MABALACAT CITY – “Once it was a vibrant home where artists poured their hearts, dreams, and sacrifices into every creation. Now it stands in silence, a broken reminder of how easily creativity can be overlooked, how the voice of artists can fade when no one listens.”
So, lamented local artist Dodjie Aguinaldo of the devolvement of “Tabnuan,” the old municipio in the Poblacion center transformed into a cultural hub by the previous city administration, since repurposed into a meeting hall with nothing but a coffee shop to pass off for cultural vibe.
Tabnuan served as the locus of culture and the arts – a stage for performances, an art workshop and a gallery for exhibitions curated by renowned Mabalaquenian cultural advocates like Alex Del Rosario of the Center for Kapampangan Studies.
Last July, Aguinaldo already sounded the alarm of Tabnuan’s deterioration to pedestrian purpose, bewailing the unceremonious removal and haphazard storage, read: just piled up in a corner, of the works of art on display and the artists not even given the courtesy of a notice.
Of late, amid continuing official indifference, Aguinaldo salvaged a diorama of the Tabnuan itself once exhibited there now in advanced stage of dilapidation, if not decay – “carrying the quiet ache of being unseen …a mourning for a place, a passion, and a people who deserved more.”
“Transforming my diorama of the cultural hub into a ruined, abandoned structure reflecting the painful truth of how art and culture are often forgotten,” rued the artist.
In yet another plea, Aguinaldo called on city officials especially those tasked to develop arts and culture to be more sensitive to art preservation. This, even as he noted that he has nothing against the decision to convert the Tabnuan exhibition area into a conference or session hall.
All he is asking is that artists and their works be treated with the respect they deserve.
Aguinaldo founded the Sining Mabalacat, the Mabalacat Artists Collective, and Sibul Ning Kalalangan, an art group for young artists where he also serves as adviser.
Punto Lifestyle Team
