Marina Reyes Antonio’s legacy celebrated in fashion exhibit at SM Aura

A nine-decade journey — this is how the legacy of Marina Reyes Antonio and her contributions to Philippine fashion design are described in the two-week exhibit at SM Aura, which began on 10 September.

The fashion exhibit is a walkthrough of the timeless talents and works of the Antonio-Veloso-Barrera family, starting with Marina’s classical wedding gowns from the ‘30s, featuring stylish and sustainable designs specially curated for each of her clients — from high-profile personalities to friends and family.

Among the notable personalities who have worn the signature Marina Antonio wedding gowns are Alice Paez Lorenzo, wife of basketball star Moro Lorenzo; Marissa Hernandez-Yu; Bernadette Guevara Tanedo; newspaper columnist Lisa Ongpin Periquet; and even international figures such as Jean MacArthur, the late General Douglas MacArthur’s wife.

Marina’s granddaughter, Vicky Veloso-Barrera, who led the exhibit, also shared that one of her grandmother’s goals in designing these intricately and sustainably curated gowns was affordability.

“[M]y grandmother accommodated them,” she said. “She understood that there are some people who can’t afford it, but they want to look beautiful, and she wanted to make them look beautiful.”

She referred to the wedding gown designed specifically for Silvina Sevilla-Clemente. Despite being budgeted, Marina consistently included her signature handmade organdy roses and satin flowers as embellishments on the gown.

Vicky also stated that most of Marina’s work emphasized the practice of fabric manipulation using upcycled materials and the art of embroidery for complicated textiles like tambur, tulle and piña fiber on gowns, veils, Filipiniana sleeves and panuelos.

Marina’s legacy continued for many more years, with up to four generations following in her footsteps in fashion design. Her daughter, Malu Veloso, whose feminine, dainty and classic designs in the ‘60s began with creating dresses for her daughters, Vicky and Letlet.

From children’s clothing, Malu also created her signature wedding gowns, highlighting details like lace, pintucks, “alsado” flowers, hand painting, delicate beadwork and “faggoting” — a decorative stitch.

By the ‘80s, granddaughters and sisters Vicky and Letlet Veloso followed in Marina’s footsteps by creating their own ready-to-wear wedding gowns, with boutiques branching from Pasig to Ayala Alabang, the San Antonio Plaza Arcade, Park Square, and their line sold at SM Boutique Squares in Makati and SM North EDSA.

Like Marina, Vicky and Letlet also had notable personalities as clients for their wedding gown line, including Sharon Cuneta-Pangilinan, Bing Loyzaga, Jenny Syquia, Therese Jamora-Garceau, Joanne Que, and thousands of other brides. As of this writing, Letlet Veloso has continued her own custom-made formals and ready-to-wear line found at Teroso on Pasay Road, while Vicky has her “Love, Marina” ready-to-wear classic line accented by Marina’s signature style and designs.

Marina’s great-granddaughter, Hannah Barrera, has also begun her journey in fashion design as a scholar at the College of St. Benilde. Her signature style utilizes natural textiles and fabrics such as jusi, piña, abaca, cotton and silk.

Her designs are all adorned with her vision as a storyteller, expressing her stories and personal challenges through her works. Like her great-grandmother Marina, she uses fabric manipulation and embellishment.

Following in the artistic footsteps of the Reyes-Antonio-Veloso family, Joshua Barrera has also showcased his paintings locally and internationally, with themes ranging from life to human figures, creatures and mundane objects. His style, using stippling techniques, has enabled him to tell stories inspired by fantasy literature, emphasizing the celebration of human imagination.

Resistance through fashion

In the early years, Vicky shared how Marina was not merely a fashion designer with a great passion for creating wedding dresses but also faced personal trials along the way, having been abandoned by her father and her first husband and going through a battle with breast cancer.

“[T]hinking she would not have children. And then, when she married my grandpa, she had six kids and [now] four generations… But she didn’t make a fuss about how she lived her life,” she said.

Married for 45 years to National Artist for Architecture Pablo S. Antonio, Marina was able to make a living from her wedding gown creations and provide for her six children. Soon, her legacy was followed by three more generations.

Marina’s line is celebrated by many and will continue to be for years to come.

“Suddenly, ‘Love, Marina’ is a brand that everybody wants. And I was not even doing it for that; I just wanted to honor my [grandmother],” Vicky added.

“Love, Marina” will possibly hold more exhibits at other SM stores and venues, followed by a book set to be published in January 2025, featuring the lifestyle legacy of Marina, including fashion tips, how to preserve vintage gowns, gardening tips and 30 of her recipes.