SF

Reviving, Restoring Pasig River

Friday, 06 March 2009 17:26 Momar G. Visaya/AJPress

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

MAKATI CITY—Gina Lopez has embarked on yet another gargantuan task, that of cleaning the Pasig River and restoring it to its old glory.

On February 24, at a grand media launch held at the Makati Park and Garden, Lopez led a multi-sector group to launch “Kapit Bisig sa Ilog Pasig” – a massive clean-up and rehabilitation campaign to rescue the ailing Pasig River. The project is led by the ABS-CBN Foundation Inc. (AFI) and the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC), under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Red, White and Pinay

Wednesday, 25 February 2009 21:29 Malou Liwanag–aguilar / AJPress San Francisco

(4 votes, average: 4.75 out of 5)

Learning how to taste wines is a straightforward adventure that will deepen your appreciation for both wines and winemakers. Look, smell, taste—starting with your basic senses and expanding from there you will learn how to taste wines like the pros in no time! Keep in mind that you can smell thousands of unique scents, but your taste perception is limited to salty, sweet, sour and bitter. It is the combination of smell and taste that allows you to discern flavor.

Okay, I would like to pretend that the paragraph above came from me, but unfortunately, I just picked it up from a website after googling some information on the basics of wine tasting. I wish I could say that I am that well versed about knowing wines, but I’m a just a writer.

The Art of Marinas

Wednesday, 18 February 2009 23:03 Malou Liwanag-Aguilar /AJPress San Francisco

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

Painter Jessie Marinas talks about miracles, motivation and passion

I could call him ‘Miracle Man in Manteca,’ but some would say that would be pushing it. However, after talking to artist Jessie Marinas over the phone, I realized that we all make our own miracles based on our passion and faith. Marinas could very well be the perfect example.

Born in the Philippines, Marinas migrated here in the United States in 1973. Although his passion was art, he had to make sacrifices, being the eldest among 12 siblings. "Nasa akin ang burden, (The burden was on my shoulders)," he said and added, "It was a sad situation, I was born a painter, pero kailangan ko tumigil dahil napakahirap maghanap ng trabaho. (I was born a painter, but I had to stop [painting] because it was hard to look for a job."

On Love and Marriage

Wednesday, 11 February 2009 23:00 Malou Liwanag-Aguilar / AJPress San Francisco

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

AFTER days of rain around the Bay Area, the sun finally came out that day.

But this piece is not really about the weather, it is actually about love, marriage and relationships. The weather is just an analogy of sorts on what relationships could go through —there’ll be sunshine, but a storm can also spoil it, depending on how two people can survive through it.

Filipino artist Don Amorsolo's take on Life and Art

Thursday, 29 January 2009 01:56 Malou Liwanag-Aguilar AJPress

(10 votes, average: 4.60 out of 5)

Filipino artist Don Amorsolo's take on Life and Art

I’VE always seen artists as people with strange moods. So when I was able to set up an interview with Don Amorsolo at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, I had some hesitations, especially when I found out that he is the grandson of one of the most important artists in the history of painting in the Philippines, National Artist Fernando Amorsolo.

But talking with Don Amorsolo changed my perception about art and artists as he himself is one—vibrant, interesting and living in full color. Recently chosen as a visiting J. William Fulbright scholar-in-residence at the university for the 2008-2009 academic year, Don brings more than his artistic skills and background to the students. For one, he is also an educator, being a professor and chair of the Fine Arts and Interior Design Department at Manila’s St. Scholastica’s College, and a person whose ideas about life are as colorful as the paintings on his canvas.