MANILA, PHILIPPINES — TernoCon, a terno-making (set-of-clothes-making) convention and contest, commenced with its first workshop-mentoring for the finalists on June 17 to 22, at the Training Center of the Baguio Country Club. The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and Bench/Suyen Corporation pursue their mission of preserving and promoting the Philippine dress through the implementation of TERNOCON.
The fourth edition of TernoCon featured the balintawak (a native Filipino dress), but the emphasis focused on and drew inspiration from the works of the 20th-century Philippine Visual Arts which aims to build an organization that advances modern art in the Philippines.
Selected from 82 applications, the 12 finalists and two semi-finalists were: 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 who come from Ilocos Norte, La Union, Tarlac, Batangas, Capiz, Silay, Iloilo, South Cotabato, Davao, Makati, Taguig, Quezon City, and Manila.
Prior to the selection, all applicants attended two-day Zoom lectures last April 09 and 11 conducted by fashion, design, and art experts including Mark Lewis Lim Higgins, Victoria “Boots” Herrera, and Gino Gonzales.
To help the finalists achieve the competition goals, some of the country’s experts in design were there to mentor and guide them, led by TERNOCON’s Chief Mentor since 2018, Inno Sotto along with Ezra Santos, Lulu Tan Gan, Rhett Eala, TernoCon’s Founding Artistic Director Gino Gonzales and present art director Ricardo Eric Cruz. The workshop lectures included topics on the history of the terno, balintawak and kimono; design parameters; knitting and fabric manipulation; new technology, colors & patterns; traditional techniques, understructure & embellishments.
The first lock-in workshop was presented in partnership with the Barasoain Kalinangan Foundation Inc., Baguio Country Club, and St. Louis University Baguio. The second lock-in workshop is set for October 17-22. The final competition and cultural show are slated for January 25, 2025 at the PICC.
The CCP Cultural Exchange Department and CCP Production Design & Technical Services Division are the two units leading the project implementation with the TernoCon organizing team and the Bench advertising and promotional team.
For more information, visit the CCP website and check out the Facebook pages of TernoCon, CCP, Bench, and CCP Cultural Exchange Department.
