USC Museum Opens New Exhibits
Photo by RJ Milan
The grand opening and blessing of the Rosita R. Arcenas Galleries, Ifugao People of the Cordilleras Collection and Philippine and Japanese Bamboo Exhibit was held last Oct. 23, 2018 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the University of San Carlos (USC) Museum. The event marked the final turnover of the various exhibits to USC. The blessing was officiated by Fr. Jun Balay, SVD and was attended by several relatives of the Arcenas family along with invited USC faculty and students. The event was organized by Jobers Bersales, Curator of USC Museum, Maria Regina Yoma, Assistant Curator of USC Musuem, and Josie Itable.
The Rosita R. Arcenas galleries houses two different collections: Bahandi, a collection of Chinese and Southeast Asian Tradeware and Handuman, a collection of Bisayan Santos. In an interview with Rosita Arcenas, she explained that she was able to amass such a collection because she had an immense passion for Cebu’s religious culture. Arcenas also revealed that she chose to turnover her collections to USC because she observed the genuine interest and curiosity among the students. “With this, she shares her legacy to the students of USC and hopes to preserve a piece of Cebu as well,” stated Gab Arcenas, a grandson of Mrs. Arcenas.
The Ifugao People of the Cordilleras Collection was accumulated by Therese Finnigan and with the help of her husband, John Finnigan. In an interview with Therese Finnigan, she recalled buying many of the pieces and artifacts from art dealers in San Francisco, USA. “I brought them back because they rightfully belong in the Philippines and I chose to turnover my collection to USC in the hopes that it would enlighten the students and inspire the conduct of further research,” she explained. Finally, the Inaguration of the three galleries was declared a success according to Josie Itable, an organizer for the event.
