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design trail: bencab museum, baguio

As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, I didn’t get to visit a lot of Baguio’s tourist spots when we went there. Our visit was short but sweet. And the BenCab Museum made the trip worthwhile. We were there for the opening of the pottery show of my aunt, Ofelia Gelvezon-Téqui. Her glazed stoneware works were on display in one of the several galleries in the multi-floor structure.

{lobby/reception area}

There are works by masters like Joya, Magsaysay-Ho, Edades and contemporary pieces by young artists, indigenous crafts and artifacts, and of course BenCab’s own masterpieces. I love how they displayed the bulol rice granary gods on cantilevered shelves along one whole wall from floor to ceiling.

{bulol collection on display}

I also love how they utilized natural light throughout the whole space. They installed skylights, floor to ceiling windows and clerestory windows.The museum also has a little shop which has a nice collection of books and souvenirs and a café (Café Sabel) which overlooks the forest. Below the museum, you can also wander the farm and garden which produces organic vegetables, fruits and coffee.

{glazed stoneware by Ofelia Gelvezon-Téqui}

{Café Sabel}

{farm and garden}

The same day we were there, a group of about 600 students just visited the place! The BenCab museum just celebrated their 2nd anniversary and it’s already one of the must-see attractions in Baguio. The BenCab Museum is on Km. 6 Asin Road. For more information, visit their site, http://bencabmuseum.org/

i saw design: the mind museum

Last month, we attended a one-of-a-kind event at the NBC Tent. Kenji Williams, an award-winning director and classically trained violinist, with Ballet Philippines, wowed the 1500 plus audience with sights and sounds of Bella Gaia. Bella Gaia is an audio-visual trip showing the “beauty of the Earth as seen through the eyes of astronauts.”

The event was organized as a preview of The Mind Museum to the public.

The Mind Museum, “the first world-class science museum in the Philippines”, is set to open at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. The building is designed by a team of architects from Lor Calma & Partners, led by Ed Calma.

The audience at the NBC Tent, composed of designers, scientists, students, educators, sponsors and the press were shown 3D renderings of the different galleries that will be housed in the two-level structure.

Some of the main galleries are:

The Universe Gallery

The Earth Gallery

The Atom Gallery

The Life Gallery

Learn more about The Mind Museum here. The Design Folder team will be first in line when it opens in 2011.

*Photos and renderings courtesy of The Mind Museum

design trail: singapore

“So, did you like Sentosa?” was the most frequently asked question I got from people who knew I just came back from Singapore. The second most frequently asked question was, “Did you like their chicken rice?” I couldn’t answer either question. We didn’t go to Singapore’s most popular tourist destinations (but we went to Ikea twice!) and we didn’t get to eat Singapore’s famous delicacies (we had Austrian sausages in Chinatown instead). But we did get to see a lot of great design.

Their SMRT train stations were so clean and well-designed. Look at that ceiling detail!

Chinatown was one of the pleasant surprises of our trip. Everything was so festive and everyone there seemed to be in a good mood.

We did go to one famous spot, the Esplanade, where our generous hosts took us to eat delicious food. The architecture of the Esplanade Theatres on the Bay building, or “The Durian”, was especially beautiful at sunset.

For me, one of the highlights of our trip was discovering Ann Siang Road and Ann Siang Hill, which is near Chinatown. We already told you about Ann Siang in our Heima post. The shops there had real personality. The home and lifestyle store, Vanilla Home, was chic and classy. Unfortunately, I don’t have pictures of the shop but you can check out their luxurious pieces at their site.

Books Actually was cute and unassuming. I hear they’re leaving Ann Siang, though. I hope their new store at their new location will be as lovely as this one.

Earth Sanctuary, a boutique and spa, was relaxed and understated.

Strangelets, located at Amoy Street, was really fun and quirky. And they had the most interesting products. I took home a timbercroc from their store.

We saw the most interesting places when we put down the map and veered off course. We suggest you do the same the next time you go to Singapore. And don’t forget to wear your most comfortable shoes!

*Read more to see our complete set of Singapore images, including a picture of a really red building, more shops, and inspiring temples.

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