Foundation News

At the northernmost tip of the Philippines lies the island province of Batanes. This postcard-perfect archipelago is said to a land bridge for the rest of Asia. It is believed that Austronesians from Southern China and Indochina reached Batanes in 3,500 B.C. making the islands the gateway of a great migration.

Being an insular people, the Ivatans have preserved their gene pool, culture and traditions; particularly their method of building the Ivatan house, usually a small, low house that has heavy stone walls and a roof of thick cogon that was designed in response to the environment. Ivatans have, for centuries, shared the tasks and costs of building and repairing the houses. Sadly, modernization and modern construction materials are endangering the Ivatan homes.

We invite you to join the Museum Foundation of the Philippines and Architect Jose F. Ignacio on November 25, 2006 as we rediscover the depth of the Ivatan architecture and it’s curious link with the landscape and climate of Batanes. Hopefully, we’ll all walk out with a deeper perspective of place that holds many in awe.

For reservations please call 404.2685 or 0917.8170127 and look for Elvie Magpayo or Patricia Limon.

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Architect Jose F. Ignacio is assistant head at the Environmental Architecture Laboratory of the College of Architecture of the University of the Philippines and has done comprehensive research on the Ivatan houses in an effort to preserve them. His paper, “Documenting the Heritage Houses of Batanes” talks extensively about the architectural anatomy of the Ivatan houses, the traditional practices of the Ivatans, and their transfer of architectural know-how.

Stories About Preserving Philippine Cultural Heritage: The Heritage Houses Of Batanes will be held on Saturday, November 25, 2006, from 10 am - 12 nn at the Tambunting-Villonco Hall of the Museum of the Filipino People, Valencia Circle, Rizal Park, Manila. The fee for Museum Foundation members is P50 and non-members P100.