The municipality of Los Baños in Laguna, which hosts the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) campus, has been a safe space for independent art expression and home to cutting-edge science research studies.

On April 5, after more than six years of conceptualization and production, a new first-of-its-kind attraction was inaugurated on the campus to again solidify UPLB’s reputation as a leading university in the country.

The UPLB Sculpture Garden sits on 5,000 square meter land formerly known as the Poultry Husbandry. It is a project initiated by the UPLB administration, funded by the Office of Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda, and conceptualized and designed by Luis “Junyee” Yee, Jr., the Father of Installation Art in the Philippines.

The sculpture garden serves as a sanctuary for Junyee’s six decades of artistic expression. He belongs to the first generation of artists in the country who produced an exhibition of outdoor artworks made out of indigenous materials.

Legarda, who chairs the Senate Committee on Culture and the Arts, led the launching of the sculpture garden in a bid to promote awareness and appreciation of cultural heritage, environmental conservation, and the beauty of Filipino artistry.

“In a world where technology and modernization are thriving, I believe that art and culture serve as our guide to maintaining the significance and vibrancy of our identity, history, and the stories of our society,” Legarda said.

Being a known patron of the arts, Legarda believes that creative expression through art serves as a reminder of what the nation has faced and endured in the past, and the gift of hope and aspirations for a progressive future.

The garden prominently displays installations that have meaningful social relevance, firstly the Balag at Angud which is a statement against illegal logging in the country, and the Bantayog ng Wika which is a symbolic language marker put up in various provinces such as Antique, Ifugao, Kalinga, Batanes, Pangasinan, South Cotabato, and Tawi-Tawi, and serves as part of Legarda and Junyee’s effort to monumentalize the country’s indigenous languages.

Other sculptures include the Bagong Binhi, created in 1986 and made of twigs and leaves; the Ugnayan that Junyee made for the APEC Summit in 2015; the Balanghay, which reflects the past and the present; and Maria Makiling, to whom the entire garden is dedicated.

Another feature in the garden is a pavilion designed by Architect Bimbo Baltre, with the hall serving as an events place to help generate funds for the maintenance of the garden.

UPLB Chancellor Jose Camacho Jr. hopes that the sculpture garden will give the university’s students and other constituents further enjoyment and appreciation of the arts and culture of the country.

Camacho said: “The pieces installed here aimed to provoke thought, elicit emotion, and inspire creativity and moreover, it serves to remind us the power of art to draw focus in social justice and serve as a catalyst for positive change.”

The chancellor affirmed that the university will continue to champion artistic talents and provide space for them to be showcased and developed, as he declares UPLB as an advocate for culture and the arts, social justice inclusion, and diversity.

When asked about the interpretation or meaning behind the different sculptures, Junyee said that the public should remain open to different messages, depending on a person’s understanding and upbringing.

“Fundamentally, making art is my language. If I explain it with words, that is being redundant. The piece speaks for itself,” the artist proclaimed.

The UPLB Sculpture Garden is open for free to spectators, as it serves as a gift to the Filipino people and hopefully serves as an inspiration to the future generation of artists who will carry on the legacy of installation art in the country. (CH/PIA-Laguna)