The 2016 SikatPinoy National Arts & Crafts Fair, with its theme “Piling-Pling Likhang Pilipino,” will be held from October 26 to 30, at Megatrade Halls 1-3 at SM Megamall, Mandaluyong City.
This is the second of three national trade fairs scheduled for 2016, organized by the Department of Trade and Industry – Bureau of Domestic Trade Promotion (DTI-BDTP) to help promising micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), especially those from the regions, reach a wider domestic market and, hopefully, prepare them for the global export market.
Focusing on innovative expressions of Philippine arts and crafts across the regions of the country, the 2016 SikatPinoy National Arts & Crafts Fair has two main components: (1) Crafts that broadly refer, but not limited to, ornaments, jewelry, interior fixtures, fashion accessories, fabric, and related objects; and (2) Contemporary Art that crosses the conventional divide between art and craft.
Exhibitors were carefully chosen from the different regions based on stringent criteria. According to DTI-BDTP Director Rhodora M. Leaño, “We want the 2016 SikatPinoy National Arts & Crafts Fair to promote craft practices that are strongly rooted in local environments, but are, at the same time, responsive to the demands of a new global esthetic, attentive to cosmopolitan strategies, conscious of ecological issues, and open to experimentation in the area of material and design.”
The exhibition hall will be organized into four sections: (1) The Main Display section with a sampling of the products of exhibitors; (2) Exhibitors’ Booths; (3) Pods for Contemporary Art projects; and (4) Performance Areas with seating that will also serve as rest stations.
Expected to grace the formal opening on Wednesday, October 26, are Senator Juan Miguel “Migz” F. Zubiri, Trade, Commerce and Entrepreneurship and Cooperatives Committee Chairperson, Senate of the Philippines; Congressman Ferjenel G. Biron, M.D., Chairperson, Trade and Industry Committee, House of Representatives; and DTI Undersecretary for Industry Promotion Group Nora K. Terrado.
Admission to the 2016 SikatPinoy National Arts and Crafts Fair is free. For inquiries and more information, call the DTI-BDTP at 751-3223, or email [email protected].