8 Exciting Events That Made The Anthology Festival A Success

Set in the historic Fort Santiago in Intramuros, Manila, the 5th Anthology Architecture and Design Festival celebrated the theme “Think Architecture,” Curated by William Ti, Jr., Principal Architect of WTA Architecture and Design Studio, the event was an invitation to explore and ponder the ideas and frameworks that shape the structures that we build to house our needs and desires.  

The three-day forum ran from 7 to 9 February and brought together leading architects, designers, industry leaders, and the general public in a series of talks, workshops, and collaborations. With over 150 local and foreign thought leaders in architecture and urbanism that headlined this year’s Anthology, the festival raised awareness on how architecture and design should affect our communities and the built environment.   Exploring the grounds of Fort Santiago and capturing the essence of our collective built environment, over 5000 guests immersed in multiple platforms for architectural discussions and debates.  

1.     Anthology Talks featured the best and brightest minds in the architecture community, including Wong Mun Summ of WOHA, Andra Matin, Ricardo Bofill of RBTA, Alireza Taghaboni, Benjee Mendoza, Javier Guijo, Camiel Weijenberg, Gelo Mañosa, BC Ang, Norman Muaña, Rebecca Plaza, Chatpong Chuenrudeemol, Ed Calma, Shingo Masuda, Jean Marie Cheval, Go Hasegawa, Rory McGowan, and Cathy Saldana, who shared their ideas about architecture and design.  

2.     Shelter Dialogues hosted a series of dialectic panels moderated by Clifford Pearson, Rebecca Plaza, Manny Miñana, Arvin Pangilinan, Imelda Akmal, Stephanie Tan Braquinho, and Tobias Guggenheimer. The panels led to a dynamic discussion highlighting the multiplicity of thoughts and ideas in the community.  

3.     Think Architecture Exhibit featured the works that highlighted the diversity and richness of architectural practice from all over the world.  

4.     Anthology Raw was a crowd-favorite, filling up the Almacenes Reales as students and professionals alike witnessed lively debates between thought leaders such as Undi Gunawan, Kevin Low, Joel Luna, Mauro Berta, and Denise de Castro.  

5.     Competitions - the Live Design Competition, gave students from the Philippines, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, and Thailand, a total of 26 hours to provide a design proposal for the reuse of the Aduana Museum. Universitas Pelita Harapan of Indonesia wins the competition with its innovative and clever design strategy while Politecnico di Torino of Italy received a special mention for its bold and daring proposal. Another Competition within the festival, The Anthology Professional Design Competition, invited teams of professional architects and designers to produce a design proposal for the Golden Bay Landholdings Chapel, proclaiming Team Salvador Sigua Diamzon as the winner. Photography enthusiasts and sketch artists also contributed their artistic touch, submitting photos and sketches during the event.  

6.     Anthology Workshops conducted by industry leaders Arup and PDP Architects shared their ideas on advancement in architecture technology applied in their work and sustainability in the Philippines, respectively.  

7.     Anthology Sessions, a new addition to this year’s festival, brought together ideas and produced an manifesto informing how architecture can be better used to steer the inexorable growth of our built environment. The sessions were hosted at the WTAxBoysen Pavilion - “No Virgins”, aptly named for its commitment to recycled materials.  

8.     Follies , expressed the ideas and artistic visions of WTA Architecture and Design Studio, Jonathan Gan + Associates, PGAA Creative Design, VisionArch, Jagnus Design Studio, Joson Design, and Buensalido Architects as guests engaged and immersed themselves in their various installations.