Ugu Bigyan Part Two: Senses

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Photodumping! I know I should leave things for others to find out for themselves, but hey, it was hard to pick the nicest ones! Lol. Ugu Bigyan's Pottery Garden is lined with a number of nipa huts where you can just rest and chill for the day. This is perfect when you're not in a rush to get anywhere. It's a surprise that such a place is hidden in Quezon. 

Well it was a feast for the Senses. On the previous post, it was about the sense of sight & touch. Of feeling the pots in your hands, of seeing the marvel of the hands can create,,

And now more of just seeing...



 What I especially love about the place is the attention to details. Small things like fishes in the pathway, Or bird sculptures scattered around the huts. I get surprised a couple of times that I didn't notice certain pieces before!




The whole ambiance is relaxing. The bed is inviting me in. It was also a blessing for us that it rained a little because you could really feel the summer this time of the year.



 And then there was food! I've never tasted food like this before. (I don't know how to describe it) Ugu has put his personal touch in the food he prepared for us. It was also nice that we ate from handmade dinnerware. Before the food was prepared, I was feeling the plates and tumblers in my hand, trying to figure out what life it must have had: from a lump of clay to a staple in this dining area!

Ok let the pictures do the talking.

 Soup with malunggay

 The best ribs I've ever tasted! Smokey goodness

Paco Salad
 And first ever taste of Kulawo! Tastes excellent! This is banana heart with a smoky flavor to it. Quite deceiving too :)

 Some tahong
 Shrimp
 Sweet and Sour Fish with Salad
Calamares


Some dessert and a satisfied tummy! And this is why life is awesome. Thank You for good food! I took home the leftovers and had my relatives taste it and they said it was the best tasting banana heart they have eaten :) Great experience this was. Thanks to Mia and Ugu Bigyan!

End
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Ugu Bigyan Part One: Pottery

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A much-delayed blog post of what happened this Summer. Last May, me and the other students at Clay Ave Pottery Studio were invited by teacher Mia Casal on a pottery fieldtrip in Tiaong, Quezon. We visited Ugu Bigyan, renowned for his pottery, garden and awesome cooking! I've always wanted to go to his Pottery Garden ever since I've read about it in Viaje del Sol and read reviews about it in numerous blogs some years ago. 

Note: Because I find this place awesome, I'm dividing it in two parts:

Part One: Pottery

This place is truly a pottery haven, the first time I set my feet on its grounds, I knew I'm gonna love it.


A section of the property is a showroom where most of the works are for sale.

 There are a wide assortment to choose from! From Bowls to mugs, plates, vases etc.


Meanwhile, in another part of the studio, Kuya Raffy is making bowls. Kuya Raffy has been doing pottery for 20+ years, I believe. He makes these uniform bowls in a breeze! Amazing!


 More stuff at the gallery. Notice how they intentionally deform the pieces?

 Tea set! And birds all over the place. My simple joys

There's also a wood-fired kiln at the back of the studio. I don't think they're still using it. 
But it's pretty amazing to think about firing: It takes hours and hours to fire pots and we take the 'paso' for granted!

After some rest, it was time for Ugu Bigyan to do a demo. 


He uses an electric wheel for his works. His (wheel) is very rugged and also comes in just one speed. We can change speed with the one at the studio and it's a challenge to control, what more for this! 

Ugu Bigyan in Action!




From one hump of clay, he creates several pieces! And everyone were saying their 'Ooohhs and Ahhhss'. It was fun seeing a master at work.

It's also quite relaxing to stare at the wheel turning and turning...

At the back of the studio, more pots! Three stages of clay. These bowls on wet stage, up for drying


Leather hard leaves waiting to be fired


And tumblers up for glaze 


All to be fired in this gas kiln. Yey for processes!

 


And that's it!
Next: Part Two
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Inner View

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Just something I wrote back in September 2010. Found it on the drafts and dont know if Ive ever posted this before. This was my view of SLE three months or so after I was diagnosed. Will write comments on a different post.

Unofficially three months on medication, so here's a take two on my stress-induced medical life. This is a take two because the last time i wrote, it was all a blur in my head.

It started back during my college years when i occasionally felt a tingling or pain in my legs. I would associate it with classrooms being airconditioned to unbearable temperature so i thought it was just that, right? I saw myself as a healthy and active person, actually. Compared to most people my age, i was spending my time outdoors, or going to the province (where the beach and the sun loves me) and was always game for any kind of sport.

What was unusual though was that I sleep an awful lot after an activity (which i categorized as narcolepsy, then i am wrong i think). I will sleep for at least 12 hours sometimes reaching 48 hours. I will sleep in all places possible I get my head down. Or I was always low in energy. For some reason i don't know, I just thought that it was just me. My personality, laid back and chill.

So after a prologue. Last April, after an outing with some friends, I noticed how that pain in my legs never started to heal as it should. It would usually only take a day and it will be fine but after that time, I wasn't able to walk properly at all. For a week. This isn't normal anymore. I was also having high fever during night time, extreme abdominal pain, headaches, heart pains and my body was aching all over. I couldn't write even. I thought i was dying (because i was giving up on life back then, emotional stress is a deadly trigger!) We were going back and forth to different doctors that can't pinpoint what my problem is. I thought i probably just need a psychiatrist because every test says I'm alright, so i don't get what's wrong.

Then several lumps on my neck. Had it checked and operated to test for cancer, turned out negative. But after that, things got worse,, hypersensitivity issues. I cried for weeks because i felt like being burned alive, added to the fact that my grandpa was sick the same time as I am.. so for family priorities, he has to be confined and I was to stay home and take care of myself.

So it wasn't cancer but they are still there and won't go away. My brain was collapsing. I couldn't think straight. I was hallucinating about creation and the theory of relativity and quantum physics. Mandalas. Genesis. taxonomy. I was going nuts! I can't draw a proper human figure, what more, a proper circle. After another test (Anti-DSDNA) i got a major bingo! It turned out positive and I was assessed with systemic lupus erythematosus. Something rare and unusual. Lupus what? An auto-immune disease which i roughly translate as something as the self attacking itself. I was my own enemy, very appropriate!

Feeling much better now. After losing 20 pounds in a month, I gained it all back in a week. I feel like I do not own my face anymore, or my hair, or my body because it's very different from my original perception of it. Like my "essence" was completely stolen from me. Hey, maybe i really need a clean slate. Everything new. So now, im not allowed to have a real job yet, or go out in the sun forever (which i stubbornly disobey just to test myself if i can) or tire myself or be stressed physically and emotionally (because i can't take any of that literally) I wonder what's going to happen next.

I'm turning 22 in a matter of weeks. This should be a meaningful year. I need some positive reassessment of where I've gone and where I'm heading. I hate being stuck in one place it seems, so where do i go from here if the things I've known myself for is something I can't be anymore? Hmm... one thing i know for sure. I thank the people who supported me through all of this. It showed me which people are worth fighting for, who are the people that really matter. And that is enough motivation. To do things beyond yourself, still. So fight! Fight! And win :) Read more...

Sea+Food

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For the lack of a better title. Haha
Anyways, my mom and I have this certain gusto for food tripping. Some days, we would go to the side streets of Manila to indulge in cheap gastronomic delights such as siomai, turon, isaw (for my mom, I don't eat innards) and some days are like these..

We have our occasional trip on a buffet. This week, our choice was the
Crowne Plaza Seven Corners Restaurant.


One particular dish that I love was this Bouillabaisse (spell check google!)

The mixture of fish, clams and shrimp reminded me of the sun and sea. Like swimming in an ocean kind of feeling. I can't fully describe the taste, so a comparison

Like these: Bright and sunny. Very light and soothing soup dish

Or abundant fish reflected by the sunlight

The pasta marinara also delivers that kind of feel. More thicker and more flavorful
Which takes me back to these off the beaten track kind of places.
This place immediately came to mind:

Balesin Island! A bountiful island waiting to be discovered!

Or like Annawangin in Zambales, on a hiker's view. Sun-kissed with some spice. Like stepping on hot sand without slippers


Then this after-meal tea. Apple, Cinnamon and Raisin flavor.
I'm not a fan of teas. Hardly ever drink it. But this one I love.

Feels like this
Lying in the grass. Or the feel of freshly mowed grass
Or
Simply staring at the clouds passing by. Slowly.


Ive made food description more complicated, didn't I? Haha.
Well. In general, this particular food trip made me miss the beach.
Can't wait for summer to come
:)

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More on Art

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I haven't made full-blown art for a long while. I do work on small projects,, nothing portfolio-quality in my opinion. Just the stress-free non-work type. No pressure. Pure fun and passion! So here it is for the meantime. Will post more when I get the chance ♡


Oops. Attended a book signing by James Jean a month ago. I love this guy!


My glazed works at the pottery studio. Especially love the patterns!
I'm a pattern-and-texture person

And a wheel-thrown bowl. I also love how the glaze turned out. The mixture of yellow and green and a hint of blue

Also, I went to this awesome handicraft street in QC/Manila, Dapitan Arcade and found these little creatures. Cheap, ceramic white and unglazed. I couldn't fight the urge to color a few!

I love my winged creatures

I also find myself obsessing with pottery. I cant help thinking about the next piece Im going to make. I even dream about vases and bowls and abstract sculptures now! It's still a long way to go before I master this art form and Im thinking of the possibility of doing this as a fulltime career.

I do want to go abroad to study it extensively. All those little details.
The science and art of building, molding, forming
It must be pretty expensive, I know. I hope someone would fund me!
(God please, or make me win the lotto, hahaha)
Pity, the Philippines doesn't have a course/ degree on this.
A long long way to go.
A very long way to go.



That's it for now :)

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