Projects and Performances
KALINGA MUSIC WORKSHOP!
Through ACTA’s Apprenticeship program, Requesto has been able to deepen her learning and understanding of Kalinga culture through music with her mentor and master artist, Jenny Bawer Young from Mabilong, Lubuagan, Kalinga. Come learn more about Kalinga traditional instruments and their applications in Kalinga culture!
The workshop is on Sunday, May 7th from 11AM-12PM at Sentro Filipino: The San Francisco Filipino Cultural Center at 814 Mission St. San Francisco, CA 94103.
This workshop is donation based - all proceeds will go back to the community! We hope to see you there!
KQED: Filipinx Arts Night w/ Ruby Ibarra and Balay Kreative
Rapper Ruby Ibarra joins a slate of artists from Balay Kreative--SoMa's Filipino arts hub--for an eclectic night of storytelling and performance, hosted by The Bay's Ericka Cruz Guevarra. Navigating a history of colonization and government corruption, Filipinos searching for economic opportunity put down roots in the Bay Area. Watch this celebration of the local Filipino American experience, forged through music, writing and art.
Photo by Mogli Maureal
Pangalay Circle: A Workshop Series
Pangalay Circle centers around workshops and in-person dance circles. We hope to connect community members with seasoned practitioners who specialize in Pangalay dances and related forms. These local practitioners would serve as the bridge between students and Indigenous culture bearers- channeling movement and lessons through workshops as well as facilitating dialogue through online platforms.
In October 2022, the first iteration of Pangalay Circle closed with a Community Celebration featuring performances from local groups and artists. Requesto also premiered her project that was supported as a Balay Kreative Growth Grantee.
This program is supported by the Alliance for California Traditional Arts, San Francisco Arts Commission, and Balay Kreative.
Pangalay Circle in the News: Inquirer- San Francisco’s Kapwa Gardens continues ‘cultural rebirth’
“Lumayo Ka Sa Araw” by KKSILOG at the Institute of Contemporary Art SF
KKSILOG, featuring interdisciplinary artists Kim Requesto and Kim Arteche, are excited to share this commissioned work with their community. “Lumayo Ka Sa Araw (Stay Away From the Sun)” presented at Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco on Friday, April 29. Doors open at 6PM, performances start at 7PM - we are sharing this evening with the presentation of WE LIVE HERE by Hien Huynh and Johnny Huy Nguyen.
“Dahil Sa Isang Bulaklak” at YBCA
Visit the Yerba Buena Center of the Arts Gallery in Downtown San Francisco to see “Dahil Sa Isang Bulaklak” as part of the SF Urban Film Fest curated show “Echo Location: The Cultural Geopolitics in South of Market”, on view until Oct 23rd, 2021.
Courtesy Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
Photo by Charlie Villyard
Kim Requesto Explores the Possibilities of Philippine Folk Dance in YUGTO
“We’re deconstructing oppressive values by shedding light on gender and sexual fluidity. Philippine folk dance is a vessel for exploring cultural identity, but it has yet to hone in on gender and sexual identity. Yugto reimagines the future of Philippine dance in a more inclusive light. The word, “yugto,” translates to chapter. We have to ask ourselves: how are we evolving as a community and what is the next chapter for Filipino folk dance? Can we even hope to evolve if cultural performance retains its colonial values? We have to think ahead, and challenge heteronormativity and gender norms traditionally portrayed in folk dance.”
A Look Through the Lens with Kim Requesto
“UNEDITED FILM: Gono Hofo, Lake Sebu, Philippines” is a zine that showcases photos of the T'boli community from Gono Hofo Heritage Center in Lake Sebu and will donate back to their community to support their School of Living Traditions and the artisans who live there.
This project is funded in part by a grant from Balay Kreative / Kultivate Labs .
“Balay Kreative is proud to support Requesto with her project, as we believe the struggles of indigenous peoples are interconnected with those of ours here in SOMA Pilipinas. We hope that her work will help offer reflections about culture and solidarity.”
- Kim Arteche, Balay Kreative Program Manager
Photo taken by Kim Requesto, at CTCSM in Mindanao 2018
Unedited Film: CTCSM, Philippines Pt. 1
Requesto self-published her book in October of 2019 titled, “Unedited Film: Philippines, CTCSM Pt. 1" which contains the visual experiences during her visit to CTCSM ( Community Technical College of Southeastern Mindanao) in February of 2018. Through her book, she is able introduce the audience to a small portion of the daily lives of the students as we learn more about the importance the school has within their lives and community. She was able to donate a majority of her proceeds from the book to an organization that directly supports the Lumad community. She is currently working on two more book projects to continue to share the vast stories of different indigenous communities in the Philippines.
Original Piece - Upsulungon (Intrusion)
On September 1,2015, a Manobo Lumad Community in Northern Mindanao was rounded up and two of their community leaders were shot at close range in front of them. Later, community members found the head of their school dead as well. This piece was inspired and ignited by the injustices and atrocities that have been and are still being committed towards indigenous communities in the Philippines and globally. Through movement and music, it is my goal to educate and enlighten the audience of the realities that many Filipino’s and indigenous communities have been enduring. The choreography are dramatized and theatrical interpretations, but it doesn’t stray away from the truth of what happens. The music, movements, and attire are inspired by the Bagobo people, one of 18 Lumad groups in Mindanao.
This piece has been presented at the Asian Art Museum during Apature 2016, Bindlestiff Studios, SFSU 44th and 47th PCN, and at the 10th Anniversary show of Parangal Dance Company at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center.
Photo taken by Anthony Bongco the Asian Art Museum, Apature 2016
Jenny Bawer Young (Left) and Kimberly Requesto (Right) in traditional Kalinga attire. Photo taken by This Is It Photography
Alliance for California Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program
Kimberly along her mentor, Jenny Bawer Young, was accepted into ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program in 2016. Jenny trained her apprentice Kimberly Requesto in the practice of the indigenous Kalinga dance of the Philippines. In 2018, Kimberly went to Mabilong, Lubuagan, Kalinga to learn directly from Cirilo “Sapi” Bawer, a cultural bearer and co-founder of KAYAW (to “head hunt”) Cultural Group of Lubuagan.
Kimberly has been able to teach and lead workshops based on Kalinga dance, throughout the US and internationally.