PROJECTS
2017 - 2022
Olisi
The initial project that coincided with my journey into FMA. All designs are inspired by indigenous Filipino culture each telling a story of history, people, and country. The olisi are made of a hard Tasmanian oak wood or a Filipino rattan vine. Designs are burned onto the olisi using a pyrography tool, dried with the option to varnish. They are all individually handmade in Melbourne Australia and can take up to 1-4 weeks to complete. Take a look behind selected works, their meanings, and the journey in personalising olisi designs.
April - June 2021
FMA practitioners around the world sharing the relevance of training by the ocean
The ocean is a frontier between humans and the environmental space. It is a place of negotiation with natural elements. There is an aesthetic and moral interaction that takes place where the artist performs with natures surfaces not altering its state but flowing with the sound and sight of water. And nature supports this artistic expression as a participating co-agent. Yet nature is fearfully sublime and unpredictable therefore the artists train on natures terms as it interacts through resistance and receptivity. The effects of wind, temperamental waters, shifting sands, shells, rocks, and slippery surfaces all remind us of our own strength and fragility in the face of natures energy.
Training by the ocean is unique to FMA and is embedded in FMA culture and Filipino history. I've asked a few people to share their thoughts and how this relates to them today and its significance to their training.
November 2021 - Ongoing
A reflective journal of my personal favourite FMA system Kalis Ilustrisimo
The KI Journal is aimed at exploring the lessons I've learned about Antonio Ilustrisimo's system. It emphasises personal thoughts, achievements, people encounters, struggles, and secrets I've stumbled across along the way. The journal is hand made, hand written from the first person perspective, with accompanying illustrations and diagrams. The purpose is to be intimate and private with a focus on introspective reflective and reflexive writing. Selected samples from the journal will be made available in electronic form at completion.
December 2021 - January 2022
An animated collection of footwork and strike patterns across various FMA systems
Footwork is an important stepping stone and foundation that can also be complex taking time to master and execute. In these videos I have animated the most commonly used footwork and strike patterns across the FMA systems.
BALINTAWAK VLOG
VOL.I-VIII
March 2022- Ongoing
Vlog of my sojourn through Balintawak Cuentada following GM Bobby Taboada's levels 1-6 system
The challenge for this project is to go through all Balintawak Cuentada levels 1-6 completely online following Grandmaster Bobby Taboada and afterwards joining a Balintawak club starting from level 1 to see if there were any benefits online and how it impacts my progression in the live environment.
Visit & Download GM Bobby Taboada's Balintawak Cuentada system level 1-6
INDIGENOUS x FMA
Coming Soon
Contemporary indigenous discourse in relation to FMA
A series of videos discussing indigeneity and its relevance and impact on FMA.