MAPEH 4: FINAL PROJECT
ARTS AND HEALTH
THE ARTS OF IFUGAO
The Ifugao is a well-known indigenous tribe in the Philippines, residing in the
mountainous area of Northern Luzon. With their rich culture, and traditional way of life,
many historians and researchers sought to study their tribe. According to the study
entitled “Art in Ifugao Society”, conducted by Aurora Roxas – Lim in 1973, there were
different art forms present in the Ifugao Culture. Most of their arts and crafts consist of
objects that they can use for their daily lives. The mentioned artworks and activities in
the study include woodcarving, textile-weaving, basketry, carpentry, and blacksmithing.
Aside from arts for daily use, they also have arts for ritual use, just like their wood-
carvings.
Woodcarving, among other crafts, is their most valuable and sacred craft as it is
relatively representational when it comes to important aspects in their environments like
flora and fauna, human figures, and many more. (See Figures 1 and 2 below.)
FIGURE 1. BUL’UL
The most famous and most significant
woodcarving of Ifugao is called “bulul” (also
known as bul’ul or tinagtaggu). Bulul is a
wooden carved figure of a deity used by the
Ifugao tribe to guard their rice crops. It is
believed that Bulul can help them have an
abundant harvest when it is placed near their
crops.
FIGURE 2. HAGABI
Another significant woodcarving of the
Ifugao is the Hagabi. This wood craft
is a bench used by elite or wealthy
members of the Ifugao Tribe. Such
craft is made out of either Narra Wood
or Ipil Wood. This signifies royalty and
power.
Aside from having woodcrafts, the Ifugaos also have a rich culture when it comes to
weaving. There are various textiles used for the pattern of their hand woven crafts and
to be cautious in preserving their culture, it is highly advised not to incorporate or
appropriate such designs for fashion purposes. (See Figure 3 below.)
FIGURE 3. IFUGAO BLANKET
The Ifugao has their traditional blanket. The
design of their hand woven crafts usually
include the red and black as the dominant
colors. They also weave gstrings and other
necessary garments for their tribes.
The arts and crafts of the Ifugao also include basketry. They have various types of
baskets for different types of activities like storing milled rice, gathering plants, carrying
vegetables or clothes to the Laundromat, and container for other types of essential
things. (See Figure 4 below.)
FIGURE 4. BASKETRY
This Ifugao basket is a type of basket used for
gathering plants, snails or mussels. This is
made out of twilled vine segments.
They also have good artistry when it comes to their carpentry. They use their arts in
order to build their desired and culturally-inspired houses. (See Figure 5 below.)
FIGURE 5. CARPENTRY
Typically, the Ifugao hut sits
elevated on four sturdy posts, a
windowless structure built of hand-
hewn native timbers expertly
fastened with mortised joints and
tenons.
HEALTH
What are the things that you should do in order to keep safe and
healthy if you decided to visit the Ifugao Tribe?
If given a chance to visit the Ifugaos in the Northern Luzon, it would be best to do the
following, considering the fact that COVID 19 is still out there:
Bring Hygiene essentials (Soap, Toothbrush, Towels etc.)
Bring disinfecting wipes (wet wipes), and hand sanitizer
Bring extra masks
First Aid Kit
Essential medicines like paracetamol, cetirizine, etc.
Extra water, and water purifier for emergency purposes.
It must be noted that when travelling, people needs to be cautious and use preventive
measures to avoid getting sick. As they always say, prevention is better than cure. Also,
in order to keep the members of the tribe safe from catching viruses, especially COVID
19, it would be highly recommended that everyone is vaccinated before coming to the
tourist areas.
References:
https://www.asj.upd.edu.ph/mediabox/archive/ASJ-11-02-1973/roxas-limart
%20ifugao%20society.pdf
https://www.flickr.com/photos/giahs/7739594422/
https://emptylighthouse.com/travel/ifugao-philippines-what-to-pack-what-to-wear-
and-when-to-go-2018
