“ I’m a Filipino-Australian textile designer, visual artist and illustrator working across textiles, film and fashion.  My personal work is focused on exploring the natural world and my Filipino identity, which despite being the third largest Asian diaspora in Australia, is often misunderstood and underrepresented. 

As a designer I’ve always been interested in history and how things are made. I was inspired to create this illustration from research into the gold ornaments designed, forged and worn by ancient Filipino men and women, prior to Spanish colonisation.  A few years ago, I was fortunate enough to see the exhibition ‘Gold of Ancestors’ at @AyalaMuseum in Makati, and was really moved and fascinated by the incredible artistry and craftsmanship of these delicate gold objects, and also by the beauty and mystery surrounding them. 

Each handcrafted piece offered a glimpse into the sophisticated and rich culture of pre-colonial Philippines, providing physical evidence of how these societies thrived long before Western contact. Much of this gold was melted down by Spanish colonisers for use in altars and churches amongst other forms of cultural erasure. 

 Gold has long been coveted across cultures -  as a status symbol , an investment and more recently, a key component in electronics - yet is is also a finite natural resource.  Existing before written records, these gold artefacts are mirrors to a past that is deeply interconnected with our world today, and another chapter in the complex history of the Philippines. - Victoria Garcia