By Jessica Maureen P. Gaurano
BARO at Sayá continues to preserve the country’s heritage by introducing OPM music, the spirit of play and traditional fashion to the younger generation.
Baro at Sayá, which is spearheaded by Unicef Ambassador Gary Valenciano and Tukod Foundation’s Bambi Mañosa-Tanjutco, was launched last October 2018 as a Unicef fund-raiser and served as a campaign in promoting Filipino culture to the youth by reintroducing OPM music, the arts and games. This year, Baro at Sayá sought to bring this advocacy to the runway by introducing outfits that incorporate traditional Filipino elements into modern clothing. Each piece presented different Filipino aspects to produce contemporary costumes using ethnic designs and weavings set against traditional games and Filipino music. The project was aimed to help kids appreciate the indigenous fabrics of the Philippines in order to raise a generation that gives value to sustainable fashion. The event showcased designs by prominent Filipino designers that was led by Rajo Laurel, the overall fashion consultant for the project.
“We worked with talented designers whose inspiration runs deep. They create not only for themselves, but to help inspire and uplift the Filipino people in more ways than one,” shared Baro at Sayá Project Head Kat Mañosa, who added that Baro at Sayá worked with families to be their ambassadors by demonstrating what the fashion show Baro at Sayá represented.
Each design was inspired by a song in the Awit at Laro collection. Aside from Rajo Laurel, the Baro at Sayá fashion show featured pieces by Len Cabili, Ito Curata, Rhett Eala, Zarah Juan, Marga Nograles’s Kaayo, Anne Marie Saguil and Paloma Zobel’s PioPio.
Rajo Laurel shared his design process by explaining how he put the concept of “play” into each item in his collection: the designer literally took the idea to shape how play can be part of the process that is going to mean something significant for young individuals. “I have 14 nephews and nieces, whom I love very dearly. So one weekend I put the fabric on the floor of our garden and gave them textile paint, then I just said: ‘Play.’”
His fellow designers were also excited to be a part of this project. They sought to present pieces that tell a story. During the design process, they recalled childhood memories. Their collections also highlighted the different aspects of Filipino culture, values and society that can be passed on to the future generations.
Additionally, models were accompanied by music from the Awit at Laro playlist for the fashion show. Awit at Laro is a collection of music that puts a twist on traditional Filipino folk songs. Songs from Awit at Laro also served as an inspiration to the designers’ collection. The guest artists for the event included Darren Espanto, the TNT boys, and Awit at Laro producer Gary Valenciano, with the participation of Sofia Zobel Elizalde’s Steps dance project, choreographed by James Laforteza. Aside from the fashion show, Baro at Sayá also prepared a series of activities and surprises for everyone.
“A simple invitation to be part of a fashion show ended up becoming an album of songs that we know, like ‘Bahay Kubo’ and some songs that we only know from the games of like sipa and piko. There’s never really been a song about patintero or piko, and thankfully we were able to get all the artists involved,” Valenciano said. “It feels good to use the music from the album to encourage the young people to just go out and play.”
Baro at Sayá sashayed down the runway last September 22 at the Grand Hyatt in Bonifacio Global City. The project raised funds for the benefit of Unicef, Museong Pambata and Tukod Foundation.