise that the Hibla ng Lah
ing Filipino textile gallery was born in 2012 and now has gone international,” she added.
Legarda said that the exhibition is an offshoot of
the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino: The Artistry of Philippine
Textiles permanent gallery at the National Museum of Anthropology, which is her brainchild. The first Hibla exhibit was held in London in October 2017 and was subsequently opened in different Philippine Service Posts in Asia, Europe and USA, namely Lisbon, Portugal; Madrid, Spain; Frankfurt, Germany; Washington, D.C.; New York City; Hawaii; and Tokyo, Japan.
Bangkok is the second Asian destination where the exhibition was launched, following its brief run in Tokyo in March. Prague, meanwhile, is the third destination of the Hibla ng Lahing Filipino Travelling Exhibition for 2019, and the 10th destination since it was launched.
The Hibla exhibit runs until July 27 at the Museum Siam, 4 Sanam Chai Road, Khwaeng Phra Borom Maha Ratchawang, Khet Phra Nakhon, Bangkok; and until Aug. 12 at the Naprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures, Bethlehem Square 1, 110 00 Prague 1.
“We will have more Hibla travelling exhibitions and many more Hibla regional galleries will soon rise in our country, and we hope that someday we will have not only galleries, but one whole Hibla Museum,” said Legarda. “Through these, we hope to promote greater support for cultural enterprises and creative industries of our indigenous peoples and deeper appreciation of our heritage.”