Child wonder

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

A LOT of things go on in Cebu while the city anticipates the celebration of the Feast of the Sto. Nino, and the vibrant and colorful pageantry of the Sinulog.

Excitement can be felt in the air. Times are a-changing and everything is now brought out in the open.

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Yearly Ayala Center Cebu organizes an exhibit dedicated to the Holy Child. Over the years it has become the mall’s tradition to invite devotees and collectors of Santo Niño icons. They gather in order to show and share their precious Niños for everyone to see and enjoy.

The antique ivory Niño, the heirloom statue that’s kept inside glass cases all year round, the old Santo Niño in the family altar, and the one kept out of reach inside the glass cabinet find their way to the mall.

‘Tis the time indeed to bring your out Santo Niños out. The exhibition at the Ayala Center features mostly the red-robed Santo Niño de Cebu, some antique statuaries and a number of the Holy Child’s variants from the different origins. The design concept and environment of the exhibit recreated the old-world ambience of a Spanish period church, replicating its patina on coral stone masonry.

The images on exhibit are enshrined in individual niches. A gigantic Santo Niño de Cebu, owned by devotee and collector Jaime Amatong, has been a yearly regular. Lawyer Erlinda Ramos brought in two from her collections, a Santo Niño de Providencia and a Santo Niño de Bufete.

Antiques from the collections of Marc Steven Go, Ritchoy Codina, Glen Albutra and Harley Ruedas are distinctly different in craftsmanship, some made in the primitivist manner with crackled polychrome.

Msgr. Cris Garcia brought in the most number of icons. A work by sculptor Fr. Dodong Desuyo is also on view. And a whole lot more answered the call to exhibit. They are Daniel Sarmiento, Joseph Ano, Susing Arsenal, Jo Luym, Marc Anton Masa, Lourdez Jereza, Ellis Manuel Mendez, Sotero Cabanes, Dandan Menina, Allan Plattring, Kenneth Bandajon, Val San Diego, Ezra Alfa Gamulo, Lemoin Cababahay and Cary Santiago. All have contributed pieces to the exhibit.

The exhibit shows that the iconography of the Holy Child has a long history of interpretations by different craftsmen from different times.