“The MassKara Festival this year with the theme ‘Life is Good in Bacolod’ will emphasize the value of art in our tourism program,” Festival director Eli Francis Tajanlangit said yesterday.

That is why they have a MassKara logo designed by nine emerging local artists who will hold a group show in October, he said.

Tajanlangit said they also plan to have an art map for Bacolod where tourists and art collectors can visit the studios or galleries of all the artists during the MassKara Festival.

“We are calling on the artists because we feel when other cities are trying to claim that they are the art capital of the Philippines or Asia, we have a fighting chance, considering the rich artistic traditions of the city,” Tajanlangit said.

That is why they have encouraged the active participation and involvement of artists in the MassKara - to make it a showcase of the city’s artistic gifts and thus help in its tourism campaign, he said.

Tajanlangit also said they will hold an art walk or art map so that when the tourists come, they will know where to go. Of course, the MassKara Festival is already showcasing local artistry in costume, music and dance, he added.

He said great cities all over the world are trying to position their places as art destinations, citing for example, Singapore, which exports artists to be able to claim that art thrives in their city.

“What more Bacolod where many artists thrive?” He asked, Bacolod only needs the venue and the market for their works, he said.

“I feel that before we are left out again in the tourism train, we should do something, the MassKara is a good opportunity for this,” he said.

Meanwhile, the MassKara logo that was launched on July 10 at the Bacolod City Government Center is now at SM City-Bacolod.

Tajanlangit said the eight letters of the MassKara will be displayed in different areas in Bacolod during the festival in October for the tourists to have their pictures taken. They also plan to come up with souvenir items using the MassKara logo, he said.

They are looking at various other public places where to display the MassKara logo and are also open to commercial establishments that are willing to host it, Tajanlangit said.

He said they want to move the logo to another venue, not just to sustain the interest in the MassKara Festival but also to keep reminding everyone that Bacolod is an important city not just in the Philippines but also in Asia.

Tajanlangit said this year’s logo is a statement of Bacolod’s vibrant, dynamic and thriving art scene – a fact that we should deploy in our tourism campaign as much as we highlight our food, places, and culture.

It captures the tourism attractions of Bacolod City where life is good, where art, which is the highest expression of man, is an everyday reality, he added.

The artists who worked on the MassKara logo are Emilio Montelibano, Susanito Sarnate, Claudine Joyce Ballesteros, JR Delleva, Guenievere Decena, Hilario Campos III, Roderick Tijing, Peter James Fantinalgo, and Daryl Anthony Jimenea.

Three established artists of Bacolod, Raymund Legaspi, Rudy Reveche and Charlie Co, were the creative consultants assisting them in creating the logo.*CGS

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