“Icons MADE” Celebrates National Heritage Month with HIRAYA

The opening of the Icons MADE exhibit was led by CCP board of trustee chairperson Margie Moran-Floirendo (3^rd from left) and MBFI president (center) last May 15 in Pasilyo Victorio Edades, CCP Main Theater Building. They were joined by CCP Arts Education department manager Eva Marie Salvador (2^nd from left), ICOMOS president Ma. Cristina Paterno (1^st from right), art critic Cid Reyes (2^nd from right), and MADE awardees Noell El Farol (1^st from left) and Mervy C. Peblo (3^rd from right).

Metrobank Foundation, Inc. (MBFI) in partnership with the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) opened the “Icons MADE” exhibit and lecture series “HIRAYA” on May 15, 2019 in Pasilyo Victorio Edades (4F Hallway Gallery), CCP Main Theater Building. The exhibit served as a cultural heritage celebration, in line with this year’s National Heritage Month.

Icons MADE opened with the HIRAYA lecture series (Heritage Initiative on Raising Awareness and Yielding Advocacy), the Culture and Heritage Education Program (CHEP) of MBFI. The lectures featured ICOMOS president Ma. Cristina Paterno discussing heritage preservation, art historian and critic Cid Reyes on the narrative of the Icons MADE exhibit, and the League of Corporate Foundations Art & Culture committee representatives from MBFI, Felicidad T. Sy Foundation, and BPI Foundation with their lecture on CSR in the Arts.

Following the lecture series was the exhibit reception showcasing winning works of selected Metrobank Art & Design Excellence (MADE) awardees. The opening of the Icons MADE exhibit was led by CCP board of trustee chairperson Margie Moran-Floirendo and MBFI president Aniceto Sobrepeña.

In her welcome remarks, Margie Moran-Floirendo acknowledged the common vision of CCP and the Foundation’s arts program during the exhibit reception. “We are always on the lookout for passionate and persistent creative visionaries who are fresh, sometimes thought-provoking, especially during contentious times and relevant ideas that can help in national development.”

On heritage, MBFI president Aniceto Sobrepeña left a message to ponder on for the art community. “Think of our country as a puzzle. When all the other puzzle pieces are stripped away—the puzzle piece of all the successes and struggles of our economy, the puzzle piece securing the stability of the government, and the puzzle piece of the issues of our humanity—and focus on our country as it is, we are left with just one thing—the main basis for everything—which is our heritage. It can never be taken away from us, because our heritage is us.”

Icons MADE exhibit features award-winning paintings of 1988 & 1992 2^nd prize winner Elmer Borlongan, 2007 grand winner Mark Andy Garcia, 1992 honorable mention Manny Garibay, 2001 Metrobank Young Painters’ Annual 3^rd prize winner Guerrero Z. Habulan, 1990 grand winner Mark Justiniani, 2008 grand winner Raffy Napay, and 2007 grand winner Lynyrd Paras. The award-winning sculptures of 2005 grand winner Leeroy New and 2006 special citation recipient Mervy Pueblo are also showcased in the exhibit. All the featured MADE awardees are also recipients of the CCP Thirteen Artists Awardee.

The Icons MADE exhibit runs from May 9 until May 26, 2019.

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The Metrobank Foundation, Inc. (MBFI) was established on January 8, 1979 by Dr. George S. K. Ty, sixteen (16) years after he founded the Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company (Metrobank). MBFI envisions to be the country’s premier corporate philanthropic foundation contributing a significant impact on social development.  Its flagship programs include the Metrobank Foundation Outstanding Filipinos; Metrobank Art & Design Excellence (MADE); Metrobank Scholarship Program (MSP); Metrobank MTAP-DepEd Math Challenge (MMC); Grants and Social Development Partnerships, Disaster Response, National Teachers’ Month (NTM) celebration, and the Metrobank Foundation Professorial Chair Lectures. MBFI is also the principal owner of the Manila Doctors Hospital (MDH), one of the leading centers of wellness in the country.

As a development organization, MBFI aims to uplift individuals and the sectors they represent and strategically link with institutions for a shared-purpose. By creating and propagating a culture of excellence and providing solutions to stakeholder’s needs, the Foundation continuously expands its scope of reach and be at the forefront in serving communities. As the heart of the Metrobank Group, “Excel. Engage. Empower” or the 3Es remains its roadmap.

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