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A Visual Artist’s Photo Essay |
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Written by Ayesa Z. Sadain
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Saturday, 20 December 2003 |
“Maharlika is a word that connotes nobility and dignity. The Filipino flag has three stars, symbolizing Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao - equal in the pursuit of good opportunities and a dignified way of life for all Filipinos. Recent decades have witnessed the steady flow of Muslim Filipino migrants from Mindanao to Metro Manila. Of the 14 groups of Muslim Filipinos, the majority are the Maranaos, Maguindanaos, and the Tausugs who have settled down to establish dynamic communities.
 Visual Artist Sheila Nicolas-Red (extreme right) poses with UP MSA Officers during her photo essay exhibit on Urban Muslims in the Philippines.
The above paragraphs are excerpts from an essay written by Sheila Nicolas-Red, a Visual Communications graduate from the UP College of Fine Arts (1984), for her 4th solo exhibit on urban Muslims in the Philippines. Her exhibit, entitled Maharlika, is displayed at the Pasig City Museum from December 6 to 20, 2003.
A genuine effort to understand Moros and to generate awareness about their lifestyle, culture, and faith, the exhibit shows various images of the Muslim young and old in their urban communities taking part in their common activities: a father and son attending a Friday congregational prayer, teachers and children attending Madrasah (Islamic school), entrepreneurs with their sari-sari store and pearl business, a graduate student working, intellectuals and scholars giving lectures, families flocking mosques for the Eid prayer, college students attending a forum in their university, and parents with their children happily dining together. These are but some of the positive images with a creative twist that Sheila had captured in time with her camera.
As a visual artist, she found it creatively stimulating to see the various designs, styles, colors and motifs of their clothes and head coverings, the patterns of their prayer mats, the architectural styles and geometrical designs of the mosques and minaret towers, the cursive Arabic script (Arabic calligraphy) and the prayer movements of the faithful Muslims. Sheila also wrote that “The export potential can be tapped and penetrate the global Muslim market with its unique Filipino innovative designs of Sulu pearls, Pena embroidered head coverings, hand-stitched prayer mats, and even folk literature among others.”
 The author, Ayesah Sadain (left), takes a glance on the photographs shown during the exhibit.
Sheila finds it encouraging to see educated Moros studying and working in their various fields and who can enrich the Metropolis with their assimilation in the workforce.
She added that her photo essay is “an open invitation to the Muslim Filipino visual artists to share a firsthand and more in-depth, intensive presentation of their crafts, cuisine, faith and culture.”
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