Philippine Master Culture Bearers Of T’boli, Yakan, Kalinga People: Weaving Workshop
Photo Caption/Credit: (Left to Right) Virgie Nicodemus; Boi Myrna Bebing Pula, photo by Gabriel Nivera; Evelynda Otong Hamja, photo by Artu Nepomuceno; Jenny Bawer Young
Join visiting T’boli master culture bearer Boi Myrna Bebing Pula, Yakan master weaver Evelynda Otong Hamja, Kalinga Master Weaver Jenny Bawer Young and CulturAid’s Virgie Nicodemus for an afternoon of conversation, epic story-telling, weaving, dance and meryenda as a part of KULARTS’ Spring 2024 Philippine Master Artists in Residency Program.
Meet the Philippine Master Culture Bearers
Virgie Nicodemus works with CulturAid, a non-governmental agency providing resources, funding, training and services for indigenous Philippine artisans and culture bearers.
Boi Myrna Bebing Pula is a master T’boli culture bearer born in Lake Sebu, South Cotabato. Her mother was a T’nalak weaver and food producer, while her father was a village chieftain and legal advisor. A T’boli cultural expert, storyteller, weaver, translator, and writer, Boi Myrna is a recipient of Tubas Talimbong Award of Excellence in Culture and the Arts. She has represented the T’boli people in Europe, Australia, Asia, and the USA.
Evelynda Otong Hamja is a fourth-generation master Yakan weaver from Lamitan Basilan. She works with a Yakan weavers collective, Tuwas Yakan Weavers of Basilan in Zamboanga City.
Jenny Bawer Young is the Master Weaver, co-founder, and driving force behind Kalingafornia Laga, a women’s collective dedicated to preserving and promoting traditional Kalinga culture in the Bay Area. She was born and cradled by a family that bears the Kalinga Traditional way of life. She is the daughter of Maria and Cirilo “Sapi” Bawer, who is internationally recognized as a Culture Bearer of Indigenous Knowledge, Skills, and Practices of the Kalinga people. Since childhood, Jenny’s parents and grandparents passed their knowledge and practice of Kalinga traditional arts—particularly laga (backstrap weaving), music, chants, and dances—to her siblings.
