Bayaning Inday at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP)

Bayaning Inday is the offshoot of Freedom in Prison Project which started in 2014 as a community outreach of the Fine Arts Major Organization with Lead Teaching Artist/Adviser, Ma Rosalie Zerrudo. As part of the travelling art exhibition, Hilway art exhibitions showcased the artworks produced with the women Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDL) in Iloilo City District Jail, Female
Dormitory. It is a creation which unveils the stories of pain, survival, resistance and resilience of women mothering behind bars through powerful hand-made art pieces that speak from and to the heart. Bayaning Inday dolls is a collaborative juxtaposition of rug tapestry mosaic and soft sculptural piece mounted in a “womb” altar of Inday. Inday dolls are soft sculptures encapsulated
stories of objects mounted as multi-layered fabric tapestry installation resembling dwelling spaces or a multi-dimensional womb.

Hilway, coined from the Filipino term meaning “Freedom,” is a collaborative project between the University of San Agustin, Iloilo and the women inmates of Iloilo City District Jail – Female Dormitory. The project is popular for its most iconic product the “Inday Dolls” – handmade one of a kind dolls, which tell the stories and “hugot” (angst), feelings, experiences and stories of the women inmates of Iloilo City District Jail.

Bayaning Inday is one of the many Hilway art exhibitions presented by the Fine Arts Major Organization (FAMO). It is a creation which unveils the stories of pain, survival, resistance and resilience of women mothering behind bars through powerful hand-made art pieces that speak from and to the heart. Bayaning Inday dolls is a collaborative juxtaposition of rug tapestry mosaic and soft sculptural piece mounted in a “womb” altar of Inday. Inday dolls are soft sculptures encapsulated stories of objects mounted as multi-layered fabric tapestry installation resembling dwelling spaces or a multi-dimensional womb.

The Wall of Bayaning Inday Dolls

Bayaning Inday as stories of objects speaks of resilience as portraits of personal
heroes by the women behind bars. Each Inday doll is a distinct character as mother, sister, lover, friend, grandmother and women venerated and admired for their strength and sacrifices. The process of sewing, weaving, beading reconstruct the broken pieces as symbolic gesture of healing expressions.

This wall of Bayaning Inday Dolls displayed in colorful and vibrant boxes is the
voice of the silent women heroes of Iloilo City District Jail. It is a personal assertion of women mothering behind bars. The art making of these dolls serves as psycho-social support, where women exercise their own sense of freedom navigating in a tight small crowded prison space through stories of objects. Women recreated a new self with new colors to light up their life in their darkest times.

Women show their strongest fervor through their resilience and expression of personal pain. The body is a vehicle of stories where the invisible buried emotions are manifested in art objects creating a powerful, tangible, accessible dialogue in the present.

INDAY DOLLS

Inday Dolls are stories of objects, visual narratives of women artists mothering
behind bars. The women express symbolic representation of their painful life stories creating new colors in their darkest times. Women earn as artists who continue to support their families as breadwinners while mothering behind bars.

The inverted pyramid zooms in and represents several generations of women.
The Inday Doll at the bottom plays a significant part in the survival of the next clan for she carries on her shoulders a generation of women. The loss of one woman is a loss of many generations.

ALTAR NI INDAY

Altar ni Inday or “Altar of Inday” is a juxtaposition of several elements such as the macramé altar installation, beaded hammock of dreams and a beautifully handmade crochet flowers, herbs and medicinal plants, wings, and inday dolls made by the women artists of Iloilo City District Jail – Female Dormitory resembling the “woman” – woman of resilience – surrounded by beads of the virgin mother Mary, colorful crocheted flowers and sacred leaves, eternal flowers and vines. The altar bows to the each sacred woman whether scarred as mother (nanay), suffered as a sister (ate), neglected as a grandmother (lola), deprived as an aunt (tita) and isolated as a friend (kaibigan). In celebration of women’s month, this altar was created to express our gratitude and deepen appreciation towards all kinds of women.

ALTAR NI INDAY

WINGS OF DREAMS

These beaded wings are the dreams of women—their freedom behind bars. Just
like their Inday dolls, these wings also hold their story or their personal “hugot”.

HUGOT BOOK

This book made from fabric is a book of stories, messages, the “hugot” of the
women artists of Iloilo City District Jail – Female Dormitory. Each hugot is sewn and beaded on pillow cases, also known as “hugot sa punda.” These hugot sa punda were compiled and made into this powerful book of hugot—hugot about their emotions, families and freedom.

INDAY TERNO

Inday Terno is a new gerenation of Inday Dolls portraying a different story of the
women artists as their contemporary expression of the Filipina values and connecting to their indigenous roots and showcasing the local patadyong as part of their clothes.

WALK TO FREEDOM

“Fashion story… Wear your story.. Walk your passion”…

Walk to Freedom is themed as portrait of women PDL expressed through clothes. This is a collection of symbolic fashion wear which tells the story “hugot” of each woman PDL of Iloilo City District Jail – Female Dormitory. Each clothing either speaks of their emotions, their freedom but most of all, their families—about their children, their parents and lovers. Walk to Freedom has showcased its clothing in various occasions starting with St. Patron’s Day at the University of San Agustin, Iloilo City. Their next showcase was at Festive Mall, Megaworld, Iloilo City and within the prison space of Iloilo City District Jail during Iloilo Theater Festival with women inmates as character models.

BAYANING INDAY RUG PORTRAITS

The rug portraits are collaborative art work between the women artists in jail and the students of Fine Arts Major Organization (FAMO) of the University of San Agustin. The women PDL choose a powerful story of resilience among the women in each of the cell. The FAMO artists made pose references through photograph and graphic art that serve as grid reference for the PDL to weave used clothes and recycled and upcycled fabrics into beautiful portraits.

BEADING OF WINGS

As part of the opening ceremony, the power women circle started the beading of the wings as a symbol of freedom. Women in jail grew new wings and fly through their artworks. Guests did the same as the foamed wings were brought to each guest.

CUTTING OF THE RIBBON

Special guests along with exhibit curator, Ma. Rosalie Zerrudo, curator/lead artists joined her in the cutting of the ribbon during the opening of exhibition;

Rica Concepcion (Journalist)

Amy Noel Francisco (Special Education Teacher)

Maricel Montero and Noreen Parafina, (Museo Pambata)

Belen Calingacion, PhD, (Chair, Speech and Communication, UP Diliman)

Willie Garcia, IDR (MADE Awardee)

From the BJMP

JSSUPT Felixberto S Jagorin, Director of Welfare and Development

JO3 Nardo B. Zambales

JO2 Arianne Obias

JO1 Krisna Mae Apuac

JO1 Jovelyn Domingo

SINSP Aubrey R Gutierrez, District Warden, ICDJFD