SETTING SAIL
Vinta-inspired hues make seemingly clashing elements come together—thanks to a Yakan textile head scarf from STUDIO SÜG, flounced babydoll dress from AZ FACTORY, pleated skirt from HOUSE OF LAUREL, and ring from VALDES DESIGNS. Photographed by Mark Nicdao for the April 2024 Issue of Vogue Philippines.
In one corner of Zamboanga’s Fort Pilar National Museum, a large net is hemmed with seashells and wooden corks, and displayed on an electric blue panel. It looks like a dress fanning out from afar, but the exhibit placard beneath reads otherwise:
Salibut tatik
Fish net
Sama | Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi
1992
Cord, abaca, wood, and shell
A throw net designed for deep waters with large holes, sinkers, and floaters to catch large-sized fish
The type of fishing net is no longer used, shares Errold Bayona, a DOT-accredited regional tour guide who shows the Vogue team around Fort Pilar and the rest of the city. When he takes us to another wing in the museum, fashion director Pam Quinoñes is inspired by flat circular ornaments dangling from an embellished umbrella; she instantly envisions a breastplate made with vintage coins.
A 60-foot handmade Yakan textile is draped atop an embellished RAJO LAUREL frock. The fabric comes in a Saputangan weave, a freestyle design derived from the weaver’s mind, making each piece unique. Meanwhile, Laurel’s dress is a serendipitously referential nod to the traditional Yakan facial painting for wedding ceremonies. Photographed by Mark Nicdao for the April 2024 Issue of Vogue Philippines.
The visit was only one of many fieldwork trips behind “Modesty,” Vogue Philippines’ April 2024 cover story. Scenographer and costume designer Gino Gonzales writes that it is a celebration of modest dressing, “a choice that favors less skin-revealing garments that fulfills spiritual and stylistic principles for reasons of faith or a simple personal preference to cover up.” In Mindanao, this kind of fashion prevails because of Islam, the second most prominent religion in the Philippines of which the region has the largest population. But that’s just one part of their culture.
An archival RAJO LAUREL dress gets a new life when paired with a HOUSE OF LAUREL blazer and pleated skirt. Grounding the ensemble are a salakot (a pastoral hat woven from palm) and FILIP + INNA’s Teloyong bell, which is an enlarged version of the ubiquitous brass bells of the Tboli. Photographed by Mark Nicdao for the April 2024 Issue of Vogue Philippines.
Highlighting the faces of Mindanao, the beauty issue puts the southern region’s narratives, makers, and cultures at the fore. On the cover, a homegrown maker and muse: Jolo-born Tausug model Shaira Ventura wears a langkit-trimmed Inabel dress by Maranao designer Abdul Gaffar. “The whole look was inspired from the malong and its multifunctionality,” he says. Worn by various indigenous communities in Mindanao, the malong is a tubular garment that can be used as a dress, cape, skirt, or head cover, among other things.
Bringing Pam’s vision to life is Studio Haring, whose custom chest plate was crafted with vintage Philippine coins in homage to the Maranao’s payong a diyakatan, an umbrella used for traditional royal ceremonies. Meanwhile, the Sama’s large and small fish nets (salibut tatik and salibut togeng, respectively) seen in the museum are refreshed by Jerome Lorico as a dress, neckpiece, and scarf crafted from homespun organic knit and mother-of-pearl.
Jerome Lorico’s homespun organic knit and mother-of-pearl dress, neckpiece, and scarf resemble the Sama’s salibut tatik and salibut togeng from Tawi-Tawi: throw fishnets designed to catch fish from deep and shallow waters. Photographed by Mark Nicdao for the April 2024 Issue of Vogue Philippines.
Meanwhile, echoing the region’s multicultural identity are fusions with global brands like AZ Factory, co-designed by Peter Morvin and British-born Filipino designer Norman René De Vera. Over in Manila, designer Rajo Laurel not only lent pieces from his ready-to-wear line, House of Laurel, but also opened up his archive.
The Hibiscus dress and skirt from AZ FACTORY’s Spring 2024 collection are designed by Peter Morvin and British-born Filipino designer Norman René Devera, and paired with a HOUSE OF LAUREL pleated dress. Photographed by Mark Nicdao for the April 2024 Issue of Vogue Philippines.
These garments old and new, local and global, are paired with ornate fabrics woven by the hands of indigenous artisans. Draped atop an archival Rajo Laurel frock is a 60-foot textile purchased directly from Yakan weaver Evelinda Otong-Hamja, who founded Tuwas Yakan Wavers—a collective of 30 to 40 Yakan weavers from Basilan and the Yakan Weaving Village in Zamboanga. In her youth, Evelinda appeared on the cover of Mabuhay, Philippine Airlines’ in-flight magazine. In a story on indigenous communities, she is garbed in local weaves and her face is decorated with tanyak-tanyak, a traditional Yakan facial painting for wedding ceremonies that Shaira wears, too.
Recalling the shoot, the young model says, “The outfits were really… it really covered me because there were lots of layers, and I loved the layers. I loved how they styled me. I really felt like… yes, I am from Mindanao.”
By GINO GONZALES Photographs by MARK NICDAO. Fashion Director PAM QUIÑONES. Makeup: Bea Mocorro. Hair: Mong Amado. Model: Shaira Ventura. Producer: Anz Hizon. Lighting Director: Villie James Bautista. Nails: Extraordinail. Production Assistant: Patricia Co. File Manager: John Phillip Nicdao. Photographer’s Assistants: Arsan Sulser Hofileña, Crisaldo Soco. Stylist’s Assistants: Neil De Guzman, Jia Torrato, Jill Santos, Kyla Uy.
