Manila (CNN Philippines Life) — Inconceivable as it is, there was a time when anything Filipino was considered uncool — culturally baduy and inferior compared to its Asian or Western counterparts. Introvoys was baduy, Hanson wasn’t. Jolina Magdangal was baduy, Britney Spears wasn’t.
But as appreciation of local culture became even more amplified — and as Filipinos themselves pushed for more quality products, anything Pinoy can now stand on the shoulders of cultural giants. Heck, Jolina Magdangal is now an icon, compared to Carly Rae Jepsen and the subject of viral memes (JoLegend SlayDangal, anyone?). Now, even our most common and overlooked exports — the ube, for example — are appreciated on a global scale.
In the early 2000s, design studio TeamManila gave birth to an icon that sparked a renewed interest on the impact of graphic design to local culture: the “Rizal in Shades.” The now familiar image of our national hero in sunglasses popped up in the design studio’s merchandise, which has now transformed into various retail stores in malls around the country.
Since its inception, TeamManila — true to its name — has made Filipino culture the focal point of inspiration to its many works, from wallets, bags, to commissioned work by brands such as the Eraserheads, Ateneo Art Awards, Nike, Globe, Unicef, and even local government agencies such as the Department of Tourism.
TeamManila first started in a house in 2001 where founders Jowee Alviar and Raymund Punzalan worked and sold their merchandise. The business expanded as their works were met with renown and the demand for their shirts increased (“‘Yung gusto kasi naming mga design studios may shirts so gumawa din kami ng shirts namin,” Alviar explains the birth of TeamManila’s now famous graphic design shirts). They moved to various offices several times before finally setting for their current home along Jupiter St. in Makati.
TeamManila now has different sub-brands, developed as they explore more of their passions, such as Daily Grind for streetwear and Lomographic Embassy Manila. Joining their sub-brands is Design Department, a research and development repository for their non-TeamManila Lifestyle products (hence, the output can be non-Filipino themed) as well as a collaboration space for young graphic designers who want to test their products on the market.
“Design Department is for the exploration of design studio,” says Alviar. He then picks up a few design prototypes that never saw the light of day outside the “lab”: “The Filipino Can,” which is, well, a can with humorous graphic design on its label. A small clock with changing skins. These are products that might seem off-brand for the Pinoy-centric retail stores of TeamManila. But in Design Department, they’ll be right at home.
Design Department currently occupies space in the studio’s office, a testament to the rawness and full commitment of the store for more experimental ideas revolving around graphic design. In stock are various posters, bearing the typography-heavy influence of TeamManila’s designs, shirts and mugs with geometric patterns and grids, as well as a few zines from the creative collective Local Loca.
A portion of the space is also allocated for talks and discussions. Clarissa Gonzalez, who designed the album art of UDD’s “Capacities” and is part of the multimedia artist collective Multiverse; Tippy Go of art and design blog The Googly Gooeys; and Vince Africa and Reymart Cerin of the design studio The Public School Manila inaugurated the space with talks about their design practice. Alviar also discussed the typographic influences of TeamManila.
“Hopefully … [Design Department] becomes its own brand talaga,” says Alviar. “Its own look, its own events and its own voice also …. ‘yung voice na ‘yun is graphic design. Kasi it’s a growing community na rin, a lot of graphic design students … [and] we hope to get to create something for them.”
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Design Department is located at 20 Jupiter Ave., 3A Valdecon Building, Bel-Air, Makati. Visit their Facebook page for more details.
