Emphasizing the importance of community and its status as one of the foremost art and history museums in the Philippines, Ayala Museum celebrates “We Have History” on its golden anniversary this June 2024.
Important exhibitions, activations and free admission days will be held for the rest of 2024. These include a new and innovative experience for the also-50-year-old Diorama exhibition, a series of concerts and a music festival, as well as a banner exhibition featuring the genius of Fernando Zóbel, who envisioned the museum.
Mariles Gustilo, senior director of Ayala Museum, expressed gratitude to everyone with whom the museum had and continues to have “history,” saying, “A heartfelt shoutout to the tireless men and women of Ayala Museum, past and present. And like all good things, we couldn’t have done this without our countless cohorts and collaborators. But, most of all, a resounding ‘thank you’ to the community we serve, for the unwavering support and loyalty, and for allowing us to play a role in your lives all these years. You are the reason we try harder.”
For the month of June, Ayala Museum begins the celebration of its golden year by giving back to the public through two free-to-access exhibitions, as well as a grand free admission day for families.
Two exhibitions
The Ayala Museum kicks off its celebration with two exhibitions emphasizing its commitment to increasing the accessibility of art and the importance of community in the creative process.
The first is a new OpenSpace exhibition called Bonhui Uy: Works of Whimsy, featuring sculptures by Bonhui Uy, a Philippine-born artist from Hawaii known for his whimsical but cleverly-designed sculptures, prints and collages.
Among these sculptures is a large-scale version of his rooster sculpture, which stands proudly at the Makati Avenue entrance of Ayala Museum. Also included are some more other animal sculptures that are “released” in the Greenbelt Zen Garden fronting the museum’s mall entrance. These are on view for free until 14 July.
Works of Whimsy also revisits the memory of Ayala Museum’s conservation and biological research efforts in the 1970s-1990s, including the bygone museum aviary and Filipinas Journal of Science and Culture.
The second exhibition is another free-to-access show at the Museum’s 2/F changing gallery in partnership with Ang Ilustrador ng Kabataan (INK), a longtime partner of Ayala Museum. Entitled “Worlds within Worlds,” it features over 100 works by illustrator members of INK, filled with intriguing images that allude to a multiverse where the mundane is transformed into the wondrous and fantastical. By disrupting conventional notions of reality, these works invite viewers to go beyond the obvious and explore possibilities of co-existence with those whose worlds overlap with ours.
Worlds within Worlds is free for the public to view through the Museum’s entrance in the Greenbelt 4 walkway until 28 July.
INKfest 2024
at Ayala Museum
Also part of the initial offerings of the Museum for its 50th anniversary is INKfest 2024, another activation in partnership with Ang INK. Ang INK has been annually hosting INKfest to ignite the imaginations of children with creative storytelling, art and illustrations by children’s books illustrators. This event on 30 June will also double as a free admission day for kids and their families.
This event recreates dioramas by members of Ang INK, aiming to make Philippine history more accessible and engaging for children while also fostering a deeper love for country through art. It will also feature a wide range of activities such as reading and drawing sessions, craftmaking, coloring and foiling.
Pre-booking of slots is required to participate for free in INKfest 2024. Slots will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Follow Ayala Museum’s social media pages for the announcement of the opening of registration.