Cariñosa is traditionally associated with the Maria Clara suite of Filipino dances.
Cariñosa may well be a byword of the “Alab ng Puso” – the romantic Cri de Coeur of Filipino sentimentalism. This form of intrinsic cultural sentimentalism, as exemplified by the artistic plethora of dances and songs throughout the centuries, may also be used to emancipate the already expansive contemporary arts of Filipinos. Although the word comes from a colonial-era point of view, it must not hinder the organic development
of artistic hybridity, since Filipino art is indeed an existing assortment of various
heritages.
Some “Alab ng Puso,” your Cariñosa, may well be subjective beyond dances and
songs. Recently, we’ve participated in a Bamboo Enterprise Development Session,
which highlights one of the centuries-old tradition – basket weaving. It’s an amazing
experience to have met some kins of Datu Guabong, who was then the Monuvu
chieftain of the tribal settlement near my birthplace. It is noteworthy to state that across the world, tribal narratives are slowly incorporated in the contemporary discourse of sustainability and environmental protection.
Tribal people, one of the most vulnerable, have guarded some pristine forests that are threatened by unbridled consumption of resources. In the local context, the extent of tribal narratives that can be integrated into the story of human solidarity and sustainability, is left to the guiding ethos of the nation’s social fabric. Perhaps, giving enough leeway to hasten the production of sustainable resources, like planting bamboo across the country, is a great start especially with the backdrop of rising global temperature and its effects to social welfare. That would be a beautiful Cariñosa between nature and its inhabitants.
Mindanaoan Art, as one of the facets of Filipino Art, is also exemplified by a long history of courtship – the art of hide and seek, like basket weaving, until the new story of Cariñosa unfolds. The new Cariñosa may well be about learning to start the loop-closing in our industries, and thereby ushering a new environmental narrative for Filipinos, that of Industrial Ecology.
Much may unfold henceforth. After all, some “Alab ng Puso,” your Cariñosa, may well be subjective beyond dances and songs.
Vincent Carlo Duran Cuzon 