*My personal laptop wallpaper made in 2023, when this idea finally crystalized*

Welcome to Balay Kasamtangan’s vision board.

Whenever we encounter dissimilar spaces or people, we often have to compress or overexplain what we’re about and what we want to do. This is the struggle of many multi-hyphenate folks, especially creatives and those who work in marginalized spaces.

So, to overcome that challenge, here is the entire visualization and delineation of what this endeavor is exactly.

*Datú Masalangsang facing Datú Manggarin as he orates stories of past cultural bearers. Photo by Sir* *Peepow Belisario*.

Culture as protector

The canopy of our ecosystem.

Culture has long been a stalwart in protecting the smallest individual to the largest empires. Memories of those who came before us were preserved through culture: whether in practices or stories passed down through generations, or grand architectures born from the dreams of its inhabitants. As Sikodiwa says in his first book:

Culture is invulnerable because we are alive, and so long as humans continue to interact with their physical and social environments, culture persists.

Culture gives breath to narratives real and imagined. It keeps our spirit intact even when our physical bodies expire.

It is the reason people remain strong in an ever-changing world. It is why nations cultivate these aesthetics and identities. We see how it becomes a mark of power among the empires of our era, and how it provided a vehicle to overcoming monumental losses in previous wars as seen in Japan’s successful rebrand through anime and South Korea’s Hallyu wave.

Culture is diminished as a “profession” by most because it is labelled “useless”. The reality is that lucrative culture is determined by those in the 1% of the world. These transnational elites have molded the global system so that their image is the only one that can be capitalized. Anything outside of it will inevitably be rendered “pointless”.

This is why majority of successful marketing methods use psychological warfare tactics to sow insecurity and scarcity mindsets to create addicted consumers.

An example of this is in a book called Disciplined Entrepreneurship where it names markets as beachheads, defined as “a beach on an enemy’s shore that an invading army takes and controls to prepare for the arrival of more soldiers and supplies.” Merriam-Webster defined it this way before changing it to its current writing.

We are reclaiming the power of Culture to heal these artificial anxieties.

We must use it to protect ourselves and the memories of ancestors that were lost in the battles of colonized lands.

It is our armor against the world that keeps pressing against us.

*The beautiful drone shot featured on our homepage by Sir Peeps. Taken during the* *Tumoan Festival*.

Ancestral forest preservation

Balay as a shield against forest predators.

As stated in the Founder’s Letter, land is not neutral. Colonizer mentality believes that land is for the taking, forgetting that it bears life in the form of the greenery and wildlife that keep us alive and well.

In our immersions into the deep ancestral domains of the elders, we are reminded how nature provides everything that anyone could need: food and materials for shelter. Mother Nature indeed provides all, as we really do not need much at our core, yet extreme capitalist-industrial mindsets see nature as something to exploit and extract at exponential rates.

The youth deeply desire the preservation of forests, as seen with organizers of the Philippine Forestry Youth Summit. Indigenous culture particularly are the ultimate Stewards of this, as seen with groups like Salumayag Youth Collective for the Forests headed by Manobo-Kulamanun public figure Takurug Ki.

Urbanites are now awake to the severe consequences to their health when one is is disconnected from a natural ecosystem. Our era of concrete makes people isolated and sick. Brands post-2010 shifted to nature aesthetics following the demand for “natural”, “organic”, “sustainable”, “responsible”, and all other conscious consumption terms that have been co-opted.

Warnings by scientists and advocates are constantly ignored or silenced by extractive corporations, leading to the various physio and mental illnesses that torture or wipe out populations.

Protecting forests protects us.

For too long, we have taken from what has fed us. We must replenish what has been extracted.

Food sovereignty

Balay as a self-sufficient sustenance producer.

As covered in a previous writing, the relentless inflation of goods has induced scarcity of resources for the benefit of select individuals. This caused the most immediate human need to become the root of desperation for money.

What is supposed to be a neutral tool has been weaponized into an artificial deity that people of the contemporary era worship because it is the globally accepted form of goods exchange.

People commit atrocities for money, when really the only reason why people would want it is so they could abate their hunger.

We aim to build spaces for permaculture and share this knowledge with our community members. Planned consultations with organizations such as Hineleban, Lokalpedia, Good Food Community, and Lutong Lupa shall provide the foundations we need to create this independent food system that also allows a cuisine with flair.

*Snapshot taken from “A rave that is a ritual?”* *reel* *by 29 Principles x Elephant Party*

Bantuwing space

Balay as the stronghold for queers.

One would think that after thousands of years, the human race would have accepted the infinite ways a person could manifest. To be made to battle for your right to exist as a natural being should be ludicrous, but that is the harsh reality queers face.

There is an excellent movement that Datú Arayan is a part of called The 29 Principles, which is a documentation series of "Queer Victories” in celebration of the Yogyakarta' Principles 20 year anniversary.

Despite fear for security and safety, these amazing people stand proud against threats to their lives. I am a pansexual woman myself, and I experience moments of fear when reading the news about the innocent lives lost to violence because of who they love.

We want to be a space to help others overcome this fear. To be a bastion for those who are vulnerable against dangerous ignorance. We want to celebrate the Bantuwing — those who shine like the countless colors dancing across a gem.

*“Can our relationships with computers be more poetic, expressive, and intimate?” by* *Chia Amisola, founder of* *Developh*

Tropical Futures laboratory

Balay as a fair future conduit.

We wish to explore the true meaning of sustainable and alternative designs in a post-colonial context for the benefit of our community.

The concept of futures has long been determined by the Western world, rooted in their philosophies of individualism that has led to the endless extraction we see today. We have no choice but to pick up the pieces and forge a new way forward.

At this point, the word “sustainability” has been ground into overuse. Greenwashing campaigns slap this onto their PR and reports to sway customers away from the fact that their unethical practices remain.

Luckily, we live in an era where unlimited information is available in our pockets. Fellow innovators seeking solutions for genuine problems (as opposed to contrived ones) where we transform matters such as plastic waste and garbage into beautiful new objects has been a lowkey movement that shall decorate the Balay.

The following objects are not sponsored, just a few items on my wishlist for when we have enough funds. All images are hyperlinked.

***Custom signage for Fiasfud pop-up booth made by Plastics by Manila Automat***

I’ve been a long-time fan of their work since discovering them in one of the art markets by the Mind Museum, BGC.

***Cebu Making Space 3D pots as featured by Nice Market Cebu for Molave Community Marketplace***

From one of our partners at Kamugnaan Sa Atúa. Strangely missing from their website as of writing this.

***Simoy Dahon Lamp in Terracotta by MOLD Studio in Makati City***

Costs a pretty penny, but worth it’s tag imo. Sadly sold out already. Perhaps we can reach out for a collab design re-run.

Continental grounds

Balay as a meeting point for peace talks and cultural exchanges.

Bukidnon sits at the heart of Mindanao, bearing a tri-people population that have come together like a mosaic. Historical events and ongoing tensions between ethnolinguistic groups must be addressed for them to be healed.

Here, we weave the bridge between these tensions by gathering disparate archipelagic groups while disseminating lesser-known historical knowledge and underrepresented aesthetics. This was the basis for the Kapanahonan series and Corners of Mindanao.

*Bukidnon Local Artists Kulektib* *ladies + Cebu-based founder of* *Danggit sa Langit* *Ezra a.k.a.* *Mata ng Isda* *from our launch at Del Rio’s*

Creative container

The foundation of this endeavor.

Creatives are cultural bearers. We reflect the sentiments of the times. We fertilize ideas by communicating them through the networks of our human consciousness, the same way roots of a plant feed through the nutrients of the ground.

As stated on the homepage, we want to build curated rooms that display the works of emerging and established artists. Initially, this was meant to be exclusive to Philippine designers, but we realized how myopic that would be.

We wish to sponsor artist residencies for our community members across the world, while facilitating experiences with non-artists to further weave a stronger tapestry of local culture in a post-colonial context.

So in short, we wish to be a home by creatives for culture.

~ Nikki

Everything we wish to be