Whang-od
Whang-od Oggay | |
---|---|
Whang-od tattooing on June 30, 2016 | |
Born |
Tinglayan, Kalinga, Philippines | 17 February 1917
Other names |
Maria Oggay[1]
|
Occupation | Tattooist |
Known for |
The oldest tattoo artist in the Philippines[2] Kalinga's last mambabatok[3] |
Whang-od Oggay ([ˈɸɑŋ:ˈəd]; born February 17, 1917)[4] is a Filipina tattoo artist from Buscalan, Tinglayan, Kalinga, Philippines.[5]
She is believed to be the last mambabatok (traditional Kalinga tattooist) from the Butbut people in Buscalan Kalinga and the oldest tattoo artist in the Philippines. She has been tattooing headhunters and women of the indigenous people of Butbut in Buscalan Kalinga for more than 80 years but the Butbut warriors who used to earn tattoos through protecting villages or killing enemies no longer exist.
She now applies the traditional art form to tourists visiting Buscalan. There were proposals to have her as one of the National Artists of the Philippines or as one of the National Living Treasures due to her status as the last mambabatok. She has been featured in various events and television shows featuring her life and her tattoo works.[6][7]
Respected institutions and organizations, including state or private universities and art foundations, may nominate her as National Artist until September 31, 2017 through the NCCA Secretariat.[8] Her nomination as National Artist or National Living Treasure (GAMABA) has been publicly backed by Senator Loren Legarda[9][10] through a Dayaw episode, a senate document, and a tweet in Twitter, former Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago[11][12] through a legal document in the Senate, senator Nancy Binay[13] through a senate resolution, and former NCCA chairman Filipe de Leon Jr. through a Dayaw episode.
Biography
She never married and has no children. She has been doing the batok, the traditional hand-tapped tattooing, to headhunters who earned the tattoos by protecting villages or killing enemies.[14] Aside from them, she applies tatoos to women of the Butbut people in Buscalan Kalinga.[14]
She has being doing her tattoo works for more than 80 years. Though headhunters no longer exists, she still applies the tattoos to Buscalan tourists. Some of her notable customers include Rhian Ramos,[15] Drew Arellano,[16] Liza Diño[17] and Aiza Seguerra.[17][18]
Her tattoo ink is composed of the mixture of charcoal and water that will be tapped into the skin through a thorn end of a calamansi or pomelo tree. She was tattooed when she was a teenager. Each of her arms took one day to be finished and her family paid bundles of rice for it. When her tattoo was completed her father killed a pig to celebrate it. This ancient technique of batok that dates back a thousand years before her time is relatively painful compared to other conventional techniques.[14][19] She uses designs found in nature and basic geometric shapes.[14]
Owing to her status as the last mambabatok, many netizens were lobbying her to be one of the National Artists of the Philippines.[20][21]
In 2015, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago urged her colleagues in the Philippine Senate through a resolution that Whang-od should be nominated instead as one of the National Living Treasures (Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan), who are of equal rank to National Artists.[22][23]
According to tradition, her tattooing skills can only be inherited through lineage.[14] Whang-od believes that if someone outside the bloodline starts tattooing, the tattoo will get infected.[14] Due to modern living, the young people of her village are no longer interested in embracing the tattooing works of their elders. Despite that, she trains Grace Palicas, her grandniece,[24] and Ilyang Wigan, another bloodline successor, to continue her tattooing work.[25] Aside from being a tattoo artist, Whang-od is a respected village elder.[25] She turned 100 in February 2017.[26]
Events and shows featuring Whang-od
Whang-od was present during Dutdutan Tattoo Expo 2012 held in the Philippines where she had her own booth.[27] Whang-od's image is included in an exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum in Ontario, Canada.[28] The exhibit is entitled Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession. Art and it was first shown on April 2, 2016.[28] Exhibitors chose the photograph from several photos from another exhibit at Musee Du Quai Branly in Paris.[28] They did not know about Whang-od until a visitor told them.[28]
She was featured in the Dayaw series of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines (NCCA), where her contributions to the country's national identity and heritage were presented by former NCCA Chairman Felipe De Leon Jr. and Senator Loren Legarda.[29] Her life story was featured in Wagas, a GMA News TV's drama series, where Janine Gutierrez portrayed Whang-od.[30]
References
- ↑ Catalan, Maria Elena (October 5, 2016). "Chasing Whang–od, the oldest Kalinga mambabatok". Sun Star Baguio. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
- ↑ Melanes, Maurice (September 10, 2013). "Skin as archive of history, culture, identity". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Philippines. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "Whang-Od". National Geographic. United States. 2014. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho: Munting Obra para kay Apo Whang-Od". Official YouTube channel of GMA Public Affairs (Video of the February 26, 2017 episode of Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho where the host said that Whang-od turned 100 on February 17, 2017) (in Tagalog). GMA News. February 26, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
- ↑ "Whang-od, el mito de la última tatuadora de la tribu filipina Kalinga". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). Spain. August 12, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ http://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/philippines-oldest-tattoo-artist/index.html
- ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/15/world/asia/tattoo-artist-kalinga-buscalan.html
- ↑ http://ncca.gov.ph/call-nominations-2018-order-national-artists/
- ↑ https://twitter.com/loren_legarda/status/650979842700083206
- ↑ http://www.senate.gov.ph/press_release/2015/1005_legarda1.asp
- ↑ http://www.rappler.com/move-ph/107885-miram-santiago-wang-od-oggay-ligaya-amilbangsa-national-living-treasure
- ↑ http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/artandculture/539301/miriam-urges-colleagues-to-nominate-wang-od-amilbangsa-as-national-living-treasures/story/
- ↑ https://www.senate.gov.ph/lis/bill_res.aspx?congress=17&q=SRN-2
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Lowe, Aya (May 27, 2014). "Reviving the art of Filipino tribal tattoos". BBC. United Kingdom. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "LOOK: Rhian Ramos gets traditional tattoos". ABS-CBN News. Philippines. December 5, 2014. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "'Biyahe ni Drew' heads to Kalinga, meets Apo Whang-Od". GMA News. Philippines. May 9, 2014. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- 1 2 "LOOK: Liza Dino gets traditional tattoo". ABS-CBN News. February 19, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
- ↑ "The lost tribe and the ‘tattoo master’". news.com.au. Australia. May 27, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "Tattoed by the oldest tattoo artist in the Philippines". CNN. United States. June 19, 2012. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "Campaign to declare Whang-Od as National Artist hits 11k mark". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Philippines. October 1, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ Tupaz, Voltaire (September 30, 2015). "'Cordilleran tattooer should get Nat'l Living Treasure, not Nat'l Artist Award'". Rappler. Philippines. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "Miriam: Wang-od Oggay and Ligaya Amilbangsa, national living treasures". Rappler. Philippines. October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ "Miriam urges colleagues to nominate Wang-Od, Amilbangsa as ‘National Living Treasures’". GMA News. Philippines. October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ Howard, Anne Collins (January 18, 2016). "The rebirth of a 1,000-year tradition". BBC. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
- 1 2 "Indelible moments with Whang-od, a living legend". Rappler. Philippines. October 13, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ↑ Gianna Francesca Catolico (2017-02-20). "LOOK: Aiza Seguerra, Liza Diño visit centenarian Apo Whang-od". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 2017-03-13.
- ↑ "Tribal Gear / Dutdutan - Tattoo Festival". www.dutdutan.com.ph. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 De la Cruz, Jhong (April 16, 2016). "Kalinga tattoo artist’s work draws raves in Toronto museum". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Global Nation. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
- ↑ "Dayaw Season 2: Our Knowledge, Our Pride". National Commission for Culture and the Arts. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ↑ "Ang pag-ibig ni Whang Od ngayong Sabado sa 'Wagas'". www.gmanetwork.com (in Tagalog). GMA Network. March 1, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2017.