Through the Spectacles

Dada or Dadaism, is quite a topic to be discussed especially in an art or design class. In all honesty, the notion and concepts surrounding the Dada movement are still, by far, one of the most interesting art-related topics for me because it questions the way we are being introduced to art, beauty, society, and even power itself. It is also a tool not just to show the critiques of their time; I mean, the first world war, but the works linked to Dada also show the progression of the Western art scene into modernity. The movement can also be considered a part of the many art movements during the Avant-garde period. To answer the question of whether Dada is an art or a design movement, let us define the term first - for us to have a better understanding of the subject matter. According to the MoMA Learning website, Dada emerged amid the brutality of World War I (1914–18)—a conflict that claimed the lives of eight million military personnel and an estimated equal number of civilians. ...

    Postcolonialism is the critical academic study of the cultural legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the human consequences of the control and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More specifically, it is a critical theory analysis of the history, culture, literature, and discourse of (usually European) imperial power. Postcolonialism encompasses a wide variety of approaches, and theoreticians may not always agree on a common set of definitions. Raja, Masood (2019). "What is Postcolonial Studies?". Postcolonial Space. Masood Raja. Retrieved 16 July 2019. Postcolonialism states that universal claims are mistaken since they assume that a certain white, Western identity or position is the template for all people and that cultural differences are ignored. It is more of a set of interests or viewpoints than a single theory. Postcolonial theory is related to political struggles in various parts of the world – the fight for racial and ethnic equality a...

Graphic design is a very interesting topic for me because of its impact in my personal and professional life. This is my practice and my main discipline in the creative industry and I am glad that there is a topic for it, and it helped me quite a lot because of the new learnings from the reading. I would like to start with the gist of the reading edited by Helen Armstrong entitled: Graphic Design Theory: Readings from the Field. In this book, Armstrong compiled and edited the most important documents in line with the theories and concepts encircling the field and discipline of graphic design in a scholarly and academic manner. The book discussed the timeline of the development of graphic design, cited key personalities that contributed to the development and movements of the field, and gave some examples of the important design era. It has been said in the book that during the early 1900s, the avant-garde in graphic design emerges. The designers of the old world turned their backs on ...

Have you ever experienced eating a certain dish and then suddenly, memories of the past rushed in your head? That's what I always experience every time I dine at 'Ma Mon Luk' restaurant in the middle of hustle and bustle of the Quiapo district, Manila. The humble restaurant serves a typical Chinese noodle house menu: their signature and famous chicken noodle soup, popularly known as 'Mami', hot pork bun or 'Siopao', siomai and soda. The restaurant was established in the late '40s and is still operational up to this day. The restaurant doesn't look any special or fancy, it is a typical restaurant with marble tables and a wall full of newspaper cutouts wherein the restaurant has been featured by the local newspapers, magazines or cutouts of famous personalities who have dined there. When I was around 7 or 8 years old, I and my grandparents used to eat at Ma Mon Luk after hearing the Mass at the nearby Quiapo church. I remember myself indulging i...

I was born and raised in the historic community of Santa Ana in the city of Manila, Philippines. As a child, we always tend to hear the Mass at the old church of Santa Ana - which is the first church outside the 'Intramuros'. it was built by the Franciscan mission friars way back 15th century and it is still standing today and have gone through many earthquakes and fires that almost took it to the ground. The district of Santa Ana; or also known as 'Santa Ana De Sapa'. Before the Spaniards colonized the Philippines, Santa Ana already had its own functioning community complete with the systems of politics, governance, military, and commerce. It was part of the Namayan  kingdom which was under the rule of Lakan Tagkan and his wife. Archeological excavations are also conducted in the area where they have found ceramic plates, vases, and many more ancient objects that dates back to the Ming and Sung dynasty which proves that Santa Ana is a very important trade area during...