Erehwon Centre for the Arts: The People’s Art Centre
Written by: Diana Onate, Business Development Manager, Erehwon Artworld Corporation
Team Building Toast: The Team, led by Erehwon Art Foundation, Incorporated Chairman Boysie Villavicencio, Erehwon Artworld Corporation President, Jose Cabazor, and Erehwon Center for the Arts Chairman/CEO, Rafael Rivera Benitez, toasting to a collaborative, catalytic, and synergizing discourse.
Staying true to its 3-Cs dictum of “convergence, collaboration, and camaraderie”, Erehwon Center for the Arts (ECA) gathered its staff, foundation trustees and partner artists for a team building session at CAZA San Miguel (Center for the Arts of Zambales), in San Antonio, Zambales, Philippines on 21 to 22 May.
The two-day affair started with a guided tour of the CAZA, home to the Casa San Miguel Foundation, established by concert violinist Alfonso “Coke” Bolipata. The foundation’s aim to integrate culture and community development is pivotal to the objective of ECA’s team building session. One of the highlights of the event includes a three-hour meeting with Mr. Coke Bolipata where the Erehwon Team had the opportunity to ruminate with Mr. Bolipata, on what it takes to run an art center successfully. He shared on the importance of focusing on two things – “dramaturgy”, which is to concentrate on the stories of the people for whom the art center matters (the community and “transformation”, which means concerting efforts on activities that will positively transform the lives of the art center’s beneficiaries. The inspiring chat culminated with a beautiful dinner serenaded by the Pundaquit Virtuosi, CAZA’s resident string ensemble.
Team Building with Coke: The Team engaged in an inspiring chat with Casa San Miguel Founder, Mr Coke Bolipata
The main highlight was the team’s discourse on defining the “soul” of ECA over nightcap. The mission to enrich ECA’s vision to be “the living hub and nerve center of the arts in the Philippines and in the region as a whole” reverberated in the discussion. The team is in unison about grounding and expanding ECA’s orientation by organising and training grassroot artists from the physical community where it thrives. After more than two hours of round table dialogue, ECA’s Chairman/CEO, Rafael Rivera Benitez punctuated the discourse by reiterating the precis of the discussion which is that ECA’s mission is to work towards becoming the “The People’s Art Centre”.
Team Building Pundaquit Virtuosi: The Team serenaded over dinner and wine by the awe-inspiring Pundaquit Virtuosi
Erehwon Center for the Arts would like to thank all the participants who graciously devoted their time for this fruitful endeavor: Mr. Boysie Villavicencio, Chairman, Erehwon Art Foundation, Incorporated; Mr. Neil Doloricon, Visual Arts/ former Dean of the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Fine Arts; Mr. Chino Toledo, Musical Director, Metro Manila Concert Orchestra/ UP College of Music Professor; Mr. Bonifacio Ilagan, Director, Tag-Ani Performing Arts Society; Ms. Laya Boquiren, Book Author/ UP&P Faculty; Mr. jack Lagonoy, Music Director, Erehwon Jazz Orchestra; Mr. Fritz Silorio, award-winning Film Director; Mr. Joe Louie Lavaro, Dulambuhay Playback Theatre; Ms. Diana Onate, Business Development Manager, Erehwon Artworld Corporation; Mr. Greg de Leon, Executive Director, Erehwon Center for the Arts; Mr. Jose Cabazor, President, Erehwon Artworld Corporation; and Mr. Rafael Rivera Benitez, CEO/Chairman, Erehwon Center for the Arts and Erehwon Artworld Corporation.
Visit Erehwon Center for the Arts’ website here.