Courtesy of Benilde Open Design + Art
The upcoming Benilde Open Design + Art exhibition gathers artists and designers exploring climate, ecology, and experimentation through interdisciplinary works.
For the second iteration of Benilde Open Design + Art, it asks us a few questions: What if machines could breathe? What if materials could evolve? What if the future did not take inspiration from nature, but actively extended it?
From April 11 to 27, one can explore the answers in the Benilde Open Design + Art and Best of Benilde exhibition. With the theme, “Extension of Nature,” this year’s iteration challenges creatives to imagine a future where art and technology work with the environment, not against it.
“At its core, ‘Extension of Nature’ encourages practitioners to reflect on the urgent environmental realities of our time, from climate change to ecological instability,” says Dindin Araneta, executive director of Benilde Open. “Inspired in part by the legacy of kinetic art, the theme considers how technology can operate not as an opposing force to nature, but as something that can emulate, respond to, and engage with living systems.”
From the 130 proposals from artists, designers, and interdisciplinary practitioners, 10 emerge as this year’s grantees: Andi Osmeña, Bianca Carague, Karl Castro, Kiri Dalena and Ben Brix, Krishner Appay, Mac Andre Arboleda, Mikael Joaquin, Camille Jay “Cairo” Pinton, Nicolei Racal, Renz Tan, Michaela Sula, and Leanne Angulo of Maison Pinton Philippines, Niño Tayao, and architect Buddy Lim Ong and Mona Alcudia-Ong of Studio Unosinotra.
Aside from a range of ideas, the exhibition also presents a variety of disciplines, including video, installation, textile, industrial design, jewelry, and others. From these disciplines, discussions on the climate crisis to reimagining culture can be found, showing the intersection of art, design, technology, and sustainability.
Alongside the Benilde Open exhibition will be Best of Benilde, which is a category dedicated to Benilde students that supports the realization of student-led projects with both funding and full curatorial assistance. This year, the grantees of Best of Benilde are Patty Malijan and Tiyera, a group composed of Keren Dela Cruz, Xylene Del Castillo, and Stephen Vinzon.
At its core, Benilde Open remains a platform for experimentation. “What happens to ideas that are not yet realized? Bold ideas, strange ideas, the ones that are too experimental. Too often, these ideas disappear, not because they lack potential, but maybe because they lack support,” says Brother Edmundo Fernandez, president of Benilde. With grants such as Benilde Open, may many more bold, strange, crazy ideas come to fruition.
The exhibition opens on April 11 and will run until April 27, 2026 at several spaces in De La Salle College of Saint Benilde – School of Design + Arts (SDA) Campus.
