Supreme Supports Manila Design Week: One small step in Manila, one giant leap for graphic design

We would like to redesign the city. I remember hearing these words said so humbly during a late-afternoon brain–storming session with graphic design visionaries Jowee Alviar and Mon Punzalan, better known as the guys behind Team Manila.  Those days we were collaborating on newspaper pages, event concepts, invites, products, — anything that would get our creativity grooving and moving. Of course, at that time, Team Manila was already championing Pinoy power via their T-shirt line that stamped Pinoy pride with a capital T.

You see, these guys just can’t stop.

I first met them in the airport on our way to the IDn (International Design Network) Conference in Singapore where, unbeknownst to us, we had formed an impromptu Pinoy delegation. We all went on our own — without government or private sector support, just because we knew there was much to learn, and much to be done in our city. I interviewed the Chinese guy behind the event and he said that he was “old and tired” and so he just wanted to focus on what he liked doing — the print side of it (he publishes IDn mag) and not the event. “But it’s the event that brings people together,” I thought to myself. “This is where they can exchange ideas and learn from each other.”

Fast forward to a couple of years and we have GraphikaManila. Add another couple of years and now we have Manila Design Week 2009. We may seem to be late in getting our act together, but hey, better late, right? (Okay, no excuses!)  And, no day but today — because NOW equals WON (get it.?). Okay, before I start sounding like a self-help guru, I am just in high spirits because of the success of last week’s Manila Design Week 2009. Finally, the time has come. 

Manila Design Week 2009 gathered all graphic designers and all sorts of lovers of design to the fore — local and international, established, and upcoming — to celebrate the emerging graphic design scene in the country today. Their vision?  ”The first of its kind in the Philippines, it aims to bring Philippine graphic design into the mainstream. More than that, Manila Design Week 2009 aims to establish the Philippines as a major hub of graphic design and creativity in the region, if not the world.” 

Manila Design Moves

The first day at the Bonifacio High Street drew scenesters from all sorts, watching as the artists strutted their stuff, doing graffiti, installations, and other creative stuff. It was exhilarating seeing the city’s street scene come alive. We want more public art that doesn’t look like lollipops attached to cake-decorated bridges. I liked the part where they recycled Nokia (the event’s main sponsor) tarpaulins and made them into bags. Yeah, now that’s being so looped within today’s eco-consciousness. Way to go, peeps!

The second day had fashion and art people doing exploratory collaborations that resulted in pretty good marriages — some not as good as others, but the mere fact that their paths crossed was already a good sign. The energy was palpable. People liked the exchange, it generated new energy, and new energy always fuels more energy.

Creativity begets creativity, and the more we inject it into our lives, the better our lives will be, don’t you think? The next day had student exhibits and more forums that gathered the scene’s IT list to discuss where we are now to determine where we want to be.

The week-long event did that and more — it was like injecting Manila with a flu shot, a booster that was absorbed by students and practitioners, observers and movers. It brought together stalwarts from the fields of print and publishing, people from the web, and even fans of motion graphics! From mainstream to niche, every cult and category was well represented. That’s what marks a good event — a great gathering of minds interacting for a common good. In this case, Manila design.

Fusion. Collaboration. Interaction. This is the name of the game now. As much as it was inspiring, Manila Design Week 2009 was also informative. Along with the exhibits and activities were daily dialogues and seminars with and for the graphic designer, the everyday individual, and the client — whether from the creative industry or from the corporate world. The fusion, collaboration and celebration of the graphic design movement will all point to one essential truth: Graphic design moves.

With the turnout and support from last week’s Manila Design Week, I really don’t doubt it does.

DAY 1 

A live outdoor exhibit engaged the public and showed them how design can make important messages much more powerful. The country’s foremost street artists painted murals, created street art and graffiti at the Bonifacio High Street for all to see. Bands played music while the best graphic designers, illustrators and street artists were asked to interpret the theme “reuse, reduce, recycle.” 

DAY 2 

Cross-breeding for a fashion editorial: Different fields in the world of design came together to create a single, cohesive effort. Eight teams of nine professionals at the top of their game: stylist, make-up artist, photographer, fashion designer and graphic designer. They interpreted the theme “beautiful functional.”

DAY 3 

A student’s showcase: Encouraging young designers to find their voice, we’d like to pave the way for the new generation, giving them the chance to work with a brand and build its (and their own) design personality. Established arts schools such as CSB Multimedia Arts, UP Fine Arts, UST CFAD, Ateneo, La Salle and SHIFT displayed their works collectively at the Glorietta Activity Center in Makati City.

DAY 4 

An intelligent conference on design: In our personalize-it world, graphic design is everywhere — we use it to not only to enforce a message, but be the message. That is why MDW brought together key figures in the worlds of design, advertising, marketing and communication and sat them at the same table. They discussed the vast reach and potential of graphic design.

DAY 5 

A bloc party: How graphic design has made music look a bit sexier...A night of music, graphic design, food and drinks. Stores and art galleries opened for exhibits, projections, live music and iPod battling. Music videos, album and vinyl art, motion graphics, CD packaging from past to present were featured. A silent disco became the night’s highlight.

DAY 6

Closing party: MDW signed off for this year with the de rigueur party and a small surprise.  Urban Culture. Music. Hip Hop. Friendship. Community. Design.

DAY 7

Graphika Manila: In its fourth year of staging the now-famous design conference, Graphika Manila brought in graphic design icon Stefan Sagmeister from the US to Manila.

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