Sketchmeet at the National Museum of the Philippines – Iloilo

Sketch of the National Museum of the Philippines – Iloilo by Matthieu Gonzalez

About 60 people visited the National Museum of the Philippines – Iloilo for a Museum
Sketchmeet on August 21st. This was the largest turnout Iloilo City Sketchers has had thus far.

Typically, our sketchwalks were no more than 10 people. But this recent event drew in quite a
crowd:

We had kids with parents, high schoolers and college students, licensed architects, full-time
artists, teachers, engineers, a pastor, a couple of business owners, and more.

Sketchers at the museum’s outdoor area. Photo by Frezielle Layno

We credit our partners at NMP-Iloilo for making this possible, going as far as providing art
materials to museum visitors who wanted to try their hand at on-location sketching.

And the fact that we’re doing this in an iconic piece of Ilonggo history made the sketchmeet all
the more special!

Built in 1911, the building once served as the Iloilo Provincial Jail until 2006, when prison
operations stopped and were transferred to a new facility in the town of Pototan.

The structure underwent renovation and was converted into a museum in 2016, the same year
that it was declared an Important Cultural Property “for its exceptional architectural, cultural, and
historical value.”

Today, the museum houses two permanent exhibitions, one dedicated to Western Visayas’
habol weaving tradition and a geology and paleontology section.

There was a brief talk on the museum’s history, artifact collection, and visitor guidelines by
Supervising Administrative Officer Maricyn De Los Santos, followed by an introduction to urban
sketching.

Introduction to the museum’s history, collections, and guidelines for visitors.

After that, everyone spread out to find their ideal spots. Some participants chose to stay indoors
to sketch the displays in the museum’s galleries. They were only allowed to use pencils and
pens inside the galleries, while watercolors were allowed in the atrium area and outdoor spaces.

Art installation sketch by Hannah Marie Celso

A sketch of the museum’s skylight in gouache by Marcel Jaudian

Others went outside to sketch the building’s exterior. At the museum’s outdoor park, they sat on
banigs (Philippine handwoven mats) provided by the staff while some brought foldable chairs.

Plus, we had fair weather the entire morning. It was hot outside, but it was breezy. We spent an
hour and a half sketching, although in retrospect, we could’ve extended the sketchmeet an hour
more.

Exterior sketch in ink by Danice Joy Dichosa

Outdoor pencil sketch by Mitch Danisse Almajo

Still, it was quite a sight to see a diverse group of people spanning different age groups,
professions, and backgrounds coming together to tell visual stories in any way they can.

Not bad for our first sketchmeet. The next one is on August 31st at Plaza Libertad.

Will we break our current attendance record? Maybe. But one thing’s for sure: this museum
sketchmeet has got a lot of people interested.

Participants of the Museum Sketchmeet posing for a photo with the staff of the National
Museum of the Philippines – Iloilo

Throwdown!