Photos courtesy of UAP Communications Team
Architecture in the Philippines has come a long way since the establishment of the profession a hundred years ago.
There was a time when there’s no school where you can study architecture. The closest one can get is to undertake studies to be a Maestro de Obra—then considered as builders. As more and more Filipinos were able to study abroad and return to the country to practice, there was a need to have a regulating law both for engineers and architects. The Engineers and Architects Law was passed in 1921, stating the separation of the board of examination for the professions. The same law also mandated Maestro de Obras to be automatically registered as architects, with Tomas Mapua as the first licensed Filipino architect.
For over three decades, three associations of architects operated separately. It was in 1975 when the profession saw a clearer path towards professional unity with the incorporation of the United Architects of the Philippines (UAP), the organization that was formed after merging the three groups.
Today, with a pool of more than 50,000 members and a strong network of 181 chapters from various regions across the globe, the UAP is a prime mover in making the architecture profession known not only in the country but also in the international arena.
100 Years of Architecture
This 2021, UAP leads in the celebration of the 100 years of architecture in the country, to uphold the architecture profession and protect the Filipino architects.
The celebration started with highlighting the architectural heritage and the need to conserve them for the future generation. “As architects, it is our goal to help in pushing for thriving cities while still doing our duty of architectural heritage conservation—one of the greatest manifests of our identity that we are embedded in,” National President Arch. Renato A. Heray said. For UAP, it is vital to educate and inspire architects of today of the built environment of the past. Through its Sentro Ng Arkitekturang Filipino, it has been at the forefront of advocating architectural heritage in the country.
The centennial celebration kicked off with an architectural-historical tour in Intramuros, Manila last February 23. Led by UAP and the participants of the Architecture Centennial Coordinating Committee, they conducted a historical journey back in time and visited specific sites which are landmarks in the history of the architecture profession.
These are the Ayuntamiento de Manila, Intendencia, and Mapua University, all of which are located inside the Walled City. The Ayuntamiento building is a historical structure where the City Council or Cabildo approved the establishment of the Escuela Practica de Artes y Oficios. The school officially created a course for Maestro de Obras who were the forerunners of professional architects in the Philippines. The Intendencia building is the venue where the Philippine Legislature drafted Act 2985 which regulated the practice of architecture. The Mapua University is also included in the architectural and historical tour for being the first school of architecture in the Philippines.
Aside from the tour, one of the major activities for the celebration was a live webinar entitled “PAPER TRAILS: Discovering and Identifying Historic Landscape” last March. Through UAP’s Professional Development Committee, architects and designers were able to look back to the architectural and historical landscapes of the country and brought into conversations about the importance of history and how this can inspire change for the built heritage.
Arch. Heray said that as architecture embraces modernization, it still puts value in the importance of the past. “Being at the crossroads of modernization and the past is both a blessing and a challenge,” he added. “We are blessed to have witnessed the magnificent creations of the men and women builders before us that serve as our inspiration. On the other hand, it poses a bigger challenge to create an even better built environment that can contribute to the people’s welfare and the country’s overall progress.”
Member-First Policy
The celebration is part of UAP’s Member-First Policy, a member-centered thrust which aims to bring tangible benefits. With this, the UAP is anchored in the mission of serving its members by providing tangible benefits that would up their skills and talents in the field, even amidst an ongoing global crisis.
It continues to provide professional development programs for its members across the globe. Specifically, it provides an interactive platform called Pathways to Sustainable Learning System, where members can access all courses and webinars at their most convenient time and schedule wherever they are in the world.
The UAP works not only within their internal organization. It also emphasizes external affairs—promoting their profession with its “Get An Architect” advocacy campaign, an award-winning drive of making the professional known to the public, specifically to the masses.
The said policy also comes with a stream of active corporate social responsibility projects in various regions, with the aid of its chapters, by providing pro bono professional consultations, volunteer works, and donations to both public and private sectors for housing problems, environmental conservation, and promotion of socio-economic development.
“For years, its CSR programs have focused on extending aid to different regions in the country, through the help and enthusiasm of the general membership, hardworking chapters, and supportive industry colleagues,” Arch. Heray said. “The UAP has led the way in giving free services for local government units (LGUs), spearheaded construction and renovation of GRACES elderly care facility and rehabilitation programs in war-torn Marawi City and many others.”
During this pandemic, its advocacy campaign Bayanihan: COVID-19 Labanan was UAP’s pandemic response. It highlighted professional services in making facilities for healthcare and quarantine sites, continuous education for members on the changing landscape of architecture in the new normal, and granting benefit packages for members who were affected by the pandemic.
Despite facing hurdles to protect the interest of the professionals, the profession in general, and the laws that govern it in the past years, the UAP believes that architecture is here, not only to stay but to continue soaring. It will not cease from flying high to reach lofty pursuits.
“It is UAP’s vision to see architecture continue to thrive in these trying times, and emerge as a leading profession not only in the building industry, but in rebuilding society as well in the next hundreds of years more,” he said. “Architects take the challenge of giving helpful contributions in adapting to the needs of the times and create sustainable living spaces for everyone.”