Imagination, inventiveness and individuality took center stage as student-artist groups celebrated the National Arts Month with a two-day open house festival. The initiative, a part of Pasinaya: The CCP Open House Festival 2025 of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, was organized by the Benilde Arts Management, the home organization of the Creative Industries Management Program of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. It was in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MCAD) and Center for Campus Art.

Art Punô, a nod to the Filipino word that means “to be full of,” provided a platform for young talents to cultivate a vibrant space for dialogue and exploration across various art forms.

The event, which opened with a tour, warmly welcomed the guests to the Design + Arts Campus, where they glimpsed the sprawling artworks and capstone projects currently installed at the 14-storey structure. An array of novel and budget-friendly art pieces in diverse mediums greeted visitors at the highly anticipated Art Mart.

A collaborative painting session with visual artists from the organization Artelier enjoined participants to grab a brush and add their personal touches on the large canvas laid out on the floor.

Those keen on new media learned the fundamentals of claymation, an animation technique which uses movable clay characters and stop-motion recording, in a hands-on workshop hosted by the digital artists from Animotion.

Original creations by the members of DrawINK, the premier comic organization of the college, were likewise showcased. The catalog housed a range of genres, from Filipino mythology, slice of life, romance, and fantasy, to mystery, thriller and horror. Attendees were given a chance to borrow physical copies to read within the venue or scan QR codes to browse online.

A selection of innovative games produced by the Game Design and Development students under the Gamers Union for Innovation and Leadership (GUILD) were made accessible to the public. The collection may be played through available computers or VR equipment. These championed the role of video game design in addressing contemporary challenges.

The beauty of intricate patterns inspired by traditional textile and dyeing technique such as ikat, hablon and inabel, as well as the significance of sustainability through the use of recycled materials were highlighted in the mask-making workshop led by Likha, under the Culture-Based Arts Program.

The group likewise facilitated a wire décor session, wherein partakers combined cultural heritage and contemporary creativity as they incorporated traditional wooden beads into modern designs.

MediaMax, a team of Multimedia Arts students, held lectures on content creation and management, plus brand and portfolio building. They led attendees on how to enhance their digital skills and imparted essential strategies to optimize online presence, as well as practical tools for meaningful audience connections.

Karilyo, a group of visual artists, facilitated a workshop on a step-by-step demo on how to make shadow play puppets, and the basics of puppet shadow play.

Likewise included was a guided tour around the first survey show of internationally acclaimed visual artist Maria Taniguchi at MCAD. Among the highlights of Taniguchi’s body of work was the renowned ongoing series of bricks, which has become central to the production and development of her practice.

Art Punô wrapped up with special performances including Rocketeer by the budding creative movers from Benilde-X-perimental Dance, and Aninag: Mga Tinig ng Tanghalan, an Aninag Theater original short play that pays tribute to Filipino musicals.