Leandro Locsin- Filipino National Artist in Architecture

Yesterday's Posting was about the life of Antoni Gaudi- God's Architect. Today's posting is another architect- A Filipino whose work I admired very much.

Leandro Locsin, the National Artist for Architecture, turned brutalist concrete into something uniquely Filipino! He was known for his loved of the Brutalist type of Architecture( remember the award-winning Movie- The Brutalist). 

His most iconic work? The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP)(above photo)— built in the 1960s, it fused modernist style with native design principles. Think: floating structures, open spaces, and “bahay kubo” vibes but in massive stone.

Surprise: Locsin also designed churches, hotels, and even airports. His Church of the Holy Sacrifice in UP Diliman was the first round church with a suspended dome in the Philippines!

In 1955, 💚Fr. John Delaney, S.J., then Catholic Chaplain at the University of the Philippines - Diliman, commissioned Locsin to design a chapel with an open plan and can easily accommodate 1,000 people. The Church of the Holy Sacrifice is the first round chapel in the Philippines to have an altar in the middle, and the first to have a thin shell concrete dome. The floor of the church was designed by Arturo Luz, the Stations of the Cross by Vicente Manansala and Ang Kiukok, and the cross by Napoleon Abueva, all of whom are now National Artists. Alfredo L. Juinio served as the building's structural engineer. Today, the church is recognized as a National Historical Landmark and a Cultural Treasure by the National Historical Institute (now the National Historical Commission of the Philippines) and the National Museum, respectively.

For Details of Locsin's Other Architectural Accomplishments read: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leandro_Locsin

For My Personal Memories (UPSCA) and Fr John Delaney💚- Related to the Building of the Above UP Chapel, please read:

💚 https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2024/08/memories-of-my-college-life-up-chapel.html

Meanwhile, enjoy this short video with no sound of the flight of the Quetzal bird from Costa Rica:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/474061802364343/

Lastly, US PRESIDENTIAL GREATNESS, RANKED

Source: American Political Science Association

For Details read:

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2025/04/americas-presidents-what-your-history.html

Lastly, Here are some powerful quotes about civic engagement, protecting democracy, and being trusted messengers during turbulent times: ( From Ditas Talk, April 17, 2025) 

On Civic Engagement:

1. "The most important office in a democracy is the office of citizen." - Justice Louis Brandeis

2. "Democracy is not a spectator sport. It requires everyone's participation." - Marian Wright Edelman

3. "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead

4. "The health of a democratic society may be measured by the quality of functions performed by private citizens." - Alexis de Tocqueville

5. "Citizenship is not a spectator sport; it's a responsibility that must be shouldered by each generation, and your lifetime of experience makes your contribution essential." - (Original quote for octogenarian audience)

 On Protecting Democracy:

1."Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education." - Franklin D. Roosevelt

2."Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty." - Wendell Phillips

3. "Democracy is not just the right to vote, it is the right to live in dignity." - Naomi Klein

4. "A democracy is only as strong as the citizens who tend to its garden daily with their participation, their vigilance, and their values." - (Original quote for octogenarian audience)

5. "Our democracy is like an ancient tapestry - each generation must repair and strengthen it, or watch it unravel before their eyes." - (Original quote for octogenarian audience)

On Being Trusted Messengers:

1. "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." - Maya Angelou

2. "Trust is earned when actions meet words." - Chris Butler

3. "In times of crisis, the wise build bridges while the foolish build barriers." - Adapted from Black Panther

4. "The currency of real networking is not greed but generosity." - Keith Ferrazzi

5. "Your stories are not just memories; they are lighthouses in a storm, guiding those who navigate these chaotic waters for the first time." - (Original quote for octogenarian audience)

6. "In an age of information, true wisdom is the most valuable currency. As elders, you hold the vault of lived experience that no internet search can replicate." - (Original quote for octogenarian audience)

7. "When chaos clouds judgment, it is the steady voice of experience that cuts through the noise with clarity and purpose." - (Original quote for octogenarian audience)

Personal Note: Excerpts from Ditas Introduction to her Talk. Thursday April 17, 2025

"Today I would love to encourage you  to explore practical, meaningful ways you can deploy these assets to strengthen our democracy and communities. Some actions may be small, others more substantial, but all matter. Democracy isn't just preserved in Washington—it's sustained in community centers, in school board meetings, at neighborhood gatherings, and around family dinner tables.

As someone who has spent her career building bridges between government and communities, I can tell you with absolute certainty: You matter. Your participation matters. Your wisdom is irreplaceable.

So let us begin this important conversation about how your generation—the generation that has seen America through so much—can help guide us through this moment. Not as bystanders, but as active, essential participants in our democratic story.

Thank you for being here. Thank you for caring. And thank you, most of all, for not stepping aside but stepping forward ".

Have a Blessed Holy Saturday To All!

Holy Saturday, Christian religious observance that ends the Lenten season, falling on the day before Easter Sunday. The observance commemorates the final day of Christ's death, which many Christians traditionally associate with his triumphant descent into hell or “to the dead”.

This solemn Black Saturday, we pause in stillness, waiting in hope. As Christ lay in the tomb, His followers mourned—yet even in darkness, faith endured.

A place of deep spiritual significance, Jaro Cathedral in Iloilo City stands as a beacon of devotion and heritage. Known formally as the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Candles, it is one of the few Marian shrines in the Visayas and holds a special place in the hearts of many. Its statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary was canonically crowned by Pope John Paul II in 1981—the first and only Marian image in the Philippines to receive such an honor from a pope himself. To this day, pilgrims come to pray, reflect, and seek grace.

In the quiet of this day, let us reflect on the hope that Easter brings—the promise of new life and everlasting grace.

The Church where I was baptized, December 30, 1934