TERNOCON, a convention and contest celebrating the traditional Filipino terno, kicks off with its inaugural workshop for finalists from June 17-22, 2024, at the Baguio Country Club Training Center. The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and Bench/Suyen Corporation continue their commitment to preserving and promoting Philippine dress through TERNOCON.
Now in its fourth edition, TERNOCON will spotlight the balintawak, drawing inspiration from 20th-century Philippine visual arts to advance modern art in the country.
Chosen from 82 applicants, the 12 finalists and 2 semi-finalists hail from various provinces including Ilocos Norte, La Union, Tarlac, Batangas, Capiz, Silay, Iloilo, South Cotabato, Davao, Makati, Taguig, Quezon City, and Manila. They include Windell B. Madis, Geomarie Hernandez, Johnoel Marin, Patrick Lazol, Jericho Gonzales, Irene Subang, Bryan Peralta, Peter Gagula, Ramonito Silva, Lexter Badana, Jared Palmejar, Xioti Chiu, Monina Gatan, and Jema Gamer.
In preparation, all applicants participated in two-day Zoom lectures on April 9 & 11, 2024, conducted by fashion, design, and art experts such as Mark Lewis Lim Higgins, Victoria “Boots” Herrera, and Gino Gonzales.
To guide the finalists towards their competition goals, renowned design experts from the Philippines will mentor them. Leading the mentoring team are Inno Sotto, Ternocon’s Chief Mentor since 2018, along with Ezra Santos, Lulu Tan Gan, Rhett Eala, and Ternocon’s Founding Artistic Director Gino Gonzales, alongside present Artistic Director Ricardo Eric Cruz. Workshops will cover topics ranging from the history of the terno, Balintawak, and kimono; design parameters; fabric manipulation techniques; to the use of new technologies, colors, and patterns; traditional techniques, understructures, and embellishments.
The first lock-in workshop is presented in collaboration with the Barasoain Kalinangan Foundation Inc., Baguio Country Club, and St. Louis University Baguio. The second lock-in workshop is scheduled for October 17-22, 2024. The final competition and cultural show will take place on January 25, 2025, at the PICC.
The project is spearheaded by the CCP Cultural Exchange Department and CCP Production Design & Technical Services Division, in partnership with the Ternocon organizing team and Bench’s advertising and promotional team.
For further details, visit the CCP website or the Facebook pages of TERNOCON, CCP, Bench, and CCP Cultural Exchange Department.
