By Federico Acuña Espiritu
The boyish-looking gentleman picked up from the stacks of brown paper-wrapped frames earlier unloaded by the Art Pavilion Manager Edwin Lozada from a pull cart. He gently ripped the wrappers that slowly revealed unfamiliar calligraphy writings that flew over 13,000 miles with him over the Pacific Ocean just to grace the recent 2022 Pistahan Parade and Festival. Ian ‘Taipan’ Lucero sweetly gleaned as he positioned every frame in its rightful spot on the pavilion gallery wall. Back in the Philippines, Ian breathed life on every blank canvas as his dainty fingers, passionate heart, and soulful mind translated masterstrokes of artistry to the previously hibernating early Filipinos’ Baybayin calligraphy. Thanks to Ian and his Calligra Filipino endeavors, Baybayin has resurrected in this Generation Alpha.
Right on the spot. (Feddie A. Espiritu photo)
The Baybayin writing and spelling by our Filipino forebears existed even before the Spanish colonization of the Philippines which is believed already developed in the early 15th century. Baybayin, popularly but incorrectly known as Alibata, is primarily based on the Tagalog Baybayin. Regional scripts were found to exist such as Badlitfor Visayans, Kulitan for Kapampangans, and other sister scripts from indigenous tribes such as Tagbanwa, Hanuno’o, and Buhid.
The way our Filipino ancestors wrote.
Ian was independently making a mark amid a demanding creative industry profession in Japan when his maiden exposure to Shodo or Japanese calligraphy in Kobe, Japan catapulted his interest in the indigenous Baybayin. Thus, he went home and seriously leveled up his self-developed Baybayin writing as an art form and even spurred Caligra Filipino. The portmanteau of his Baybayin calligraphy brought Ian to many places with the burgeoning art mastery and advocacy primed on Baybayin sweetened influences and amalgams emerging from traditional elements of colorful Okir of the Maranaos, the radial design pattern of the Kulintangs, the Lingling or the fertility charm of the Cordilleras, among other things.
Pistahan spectators led by Grand Marshal and San Francisco Police Commissioner Atty. Kevin Benedicto grace (wearing sash) the Baybayin gallery. (Feddie A. Espiritu photo)
The masterstrokes of Ian’s Baybayin artistry has come of age even at the San Francisco Pistahan Festival and Parade. Visitors at his Baybayin gallery at the Art Pavilion kept him fully engaged by their inquisition about his art, advocacy, and Ian’s masterpieces right before their eyes. He always kept them enlightened as Ian did not fly from the Philippines with his Baybayin frames and left his nascent fans in quandary on why he did a Lazarus to ancient Filipino calligraphy.
“Baybayin must be popularized at wider audiences,” says Ian who even produced and offered baseball caps with Baybayin scripts that were patronized like hotcakes by gallery guests. He finds delight that many now even sport Baybayin in their body tattoos. One such Baybayin fan is a graphic artist from Milwaukie, Oregon who designed three book covers for this writer, Rico Tuazon Teylan, who hails from Pateros, the balut capital of the Philippines. Out of his fascination, Rico came up with the prominent name of our town Pateros scripted in blazing Baybayin when I requested him to also design memento T-shirts to promote our Pateros passion books. There could be multitudes of Ricos out there which only proves Ian and his Calligra Filipino visions are gaining ground. Ian has truly carved himself as Taipan of Baybayin.
Fans get a rousing briefing by Taipan Lucero (Feddie A. Espiritu photo)