Sketching Quiapo

Last February saw the cooperation of 4 organizations that to put up a sketch crawl or walk in one of Manila's old prominent district of Quiapo in Manila. Re+Discover Manila, who is currently running a series of arts events to reignite the interest of Manila; with the Bahay Nakpil-Bautista Foundation for the venue; the Heritage Conservation Society Youth who orchestrated the program, brunch and a film show + lecture on old Manila; and Urban Sketchers Philippines who provided a workshop on basic sketching skills, had organized the event with some 30 participants. Times Trading, distributor of Artline, Maped and Colleen Colored Pencils , provided some sketching kits.

The Quiapo district was where the Illustrados built there city mansions away from their farms. They built some of the most beautiful houses during the rule of the Spanish. The event was a chance to see some of the existing structures and capture them on paper.

Most of these are in sad state and rented out to tenants who haphazardly modified some parts of the structures. The private sector has been initiating efforts in the awareness of these old rich cultural heritage sectors of the city. Sketching provides a level of seeing, thinking and feeling of such places. After brunch, we had a short talk down memory lane of how Manila was before the war and a film show. This was one more memorable session. A culminating ceremony organized by Re+Discover Manila will be held around May, and would showcase some of our sketchbooks.