Pagdiriwang: Philippine Festival
Event Design
Art Direction: Abby Obfenda
Pagdiriwang: Philippine Festival is Mutya Philippine Dance Company’s 2023 gala performance, held at Maple Shade High School in Maple Shade, New Jersey. This event showcased a cast array of traditional Filipino folk dances; from the mountain region and Cordillera dances, to those of the Maria Clara era; from dances of the Muslim suite to the Rural.
Adobe Photoshop | Adobe Illustrator | Adobe InDesign
With the theme of Mutya Philippine Dance Company’s 2023 gala being a festival of Filipino culture, the color palette veers from the Philippine’s traditional red, yellow and blue, and instead pulls brighter colors of pink, orange, and green to emote the excitement of a festival celebration. Festivals bring in a sense of community and playfulness. The elements of the textures, loose illustrations and typography manipulation enhance those qualities throughout the branding of the event.
The Tinikling is known to be the “national dance of the Philippines,” making it the most recognizable and anticipated dance to witness. It is a dance of elegance and coordination as dancers weave through bamboo sticks, mimicking tikling birds that run to evade bamboo traps. The dance’s recognizability becomes the face of the gala, urging audience members to anticipate watching it in excitement. The block elements are used to reference the long bamboos as well as the tape-wrapped markers.
MEANING “PHILIPPINE FESTIVAL”
The word “pagdiriwang” means “Philippine festival.” Manipulation of the typography brings in the playful joy of a celebration. The letterforms create a fluid movement within each other mirroring the movement of dance.
ILLUSTRATING CULTURE
The loose outline illustrations bring in a hand done aspect into the vibe of the festival. As these garments, textiles and dances are showcased within gala, the stories they hold are being retold and shared through the hands of a new generation.
Textiles are an integral part of telling the story of different areas, cultures, and histories of the Philippines. Grabbing textures from traditional costumes not only add another layer of design but also highlights the various cultures that come from the Philippines.
TEXTURES FROM TEXTILES
Counting Down the Days
As the gala for the Mutya Philippine Dance Company neared, social media countdown posts lifted the excitement for the event. Each post provided a glimpse of anticipated dances accompanied by illustrations in the brand style.
