Monochromed Memories: UP Landmarks Exhibition

The University of the Philippines (UP) turned a century old in 2008.

To mark the milestone, the Philippine Republic gifted the University, by way of amendment of the very charter that created the institution in 1908, the status of being the national university in the Philippines for its trailblazing role in advancing the cause of higher education through excellent academic programs, cutting edge research and exemplary public service.

From a small campus with seven colleges in downtown Manila, the University has grown today into a multiversity with seven constituent universities throughout the country, nurturing the intellectual and cultural growth of the Filipino people through the widest and most varied undergraduate and graduate degree offerings, and producing creative and intellectual outputs of the highest and finest calibre in the service of the nation, the region, and the world.

In memorialising this historic appointment, the Office for Initiatives in Culture and the Arts (OICA) presents Monochromes Memories: UP Landmarks Exhibition consisting of prints, sketches, and drawings of campus landmarks done by alumni and student artists of the College of Fine Arts (CFA) — one of the pioneering units of UP and the oldest school of fine arts in the country.

The 35 drawings comprising the collection are handsome portraits of the University that generously depict its vastness and illustrious history. The collection foregrounds the University as a heritage educational site in the Philippines, presenting a rich legacy of buildings and artworks of national import and renown. Texts serve as contextual pivots in the continuing narrative of the University and the nation.