Other Philippine cities’ attempt at street art looks like child’s play compared to this kick-ass painting project of La Trinidad in Benguet.
A total of 180 houses, spread over 18,000 square meters of hilly land and covering three sitios, are being painted in different eye-catching colors. It won’t stop there: When the project is completed, it will boast of a sunflower design.
La Trinidad is the neighboring town of Baguio City where you can find the famous strawberry fields, which makes it a popular tourist destination. A mountain of houses, often considered an eyesore, is usually what welcomes tourists.
After a month of painting, the mural is almost finished, giving La Trinidad a different image. This project is under the REV-BLOOM campaign of Department of Tourism (DOT) Cordillera, which aims to promote more sustainable tourism in the region.
“Ang ginagawa namin ngayon ‘yung outline ng mga buklaklak. ‘Yung paint pa lang kasi ‘yung nagagawa so hindi pa makikita ‘yung design,” Gloria Agasen, project coordinator, said.
(“So far we’ve just finished painting the houses. The next step is to outline the sunflowers, which is the central design.”)
The project was inspired by the favelas (slum quarters) of Brazil. It’s a first in the country, and is designed by the Tam-awan Village artists.
“‘Yung apat na design pinagsama-sama namin. Pinili namin ‘yung maganda at pinakamadali. Pinili ng artists ‘yung sunflower kasi dati itong puno ng mga sunflower,” said Jordan Mang-osan, one of the artists.
(“There were four designs and we joined them together. We chose the most beautiful and easiest. We ended up with the sunflower design because this area used to have a lot of them.”)
The residents of Stobosa (short for Stone Hill, Botiwtiw and Sadjap sitios) Hillside Homes are themselves the ones painting the houses along with other volunteers, like students and members of the police.
The paint (a total of 2,800 gallons) has been provided for free by Davies Paints and the residents recognize the economic benefits they will gain from the project.
Some of them are looking forward to expanding their businesses. “Rice retail po kasi ang business namin dito, dadagdagan namin ng hand-made products at saka merienda,” said Nenita Nead, a resident.
(“Selling rice is our main source of income, now we will be selling handicrafts and snacks as well.”)
The official unveiling of the project is on June 23, but they still need two months for the project’s completion. DOT is also planning to implement the project in Quirino Hill, Baguio City which is three times wider than Barangay Balili. With a report from Mae Cornes/ABS-CBN News Online
