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YOUTH UPRISING The beginnings of a revolution.
ISSUE NO
12
LIEU
noun stead; place (esp in the phrases in lieu, in lieu of) Behind LIEU Online Magazine are young people who are passionate about photography, music, literature, film, fashion, travel, graphic design — anything that stirs the soul and inspires expression. By offering LIEU as a space for budding artists to share their craft, we hope to influence more people to get out, get inspired and start creating. WWW.LIEUMAGAZINE.COM @LIEUMAGAZINE | FB.COM/LIEUMAGAZINE
ROLL CALL CREATIVE DIRECTOR Aidx Paredes
MANAGING EDITOR Janna Moya
FEATURE WRITERS Amelia Baird Chit Lacson Ramon Erum
ONLINE HEAD Mo Jaravelo
CONTRIBUTORS Kaizen Recto, Kyle Veneracion, Ferdinand Mesias, Leah Valle, Mirjam Dalire, Rap Meting, Shynjiryuu
EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS Cheekie Albay Jad Montenegro, Kristine Serrano
i s s u e n o 1 2 I N L I E U CIRCUIT mixtape we’re taking over food the big picture featured artist the curious case: 5 questions with megan palero lifestyle back to basics travel light events & special features elements 2014 discover davao 2014
close encounters cover story a new anthem
filmroll contributions the whimsical adventures iii dreaming in the province life walk technicolor chill zone
Circuit
mixtape
We’re Taking Over a mixtape by Amelia Baird
It’s an old saying that the youth have the power to change the world. And it makes sense: The youth have always been among those who have changed the face of music, fashion, literature, and the arts. We could all use some music to soundtrack our upcoming revolution.
John Mayer, “Waiting on the World to Change”
The Youth, “MGMT”
Mayer’s chill-out track is the calm before the storm.
When we’re older, we’ll realize how much time we had on our hands. Rebel, revel, and rejoice.
Francoise Hardy, “Le Temp de L’amour”
Morrissey, “World Peace is None of Your Business”
Made popular by Wes Anderson from his movie A track about casting your vote to get some change Moonrise Kingdom, this tune ought to get you up from going. And remember, the elections are not too far you internet-ready device and dance. ahead.
Le Tigre, “Deceptacon”
incubus, “idiot box”
“Who took the bomp / From the bompalom- The “idiot box” was once just the TV. Now it’s palomp?” Don’t answer it. Just revel in this estro- handheld tablets, smart phones, and a bunch of othgen-filled anthem. er things.
The Strokes, “You Only Live Once”
twenty one pilots, “holding on to you”
YOLO is the carpe diem of yesterday. It is also a place in California but more importantly, a song by When you get past the fast-paced vocals and the The Strokes. misleading song title, this song is a lot deeper than you think.
LISTEN TO THE MIXTAPE — www.lieumagazine.com
food
The Big Picture Text and Photography by Leah Valle
Leah Valle takes on cuisine with a historical spin at The Big House, A Heritage Home.
https://www.facebook.com/thebighousedavao
The Big House, A Heritage Home is an ancestral house that is 65 years old, thus, the opening of its kitchen and bedrooms for guests is actually a symbolic ode to culture and heritage. Being one of the oldest houses in Davao City, The Big house offers not just good homemade food but also history and tradition. Although the house was renovated to answer to modern demands of diners and travelers, its soul, like the family crest, is still evident and proud. COFFEE AND THE BIG HOUSE COFFEE CAKE We began with coffee. I could smell it even before she reached my table. It was presented to me in a large French coffee press filled to the brim. It was three cups worth. It was tasty, smooth, and not too strong – something non-coffee drinkers can tolerate without having palpitations. To pair with my coffee was The Big House Coffee Cake. Served warm, Big House Coffee Cake is moist chocolate cake served with cold vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. It was only 7am and I contentedly thought how this is a great way to kiss the morning.
BEEF WITH MUSHROOM ON FRIED SOTANGHON Beef. Flour. Butter. Mushrooms. Such a rich dish, I thought. The taste is reminiscent of beef stroganoff minus the sour cream. The noodles are crispy and the sauce, served in a different bowl, is thick. The sauce’s consistency is smooth and the strips of beef add to the texture. Anticipation builds as you pour the sauce and hear the noodles pop. Stir accordingly and eat.
PAELLA The rice, being the most important ingredient was able to absorb the flavor. The pan is shallow and splayed on the side. When scooped, the rice was able to hold its shape in a spoon – the perfect consistency. The stock liquid they infused with saffron provided a subtle background taste to the rice. It even has a little socarrat (that caramelized crust at the bottom of the pan.) The amount of crab, shrimp, clams, and string beans were just apt – something that I am really happy about. One fatal flaw that most restaurants commit is that they excessively smother the dish with many different meats, vegetables, and seafood not realizing that each ingredient has its own place in establishing the flavor of the rice. Best paired with lightly dressed salad.
SHRIMP SCAMPI PASTA This dish plays with your senses. The aroma of garlic teases even before you taste the pasta. Sauce was butter and garlic with herbs deglazed with a little white wine, just thick enough to coat the pasta. The shrimp were plentiful and delicious, perfectly matching the garlic scampi sauce. Just right for lunch or dinner.
The Big House, A Heritage Home is located at Juna Avenue, Davao City Leah Valle is a fine arts photographer, among other things. She runs a food blog at http://kitchenhopping.com
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featured artist
The Curious Case: 5 Questions with Megan Palero Motion graphics designer Megan Palero has created a surreal, mindbending world with his animations. Take a peek into the man behind the madness with this interview.
http://cargocollective.com/meganpalero
MEGAN PALERO’S SELF PORTRAIT
Manila-based motion graphics artist Megan Palero has been steadily gaining traction in the creative industry as of late. The self-taught artist studied visual arts in Davao City National High School, and since then already showed interest in a diverse set of mediums. “I would do oil paintings and murals, conceptual compositions and charcoal. Working with various mediums and its principles helps me to establish the elements of converting them to digital works such as modular drawings for animation and motion graphics as my form of communication,” he explains.
You are known for your motion graphics. Is there anything else that you are passionate about? I’ve never considered that I am good at it. For me, ‘motion graphics’ is a lame term to use for what I am known for. Motion graphics is like a vast universe, I am not. It’s just that I enjoy experimenting with movements and time. As a spectator, I’m very conscious in compositing details and how it will verify its connection to the viewers. I am very passionate about studying optical illusions, producing a library of noise for sound, and reading books because by defining things, you can discover new possibilities.
In the creative industry, where people do the same thing in different ways, how do you stand out? By maintaining that positive interaction with the viewers. We speak through the eyes and we break rules, but sometimes we don’t know that we’re already out of the context. For me, it must be more relative as it should.
Choose only one: to make something you love doing for free, or to make something you despise for a million dollars To make something that I believe in and at the same time to make something that would help me pay the bills. In that way, I could restore balIs there anything unique about your process ance to my world. for creating art? I create concept models first and graphic modules as a unit of drawings and generative ele- What inspires you to follow your passion? ments that may vary in different Knowing that there is no rewind, I just keep on form, color, and movement. I always make sure moving and exploring more about transformathat it’s consistent and united within a variety. tion. I also read books whenever I’m out of creative juice. For me, reading is feeding.
SCREEN CAP OF KAAPIN’S “MELUSINA” MUSIC VIDEO
lifestyle
Back to basics Text by Janna Moya Photography by Aidx Paredes
Balik Bukid Farm & Kitchen is a genuine farm-to-plate initiative that has burst into the scene largely by word of mouth. Here, we’ll find a restaurant marching to its own beat amidst the chaos that comes with the culinary trade.
https://www.facebook.com/balikbukidako
BALIK BUKID RESTAURANT AND SHOP is located at Quimpo Boulevard, Ecoland BALIK BUKID SA WANGAN is located at Barangay Wangan, Calinan
Guests of Balik Bukid Restaurant and Shop are up for a whimsical beckoning. To wit: A vintage coal-powered iron sits as the table centrepiece; beneath the glass, ironing boards or sewing machines are repurposed as table legs. As for food, chef ’s specials once included Dakua sa pan uy!, which one can safely assume is a rather large stylized bread. Illuminada “Louella” Garcia, the chief farm caretaker largely responsible for one half of the enterprise namesake, says it was their interior designer sister Willie Garcia who came up with the upcycled interiors while the youngest of the trio is the head chef. More proud than abashed, Louella explains the siblings are perfectly “tugma-tugma sa ka-weirdohan.” Balik Bukid is a love letter to organic food, with 8085% of their ingredients sourced from their own 3.5 hectare farm at Wangan, Calinan. The sprawling land is home to a carefully designed ecosystem that’s free of any pesticides, commercial feeds, and other controversial chemicals.
kitchen with an intensity that can only be attributed to an artful approach of his craft. After working two years in Dubai for experience, he headed home to begin the march of the culinary crusade. Balik Bukid began with international and Lebanese-inspired cuisine, but has since been reinvented to a menu that is largely Filipino-inspired. Balik Bukid is prized with a secret ingredient lacking in places that promise to satiate: honesty. Without getting ahead of himself, Paolo explains how overly-processed, commercially-raised produce and livestock eventually becomes food that can make you tired instead of energized. Advocates worldwide are convinced that going organic is the better, healthier choice. Interestingly, the people behind Balik Bukid lack the pretension of working in an organic restaurant. “Hindi kami diehard na organic ni Paolo... kumakain kami ng McDonald’s. Ayaw namin mabuhay ng 100 years old,” Louella says with a cheeky grin.
Taking the helm of Balik Bukid’s kitchen is inter- With food as finely and innovatively made as Balik nationally-trained head chef, Paolo Garcia. Roused Bukid’s, it’s all jokes aside: “We’re not kidding when from sleep at 7am, he cooks breakfast at the farm’s we put food in your mouth.”
FARM BREAKFAST potato fritters, poached egg, sausage or gluten substitute, hollandaise, and mushrooms
LOUELLA GARCIA
CHEF PAULO GARCIA
lifestyle
Travel Light Text by Janna Moya
Hitchhiker Angely Chi recalls the tales and travails of sitting in a cramped-up passenger seat in the middle of nowhere. Plus, insider details on how to hitch – if you’re up to the challenge.
Angely Chi had other things in mind when she was dropped off at the airport. The plan was, somehow: hitch a truck until she found herself – some hundreds of kilometres away from where she stood – in Cagayan de Oro City. And she did. (That is, she made it in one piece after having declared at some point, “Okay, bad start.”) She came back from her first hitchhike alone, her first travel alone outside the city, at that, feeling resigned to academics. In her travels, she’s been mistaken for a rebel, a salot, and a Satanist. But all the while, she speaks mostly of kindness, especially from fathers driving the trucks she hitched. Besides, sitting in a cramped-up passenger seat in the middle of nowhere is no place for a lady. “If you were my daughter, I’d chain you to the house,” a driver once told her in vernacular. “When you hitchhike, you are usually the guest,” she says, adding that people will go out of their way to share their food, and make sure you’re comfortable.
She says that drivers usually take you in for novelty, companionship, or out of pity. “It depends on how the conversation goes,” she says, but for her, she doesn’t often need to explain much. She just mentions her two hitchhike constants: there’s an art event she needed to attend to, and there will be someone to meet her there. As an art advocate, Angely has been actively involved in all things from curating local art to housing travelling artists. Hitchhiking to art events is just one of the quirks her demeanor and her lifestyle allows. Plus, “it’s possible to travel without spending too much.” Now that she’s been hitchhiking for a while now, there’s a sense of calmness she feels while travelling. There are many things to keep in mind, and with time and practice, it becomes second nature. Above all things, “[have] a firm resolve,” she says. No one ever gets anywhere worthwhile without being firm and determined about getting there.
7
Tale of the Tape
BAGUIO
CITY Furthest from hometown she’s hitchhiked
LONGEST
ROUTE
Least money she brought to a hitchhike: None, she thought at first. Then she rummaged through her bag Dumaguete via Davao - Cagayan de and found P7 Oro - Lanao - Ozamis - Dapitan. Destination: Nabunturan, It took her 3 days Compostella Valley
Feel like hitchhiking? 1. Find the guts to do it. 2. Don’t panic, you can’t think straight that way. Learn to read body language to find better gauge of the situation. People’s intentions might change, and you need to catch that. Learn to read the weather, too. 3. Have something for the drivers, like cigarettes. Prepare your best stories: Sometimes, all they need is someone to talk to. 4. Be courteous. Don’t ditch when they’re having a rough time, like when the car breaks down. Leave only when your safety is at stake. 5. Wear rubber shoes or slippers. You’ll have to chase a truck, and convince the driver to let you ride before lights go green. 6. Don’t primp yourself, especially when you are a female. You might be sending out the wrong signals.
PHOTOS C/O ANGELY CHI
PARTNER EVENT
ELEMENTS
2014
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The membership card is part of the Discover Davao Privilege Program, which is set to help you get great deals on both iconic and emerging destinations around the city. You can register for a membership online (www.awesomedeals.ph), or offline at Door 5 Yolanda Bldg., 201 Sobrecarey St., cor. Clarin St., BO. Obrero, Davao City. You can also sign up at any of Discover Davao’s partner merchants’ establishments (http://awesomedeals.ph/our-partners/). The membership fee of PhP599 can be paid through cash, bank transfer, over-thecounter bank deposit, credit card, or Paypal. The membership lasts for a year and can be renewed at only PhP299. For more information on bank transactions, a complete list of partner merchants, and other general inquiries, log on to www.awesomedeals.ph or call (082) 285-3004.
PROMOTIONS
close encounters
cover story
a new anthem Text by Miguel Cervantes Photography by Rap Meting With the film’s lead actors Christian Hager and Prexy Whittmer, cinematographer Rap Meting, and writer/director Bagane Fiola in tow, we were all set for a make-believe prelude to local independent film Sonata Maria’s most beautiful, and heartwrenching flashback. And like the film production, the cover shoot was not spared of the uncanny.
Like finding money on the street when you forgot your wallet, Sonata Maria was born and created out of the inner workings of what writer/director Bagane Fiola enthusiastically claims as “serendipity.”
For the LIEU cover shoot, an idea for a make-believe scene floated around. It was supposed to be a prelude to the mystical arcade scene, set in Ramon Bonifacio’s (Christian Hager) point of view. While walking around, the team eyed an abandoned house (“tabi apo”) within the vicinity -- and just decided: to hell with it. We strangely found an unstable 3-legged chair for the equally turbulent Ramon, and a plastic bouquet of sunflowers for the luminous Maria (Prexy Whittmer). They were just there on the porch, right next to each other. Now we’re sure even the spirits are rooting for us.
From the start, Sonata was poised to be a film that was just accidentally ‘found.’ Ferdinand Mesias, one of the actors, narrates how his good friend Fiola found a loaded gun sitting on a bathroom counter while inside a fast food joint. Eventually -- but not without fooling around first -- Fiola returned the gun to the forgetful security guard. The instance not only made it to the screen, it was the single point which Fiola, says Mesias, then began to cre- The production of Sonata was nothing short of ate Sonata Maria. dream-like, Fiola admits. But for the realists out there, Mesias puts it rightly: “And so, Sonata Maria Fiola swears Sonata as a “collective effort of pas- was completed from equal parts dedication, tenacsionate and independent artists.” And with such ity, generosity and just a stubborn, outright refusal energy working towards a single goal, it was no sur- to quit.” prise that the movie ended up in the theatre of a big-time mall.
THE BIG SCREEN writer/director Bagane Fiola during the Sonata Maria screening at Abreeza Mall
SONATA MARIA is the introspective journey of a slowly imploding young adult named Ramon Bonifacio (Christian Hager) who finds himself reunited with lost love, Maria (Prexy Whittmer).
filmroll
#THEDAVAOWESEE
THE WHIMSICAL ADVENTURES iii By Shynjiryuu
FICTION
dreaming in the province By Kevin Caro
Isko visited his grandmother’s barrio when he was fourteen years old. His grandfather had just passed away and, since he was already the sixteenth child in his family, Isko’s parent’s didn’t mind lending out their youngest son to an aging Nanay Aning. In the city, Isko’s family was barely making ends meet. It was one of those typical families living under the financial constraints of city-living with minimal earnings and maximum expenditures on account of having sixteen children, eating, pissing, shitting, cumming or fucking at any given time under one roof.
town had something of a heavy humming sound late at night. A distant humming that’s somewhat soothing, hypnotic deep hum the goes on from nine thirty to ten in the evening. Lastly was that Isko did not know anybody from his Nanay Aning’s province. After having a pointless argument with his father, and despite for all the reasons he abhorred visiting the province, he found himself packing his bags; bitterly jamming clothes inside his small bag.
It was around five in the morning when the bus from the city arrived at the barrio terminal. Isko had to go The place Isko called home was a moderate sized one through fifteen hours of bumpy roads, sweating pasin the standards of your average Philippine shanty sengers and your occasional chicken wailing out as if towns. It had your regular shootings, fires, gang wars to ask the driver to take it easy on the road. Climbing and your occasional mother-to-son beat-down. Unlike down the bus, Isko now had to walk to Nanay Aning’s his big brothers who were knee-deep in mischief, Isko house while dragging his over-sized bayong. It was cold, managed to keep a straight course in his academics. and drizzling. The summer after finishing his elementary years, Isko was asked to stay for the summer over at Nanay An- Isko was greeted by his grandmother with tsokolate and ing. She needed someone to keep her company after her home made puto. After sipping some of the hot the death of grandfather and, apparently, Isko was the chocolate, the color to Isko’s face came back and he was best candidate. The thought of going to the province filled with a cozy sense of belongingness. Like this was was not at all alluring for a number of reasons. One all of a sudden his home. was that electricity was cut-off by five in the afternoon. When it started getting dark, the whole town would Nanay Aning’s house was one of these old colonial look like something from Jose Rizal’s time, minus the houses wherein the first floor was made up of stone random public beatings. Another reason was that the and plaster. And the second floor was wooden with
sliding windows that were adorned in the whitest of white capiz shells. The house also had a lot of antique statues. There are actually nine statues that date back to the sixteenth century but unlike other antiques that are time-worn wooden statues, these looked so pristine that as if the sculptors just finished working on them the day before. These were the prized possessions of Nanay Aning and every night, Isko’s mother would tell of how the old woman would pray to each statue for an hour until midnight.
if it was a stage and the next thing the young man noticed was he was under-dressed but everyone was still clapping as if welcoming him. The front door opened and there was Nanay Aning, in a vibrant gold and greed Filipiniana, looking more vibrant than this afternoon’s kitchen encounter. Suddenly waiters in tuxedos started entering the small room and were giving out empty glasses that were then being filled with golden, sparkling champagne. Isko was then asked to sit at a table with his grandmother and one of the guests seated stood up and started singing. There were thirteen songs sung that night and all were Lola Aning’s favorites. The last song was one where Isko was asked by the man singing to dance with lola to one of her favorite songs. A bit dazed from the golden, sparkling champagne, Isko struggled to dance and ended up impressing everyone.
Isko’s bedroom was the one facing the staircase and when he got inside, the room had a beautiful view of the large field surrounding his grandmother’s property. The sun was now slowly setting and Isko was now getting some firewood to use in cooking dinner. Apart from that, the young city-dweller realized that he had to light up all the candles, lamps and that big-ass chandelier hanging right above the staircase of his grandmother’s house. After lighting up the last lamp, Isko could After the brief program, Lola Aning introduced her now smell the aroma of onions and garlic sizzling in grandson to all the guests. Isko noticed how nice all of the kitchen. them were and there was even one daughter of an old couple that the young man eyed. She was entrancing. He rushed to the kitchen to find his grandmother al- Both got along so well and talked till the young girl’s ready cooking the dinner and setting the rice and uten- parents asked for her. She promised that they would sils on the table. She asked Isko to just eat ahead of her see each other the next morning. The night was perfect, because she needed to have an empty stomach to pray. and a bit intoxicated from the merriment, Isko finally Isko started digging in and was surprised to find out retired to his quarters, smiling right before closing his how good the meat was. It was as if it was his first time eyes. to eat pork. The adobo was to die for. The sun’s rays greeted Isko the next morning. He could Just before 9:30 in the evening, Isko started hearing again hear Nanay Aning cooking in the kitchen downmumblings of what sounded like prayers chanted in stairs. He wondered what legendary dish his grandLatin. And, like clockwork, the humming started on mother was cooking for him. He rushed down the stairs time. The front door downstairs slammed shut and, and noticed something odd. He ignored this and went when Isko peeked from out of his door, a strong light straight to the kitchen. Nanay Aning asked the young from downstairs was gently flooding the top of the boy if he got enough sleep. He nodded and asked if staircase. He started hearing laughter, and the clinking the young girl from last night’s party lived nearby. Perof glassware. It felt as if there was some certain distinct plexed, Nanay Aning told Isko that what he saw as just warmth calling to him from below the second floor. a dream. Isko was attracted like a moth to a candle. After breakfast, Isko decided to get some fresh air. He What greeted Isko once he got down to the first floor got ready for a long walk around his grandmother’s barof the house were nine people seated in four different rio. Right before stepping out of the front door, the tables all dressed in the best barongs and filipinianas young man noticed an old statue of a young girl in a the young city dweller ever saw. The staircase acted as Filipiniana gown, the girl from last night.
photography
life walk By Kyle Veneracion
portraits
technicolor By Mirjam Dalire flickr.com/localdoodler
photography
CHILL ZONE By Kaizen Recto
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