STUDENTS AT UNIVERSITY OF CALOOCAN CITY DESIGN COSTUMES REPRESENTING BOTH CHINESE AND PHILIPPINE CULTURES
Michelle Anoba
China’s Huaqiao University held a clothing creative design competition for Filipino students at the University of Caloocan City and students from other countries with the goal of promoting the culture and friendship between the Philippines and China.
Photo courtesy of Huaqiao University
On December 16, 2022, The School of Preparatory Education of Huaqiao University launched a creative design competition for international students to encourage them to integrate cultural elements from different countries into clothing design and promote cultural exchange and mutual learning. International students from more than ten countries, namely the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Poland, Panama, and Russia participated in the contest.
As representatives of the Philippines, the Bachelor of Secondary Education major in English with Teaching Chinese as a Second Language (BSE English-Chinese) students showcased their talents and creativity in their participation; their artistic ability was made evident as three students from the first year BSE-English-Chinese received awards. Maureen Aika B. Subang (苏月晴) placed 1st and Monica G. Pugales (莫嘉仪), and Rinoa Marie Amalia Z. Laxa (雷如云) placed third. The artwork created by the first-placer presented the cultures of both the Philippines and China as she used the colors red, blue, and yellow which represent the national flags of the two countries.
Furthermore, two students from the second year BSE-English-Chinese received awards including Jerico Galvez (杰瑞), who won the second place, and Michelle Anoba (孟雨菲), who won the third place. The costumes that they designed combined the Chinese culture with their own national culture, and combined traditional festivals or symbols of the two countries which made them unique.
First Place Winner
Photo courtesy of Maureen Subang
“I designed this cloth to show the cultures of Chinese and Filipinos by combining them into just one cloth. The brown side is the national cloth of the Philippines called ‘Barong Tagalog’ while the red side is the traditional cloth of Chinese men. I am grateful to have designed this cloth as it shows the cultures of Chinese and Filipinos,” Jerico Galvez said.
Second Place Winner
Photo courtesy of Jerico Galvez
The BSE English-Chinese students proved that they are not only smart students, but also talented and creative in designing excellent costumes. The artworks that they made illustrate the friendship between the Philippines and China as they integrate the cultures of the two countries and create one cloth. The clothing creative design competition helps international students understand the diverse cultures of different countries and stimulates students' enthusiasm for learning Chinese culture.