Ellie Tiglao & Lani Asunciòn on Transmuting Imperialism's Impact: A Culinary & Visual Exchange
Show Description:
Trish Fontanilla, BOSFilipinos co-founder and host of the podcast, welcomes cultural practitioner Ellie Tiglao and artist Lani Asunciòn to discuss their new project. Their upcoming event, "Transmuting Imperialism: A Visual and Culinary Exchange," features Filipino communal dining, projection mapping, and multi-disciplinary performance exploring cultural identity and resistance.
Stay in touch:
BOSFilipinos - IG: @bosfilipinos, Email: info@bosfilipinos.com
Ellie - Email: ellie@kwentu.com
Lani - IG: @lani.asuncion
Kwentu - IG: @makingkwentu
Event tickets - https://bit.ly/pagkakaisa-solidaridad
Episode Transcript:
Trish Fontanilla
[Intro music plays] Hello and welcome to The BOSFilipinos Podcast. My name is Trish Fontanilla, and I'm one of the BOSFilipinos co-founders, and your new podcast host. As some folks know, the show has been on hiatus. Our previous host, Katie [Milliken], did everything from interviewing to editing to distributing the podcast. So it took us a minute or two to get together the resources to get back in the game. I'm excited to bring the podcast back to your ears again, and I'm even more excited to have cultural practitioner Ellie Tiglao and artist Lani Asunciòn as our first guests back. They'll be talking about their new project, and fair warning, we will be talking about food. A lot. So maybe grab a snack before you start. Enjoy.
Trish Fontanilla
So Ellie and Lani, welcome to the podcast. And so I did a brief intro of the two of you at the beginning, but I would love to hear more about yourselves, and we'll start with Ellie.
Ellie Tiglao
Thanks, Trish, glad to be here having this conversation. I'm Ellie. I consider myself a cultural practitioner. For a lot of folks, that means that I do food, but for a long time I've been really interested in food and art, especially as not just as storytellers, but story keepers. Outside of that, I spend a lot of time doing more cooperative consulting with a worker co op called CoEverything, which is my new gig. Post Tanám we can talk a little bit more about that later.
Trish Fontanilla
Awesome. And I wanted to comment, we were talking about this before we started recording how people thought me and Ellie were the same person, because back in the day, BOSFilipinos started with food pop ups, and they just met two Filipino women and thought, oh, this is the same, and I'm like Ellie, and I look a little bit, our eye prescriptions is different, our height is different. We're just different human beings. It's like a right now, it feels like the Spiderman pointing at each other meme, because there are some people that thought we were the same person, and potentially some people that still think we're the same person. So I just wanted to prove two different people, and Ellie's working on some incredible things. But now we're going to Lani tell us a little bit more about yourself.
Lani Asunciòn
Hi, I'm Lani Asunciòn I go by they/she. I'm an artist, an educator. I'm currently the curator at Pao Arts Center, doing public art and temporary performance works, part of the Un-Monument project with the city and supported by the Mellon Foundation. And I teach at Mass Art, teaching public art, and I am a founding member of Digital Soup, the local queer multimedia collective.
Trish Fontanilla
Amazing. So I was trying to figure out when the first time I saw your artwork was one my memory is not always the most amazing, but I think the most delightful interaction I had, was I was walking on the [Rose Kennedy] Greenway and just taking pictures. And I always try to look up the artist afterwards, and I looked you up, and I was like, she's Filipino. Why wasn't it on the fog horn? Why didn't I get a phone call from my mom, from the telephone chain that we've got a Filipino on the Greenway? So that's, is that going to, if folks haven't seen it, you have some artwork on the Greenway, and that's going to the Fall, I believe.
Lani Asunciòn
It'll be there until November.
Trish Fontanilla
Amazing. So if you haven't already, please go to the Greenway and know that the Filipinos out there got some representation in the city, which is awesome. So the reason why we brought you on is you both are collaborating on a new project, and so I would love to hear a little bit more about the project and then how the two of you found each other and started collaborating.
Ellie Tiglao
We were actually just reminiscing a little bit, and I had thought I've been here for over 15 years, and I've known Lani for a majority of that time, actually more time than not, I will say. And we came to know of each other when EMW [East Meets West] bookstore was still around for folks who don't know. It was an arts, tech and community space centered on serving AAPI community, but was really welcoming of all sorts of BIPOC cultures and voices, and it's no longer running. But I was a Programs Director there, and it was a super important and storied space for people making art in the Boston area. And I just came to know of Lani's work then, but I would love to hear, I don't know, make a little space for Lani to talk about what...
Lani Asunciòn
Yeah, I mean, that place is endeared to my heart, and I volunteered at the art gallery there with Stephanie and Kai. So, and they're mutual friends, and Kai also was in the opening performance at Greenway. So there's all these connections.
Trish Fontanilla
Yeah, I used to go there [EMW], and I did not interact with either of you, which is banana pants to me, so look at us. Yeah.
Lani Asunciòn
Then we transitioned, right? Well, your pop ups...
Ellie Tiglao
Right, well, I feel like we really had our chance to collaborate together when the restaurant became possible. Because Tanám was always meant to be a small space, obviously, but one that could handle multiple mediums. So it was built with collaborations like what Lani and I had been talking about in mind, and so Lani, I'll say, has like a big presence here, especially around projection art. And all of that led to a conversation to a narrative about pineapples. What else would you say about that time, Lani?
Lani Asunciòn
Well, we're talking about pineapples. And I was like a series called Pineapple Girl series that I was doing after I finished graduate school. I like to continue that work. And then I started learning a bit about the Dole family history, the historical Dole House in Jamaica Plain. So then Ellie was talking about wanting to bring in artists to activate the space through an immersive interactive you know, the meal speaks through story, like food through storytelling and storytelling through performative embodiment. I was like, I'm down. That sounds great. And there was also a zine that accompanied it. And throughout the meal, both of us spoke to the folks that were joining us, and it was this really immersive, interactive experience in space.
Trish Fontanilla
So can we go back to the pineapple? To go on our first tangent, how did you connect about pineapples?
Ellie Tiglao
Well, generally speaking, whenever conversations about how the space might be activated come into play, there's never a set agenda. What is coming to mind right now? And Lani had just been working on Pineapple Girl. And I think the themes that were being explored were also really interesting to me. And it was actually the only menu at Tanám that was very ingredient focused. So every course had pineapple involved, and Lani brought all sorts of ways of engaging with people, and from creating a zine to bringing physical objects into the space for people to touch and interact with. Obviously conversation was happening dialog, but also projection art. So there was a lot of richness in that space for people to explore the sort of things that were happening in Pineapple Girl.
Lani Asunciòn
That series started in New England, so it was a project that went between Hawaii, so part of the videos were shot in Hawaii and also in New England. It's three seasons, so one of the seasons is missing, so it has this discussion about being in the diaspora and dealing with time, space and everything in between. And technically the zine, if you, anybody wants to read it, it's at the SFMA [School for the Museum of Fine Arts] library. They do have it in their collection.
Ellie Tiglao
I just want to say that I've also got a couple copies. So if you want one, Trish, and happy to share one.
Trish Fontanilla
Look at me. Getting stuff. To go back to go back to the origin story. So the two of you started collaborating inside of the Tanám space, and then what was the impetus for you to launch it on its own?
Lani Asunciòn
The way I remember it, I was checking in with Ellie. I was like, How are things going, you know, after Tanám and what are you doing? What are your hopes? Where are you looking towards now and then we're talking about project grants and funding.
Ellie Tiglao
Yeah, you know,I haven't said anything to the outside world. This is the really the first time. So hey, hey world, thanks Trish, and thank you, Lani, for for making that conversation possible. But it really mattered to me what was happening at Tanám, the sort of storytelling that we were doing, and the space that we were making, and I also knew that, you know, never say never, but where I was sitting, I just felt like I couldn't do it as a business again. But did I love it enough to try and get some art money for it like I knew that we were, we would be working on something amazing. It's just not making a business. So we just started talking about, kind of what it might mean to work together. And also, you know how, I think from the beginning, just thinking about how we bring in others into our work has been a big part of our collaboration, but the for those out there listening, the name of the project is Transmuting Imperialism's Impact: a visual and culinary exchange. So it's a big, long title. That's what we got grant money for. But for this coming event that we'll tell you more about, we wanted to focus that storytelling on solidarity. So pagkakaisa and solidaridad were two words that we wanted to bring together to just show also who's in the room.
Lani Asunciòn
It was nice to check in, and then it was really fun and awesome to dream the project together, grant writing is one thing, but dreaming the project and the work to propose and to actualize into the world. So that's something that I was really excited to do, and I'm excited not to literally do it with you, and then others will enjoy it and be present. So I just think it's been really wonderful to think about what is solidarity within the Filipino diaspora, and within Puerto Rican diaspora, and we have so many folks joining us, it feels very generative to think about the community that we're not just a part of, but we're building together. So that's exciting.
Trish Fontanilla
That's awesome. I mean, not everyone's telling their stories around food or connecting the way that Filipinos do, or even immigrants, and it just the way that we keep ourselves alive and keep our joy and hope alive. And it's so cool to see projects like this, especially right now, where we might think to not speak up or not tell our stories. Right now, it's especially important to share our humanity and share our stories, and so I'm really excited to hear more about this project. Diving into the next event that's coming up this month. There's a lot happening at this event. So it's food for all the senses, from mind to stomach to eyes. Let's talk about this event and where it's going to be. Ellie, if you want to talk about the food piece, speaking about solidarity of including other cultures in the food that will be served that evening.
Trish Fontanilla
Okay, we are introduced to the folks there [the venue, Cloud & Spirits] through anAsian professional network in town. Actually, one of the people who's going to be cooking with us is Aldrin Agas from Kuya's Cooking, and he is the one who really made the connection around saying, like, yes, this is a perfect space for what you're doing. So it all came through our relationships, and we're excited for that space, also as an event. Space is uniquely set up with a commercial kitchen that's going to make it really possible for us to make an elaborate meal. We have expectations of welcoming people into the space. There'll be multiple places that they can see art, including a memorial. There'll also be opportunities for people to both participate in the art, experience it, receive it, and also have food together at a communal table. So the food is going to be served in some traditional style called kamayan, that just means to eat with your hands. And so folks should expect that they will fully be engaged with their senses while they're eating, including touch. That tells you a lot when you're able to use your hands to eat. And maybe also, kind of difference here that was very present at Tanám was communal aspect of it, so you're not usually eating with strangers and negotiating who's going to take that last bit of duck. So that's definitely something to expect. And while we are definitely heavily focused on Filipino flavors and art making, we have lots of collaborators who are coming from elsewhere, and the idea to bring their culinary traditions in really comes from this wanting to honor who the people are, who are with us, who are gathering to tell the stories. None of us are part of monolithic culture. So really, how that's all come out is just been in relationship the storytelling that happens when you gather people together, and especially with this group of having time to spend together and think out loud about what matters to me, how does this fit into how I think about food in my culture. That's all been really important learnings that is going to show up in the food.
Trish Fontanilla
Awesome.
Ellie Tiglao
So this menu is definitely going to be pretty eclectic. As far as even Filipino food goes, I'm really interested in making sure the flavors are there and also making sure that there are Mainstays that people can recognize and anchor to. Of course, there's going to be pork belly at that table. Of course there will be vinegar with onions and garlic to dip it into. But we'll also be making adobo duck confit. As far as going into other people's cultures, you know, Lani was talking a little bit about suman, one thing that we are thinking of bringing into that space is a black rice suman that's made in the same way that arroz con leche is made in Puerto Rico, that's got coconut and warming spices and ginger in it, for example. And we love the fried things, right? Lumpiang shanghai is going to be there. But there's also a Lebanese type of fried spring roll that's made with phyllo. We're going to do a variation on it's called rakakat, which is, it's basically a cheese lumpia with parsley and other seasonings in it. So look to expect mostly Filipino food with inflections from Puerto Rican cultures, Lebanese cultures and Black American.
Trish Fontanilla
Amazing. Oh, boy, you just said cheese. And this is too much. Too much for me. Yeah.
Ellie Tiglao
Get ready. Hope you come hungry. Well, actually get ready to interact and then eat.
Lani Asunciòn
So the art and multimedia protection and immersive space will be performances by local artists and some folks even coming in remotely from the West Coast. So folks will be eating and enjoying the wonderful food that will be all tied to the different stories and performances. And there will be Kali, which is Filipino martial arts. We'll also have biko performance, so somebody will become that and embody that in the space. There's also DJs and VJs. So there'll be visual folks live mixing also while the DJ is mixing music. There's also a memorial to someone within our kapwa who we want to remember, and we want to have spaces of remembrance so that will be activated with digital media and other offerings. There will be also a takeaway zine that will talk about the project, and folks can learn more about each of the performances and the work
Trish Fontanilla
Amazing. And is this a one time thing? Is there going to be something similar? Or do people really just need to get at this one because it's going to be the only version of this curated food and art piece.
Ellie Tiglao
I don't necessarily think that this is going to be the last time, but we're definitely investing a lot in July 19th, and we'd love it if folks are thinking, Oh, should I do this? We want to see you there, because there's going to be a lot here. And by also by folks coming out, they will be, in some way, part of the co creation of it, because it'll really let us know what folks are here for. And we would love to have your support and any kind of support, being present, be it financial, whatever that looks like for you, will help this work continue and thrive.
Trish Fontanilla
Yeah, I always tell people, if you don't have capital, capital, social capital, is always great. So sharing with five people you know whether they're Filipino or not, I love bringing non-Filipinos to Filipino events because they're like, I don't even know what this culture is or because there isn't a lot of stuff within the city. I feel like, if you lived in California, they're like, Oh, I've had adobo before. So everybody, please, we would love to see you there, but feel free to share with your networks, email, social, etc. Do you have another event planned out as of yet, or do you have a timeline as for when the next thing's happening. What you what can people expect for the future of the organization?
Ellie Tiglao
We are looking at trying to have something in the next couple months. A lot of it is still being shaped, but we already have a title for the next one, I'll say.
Trish Fontanilla
Oh, okay. And how can people get involved? Are you looking for specific volunteers or partners or sponsors?
Ellie Tiglao
I think Lani had spoken a little bit to it. Presence can look like all sorts of ways, from attending to engaging with us. Part of it is also that this is the arts, and it's something that survives through people's not just attention, but spending a little money to make sure that the sort of thing can continue beyond that, obviously we are so interested in still continuing to imagine this work as not just Filipino, but potentially more diasporic. So we've been happily continuing to meet with people and think about how their work might weave into what we're doing. And so if folks like to cook, I will say, definitely reach out. There's all sorts of ways for people who know their way around the kitchen to get involved and be part of something that is a little bit more beyond a prep list and a little bit more hands on with how things are going to look and feel and taste.
Lani Asunciòn
And I'd also like to add, if folks are interested in offering support, if they have a space that they wanted to offer, that they'd love to activate a project like this in let us know. We would love to be supported in that way, and to like, learn more about what that looks like. And also, if you're interested in performing or doing any kind of performance work, especially if you're Filipino and just want to try something experimental and something different, it's been such a pleasure to curate the folks coming in now. But if folks wanted to approach and share ideas with us, I think that would be great,
Trish Fontanilla
Amazing. All right, so I've got a couple kind of lightning round questions. My favorite question to ask is, what are your top three favorite Filipino dishes? There's some nodding, there's some thoughts going through people's brains.
Ellie Tiglao
It's really funny because as as I've gotten further into my work doing food, even though I'm not doing the restaurant anymore, it's still very ingrained in me to actually orient towards. It's memory and meaning, personal meaning. And so yes, kare kare is delicious. Most people claim that as the best, and I'll take it. Yes, kare kare is good, but for me, laing, which is to taro leaves and coconut milk, often kind of spicy, usually with pork. It's so simple. It's what I ate every night when I was doing food research in the Philippines. And so I love to make it and it's just not often present for people here to eat. People don't think about eating leaves that are generally poisonous for you, it eventually becomes food. I'll also briefly say tinola, because that's such a good entryway, so comforting. And I don't think I've had any friend ever come over and eat it and say I did not enjoy that.
Trish Fontanilla
It's got grandma vibes. It's got some Lola vibes.
Trish Fontanilla
I think that's what I want. I want to be auntie. I want to be grandma. I will bring the dishes to church meeting, and then the last one is sinigang. So when I think about what is native sinigang, feels like, Oh, that was definitely our dish, you know. And every region has their different way of souring. So I love it. I will take it with tamarind. I will also take it with fish heads and fish collars. Yeah, all of that just simple stuff.
Trish Fontanilla
Simple but delicious and also complicated. If you're not familiar with Filipino dishes, I always liken them to Italian dishes in that you cannot make spaghetti for one generally, unless you're really measuring out those noodles, it is very hard to make Filipino food for one person or one serving and not have leftovers for the rest of the family. So I feel like Filipinos always make food, not just for dinner, but for a baon [generally leftover food for work/school snacks], for food the next day for you to take it to whatever tita which is auntie, lola / grandma, whoever could make that event. You then have a couple other servings to take. All right, Lani...
Lani Asunciòn
Yeah, it's really simple. My very favorite, I was gonna say, is lumpia, just because everybody makes a little. As a child, I would be that kid, small enough so I could just reach my hand over the tray when nobody's looking, I could just eat them. People are like, where is all the lumpia? And I'm playing already. As a kid that was my favorite, and I just ate so much of it.
Trish Fontanilla
So those are, if people aren't familiar, they're basically like, egg rolls. And you can have different fillings. I have, like, PTSD from lumpia, just because I always had to be cutting in the corner. And I can feel it in my arm, the cutting of the carrots.
Lani Asunciòn
They're so fine.
Trish Fontanilla
Even as a kid, you have to help. You have to do something. And I was in the corner, deveining shrimp. Another reason why I'm like cooking, yeah, so it could be veggie, could be meat, could be seafood, could be, um, there's another version where you can put bananas and brown sugar. Turon is my, one of my faves. And you can freeze it and eat it later. So I always...
Lani Asunciòn
If have some air fryer...
Trish Fontanilla
Yeah, if you want to be if you want to be healthy, but Filipinos aren't always the healthiest...what are a couple other your faves?
Lani Asunciòn
I really love dinuguan. It's my favorite because I like liver. So it's just like I like that richness. At first, when I was younger, I didn't like it because we call it blood meat, and chocolate meat was also another name for it.
Trish Fontanilla
I was gonna say blood meat. It was never... it was always chocolate.
Lani Asunciòn
Yeah, that's all you meant to say. But they told me it was chocolate. And I was like, it smells funny. Another one was like it's blood. And I was like...
Trish Fontanilla
It's so much, y'all, if you are listening, it is so much better. I remember eating as a kid and hated it, and now as an adult, I always look for it. Yes, it is another one of those things, simple but complicated. It's a pain in the butt to make. A friend of mine, she became friends with the butcher because she was like, here's what I need for my Filipino food that I can't find at the supermarket. But yeah, that's one of my faves, too.
Lani Asunciòn
Yeah, I always like to get it at Pinoy Kabayan [sadly, dear reader they just closed, but a new Filipino spot will be opening in its place],they have it here in downtown. They usually have it frozen, even if it's not fresh. And the owner, he makes the best. It's just like the right balance with the vinegar. And then the last one is suman. I just love sticky sweet. And you can put caramel or no caramel, and you can put coconut milk on it and put little, don't know, flowers would can really get fancy, they just eat it. And that smell of the banana leaf to me that I don't know, it's just kind of home, because in Hawaii, we also use taro, but it's like lau, lau. So it has that banana leaf smell.
Trish Fontanilla
I love making things in banana leaves. And it's hard to find them fresh in a lot of places. But my pro tip for people is there's always frozen. If you look in some freezers in Chinatown or other places. I make cassava cake with banana leaves, which is also...maybe this was a bad idea to end with.
Lani Asunciòn
Now we're hungry.
Trish Fontanilla
Sorry to everybody listening. And so I my last question is, if you could give a shout out to fellow Filipino creators, chefs, community member,s someone doing something awesome in Greater Boston or Massachusetts, one person. Who would it be? I say one person, because I think once we start saying people, then we start getting into this Oscar speech, and I'm gonna have to play music for us. But is there someone recently or someone that's always been helpful? Who would you give a shout out to?
Ellie Tiglao
I'm gonna give a shout out because she's she's doing the thing making sure Filipino food has its place in Massachusetts. Kristine Marie Bautista, she recently opened a place called Bits and Bites Bakery in Saugus, and met her when she started running a Filipino festival in Malden, a few years ago. So she continues to make sure that y'all get your fix.
Trish Fontanilla
She's really great. If anyone's ever been to a Boston Asian American Film Festival, she's usually there and she's serving different Filipino desserts and dishes. Total supportive community member, and the Malden Filipino Festival, which was really big, pre-pandemic, and she asked me to be a siopao [steamed meat buns]. So it sounds more delightful than it actually is, because after you've had six or seven, oh, wait, this was my dream, and then maybe we shouldn't have all of our dreams.
Lani Asunciòn
At once.
Trish Fontanilla
Yeah, at once. Lani, how about you?
Lani Asunciòn
I've been hearing a lot about Ashley Lujares and Mango Tao, so shout out.
Trish Fontanilla
She just did a pop up that I went to at Nine Winters, which shout out to them. It's a new Korean American bakery in West Cambridge. So got to give a shout out to all the women owned businesses as out there. But yeah, she's doing the pop up thing too. It's really great. All these, I was gonna say young folks, as if I'm your elder, all the millennials, soon to be titas out there. But it's really cool to see, especially post pandemic, seeing people out and about and doing these pop ups again, and seeing how popular they are. People wanting to try something new and be included in this community, which is really awesome. So to close out, how can people connect with you individually? So Lani, I know you have a website, but what are, what are the best ways for people to reach out if they want to chat with you?
Lani Asunciòn
Yeah, you can reach out on my website. I have a contact page, and usually it goes my email, Instagram, messaging, LinkedIn. I have that, too.
Ellie Tiglao
Yeah. Personally, I'm not on social so much these days, but if you send me a message that way, that's still going to reach me. Definitely recommend an email. I can definitely share that after this. But if anyone has questions about the project at all, we have a shared email address, which I'll make sure Trish has and can share out with folks listening.
Trish Fontanilla
Well, thank you both so much for taking time to talk about Filipino food. I am sorry to everybody, we don't have access easily to all these foods that we're talking about. But hey, reach out to your Filipinos titas out there in the universe, and I'm sure some of them will invite you to their kitchen to have some food. But I really appreciate from the two of you and hearing about your event. And everybody go follow them on social or reach out to them and go to this next event and all the other things coming up this year. So thank you.
Ellie Tiglao
Thanks, Trish.
Lani Asunciòn
Thank you, Trish, so much.
Trish Fontanilla
[Outro music] This has been The BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Trish. Fontanilla, special thanks to Lani and Ellie for taking time to chat with us today to learn more about them, we'll include their email and socials in the show notes. If you're looking for a written transcript of the podcast that'll be available on bosfilipinos.com. And if you like our show, you can subscribe to The BOSFilipinos podcast on your streaming platform of choice. You can also follow us on Instagram. We're @BosFilipinos. And if you have any ideas of what we should cover, are looking to sponsor an episode, or nominate a fellow Filipino in Greater Boston, you can let us know at info@bosfilipinos.com, or DM us on Instagram. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Filipinos In Boston: An Interview With Artist Lexi DeLeon
By Trish Fontanilla
A couple weeks ago I wrote a bit of a rally cry post to invite more of the community to share their stories with us. It’s. Been. Amazing. Please, please keep the stories comin’ by nominating a Filipino you know / nominating yourself.
This month’s Filipinos in Boston post came to me thanks to Alex Poon who nominated his girlfriend Lexi DeLeon. Lexi is a super talented artist and - well, I’ll just let you read the interview below!
Photo provided by Lexi DeLeon.
Where are you and your family from?
Lexi: I was born in the U.S., but my parents are both Filipino and both have family in the Metro Manila area (specifically in Marikina). I visited the the Philippines for the third time in my life last year, the first two times being when I was quite young. I don’t speak Tagalog, unfortunately, but it was really amazing and humbling for me to visit there, especially at an older age. I was also shocked at the amount of cousins I had that I never knew about. It made me realize how much of my culture I’m unfamiliar with, which was kind of sad and alienating at times. One thing that I really loved about being there was just the strong sense of community and family. Even though there were many titas / titos (aunts / uncles) that I had never met, they never hesitated to show me anything but warmth and hospitality, and always sought to make me feel included. I felt like I was never alone there, which was a really comforting feeling.
Where do you work and what do you do?
Lexi: Honestly I’m kind of shy about it, and it’s kind of surreal to write out, but I’m an artist. I do a lot of commission work and I also work a part-time job.
Can you tell us a little more about the art you create and how you got started?
Lexi: As a kid I was always drawing and doodling. My mom told me that when I was young I would take markers and scribble the brightest colors in different patterns until it filled up the whole page. I didn't take it seriously until I moved from New York to a random suburb in Connecticut during my teens. I was really shy and quiet, and I moved at a very weird point in the school year, so that was definitely a very isolating time for me. My mom had signed me up for an after school program which had a focus on the arts and I think that's when I really got into it because the teachers there were extremely supportive and encouraging. They were always willing to lend me art materials that I didn't have at the time or take the students to different art galleries in the area. And I dove head first into art as a means of trying to deal with this difficult transition in my life. Also because I’m shy and internalize a lot of my thoughts, art provides a way for me to express my emotions or how I’m feeling in a way that I can't articulate through conversation.
As for the art I create, I don't think there's a real deep meaning or grand message that is the driving force for the imagery. I think my art is really more emotion based and is inspired by whatever media I'm interested at the time. I'm really drawn to vivid colors at the moment so I'm always trying to incorporate as many colors in one illustration as I can, and there's always a lot of florals and nature. I love honing in small details or intricate line work as well, because my mind just gets lost in it. I feel like the way I make art now is definitely very similar to the way I made art as a child - just picking random colors that catch my eye and filling up a page with different intricate patterns until I feel it’s finished.
On Boston…
Photo provided by Lexi DeLeon.
How long have you been in Boston?
Lexi: I’ve been in Boston for about 5 years now I think? I came here for college and have pretty much stayed ever since.
What are your favorite Boston spots (food, parks, spaces, etc!)
Lexi: Ooh, I love visiting different places for food and coffee especially. I’d have to say my favorite place as of now is definitely Solid Ground Cafe on Huntington. I saw an ad for it on Instagram I think, or maybe it was on the BOSFilipinos Instagram page (the only time I was ever actually been enamored by an ad on Instagram), and it was for a coconut pandan latte. I haven’t had pandan since I visited the Philippines, so once I saw the post I made it a priority to try and visit before they closed that day. I was running really late (in typical Filipino fashion) and I think I made it at 2:55PM, and they close at 3PM. I felt so bad being *that* customer, but they were extremely kind and made me a latte anyway. It was single-handedly one of the best lattes I’ve ever had in my life, and I’ve honestly had a lot - I worked at a coffee shop for like 3 ½ years. They also make this amazing ube tart and bibingka (Filipino bake rice cake), which makes me really happy because finding Filipino food in Boston can be really difficult. The owners themselves are just really sweet. When I can, I love just sitting there to have those nostalgic flavors and write / reflect / sketch. Oh, and I am a hardcore stan for Coreanos in Allston.
My long winded love letter to Solid Ground Cafe aside, I also really love sitting on the benches of the Charles River Esplanade during the Spring / Summer and walking along the river and people watching. The reservoir by Cleveland Circle is also a really lovely spot to go to on a nice day. I’m not a very talkative or outgoing person, so finding these spots / areas to just sit and reflect in the midst of everything means a lot me.
On Filipino Food...
What's your all time favorite Filipino dish? (Feel free to link up some recipes, otherwise I’ll find them around the web)
Lexi: This is so hard, wow. I think it has to be kare-kare (Filipino stew with peanut sauce) maybe? Growing up, I only had it during special occasions, so I would eat 3 servings of it as a kid and even now. I have to say lechon kawali (deep fried crispy pork belly) is a really close second though. After that has to be tapsilog (beef tapa, garlic fried rice, and egg). And anything ube flavored. Honestly, I love all Filipino food so much and it’s so rare that I have it so it’s very difficult for me to pick.
What's your favorite Filipino recipe / dish to make?
Lexi: I’m sadly not very blessed with cooking skills but either sinigang (Filipino tamarind soup) or tinola (Filipino chicken soup). They’re just really comforting foods to make, especially in the wintertime. Oh and arroz caldo! I like to make it in a big batch so I can eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I had a dream that I made an ube cheesecake. I can’t really bake but I’m determined to learn now since I clearly prophesied this concoction.
Art by Lexi DeLeon
On staying in touch…
Do you have any upcoming events / programs / even work things that you’d like to mention?
Lexi: I’m part of a group show at MECA gallery in Lowell , and the reception is this Wednesday on April 24th. I post a lot on Instagram but this is really one of the few times I’ve ever showcased my work in a gallery setting so it’s pretty exciting and anxiety inducing for me. There’s definitely a lot of fear with putting your work out there. At the same time I’m really excited to meet other artists and cultivate those relationships with creatives who may face similar struggles, and to help each other grow.
How can people stay in touch? (Social, email, website, whatever you’re comfortable with)
Lexi: I’m most active on my art Instagram, which is @lecksydee, and a lot of my work can be seen on my website at lexideleon.com.
We’re always looking for BOSFilipinos blog writers! If you’d like to contribute, send us a note at info@bosfilipinos.com.
Filipinos In Boston: An Interview With Chef Ashley Lujares
By Trish Fontanilla
Photo provided by Ashley Lujares / Taken at Myers+Chang by Kristin Teig
Before we started BOSFilipinos and I was still in the consideration phase of my Filipino food project, the universe kept asking me, “Have you talked to Ashley Lujares yet?” And by universe I mean, Ashley’s previous colleagues at Myers+Chang, Chefs Joanne Chang (owner / chef), and Karen Akunowicz (partner / executive chef), and Veo Robert (chef de cuisine). Seriously, three separate conversations, three suggestions that I should chat with Ashley. After meeting her at an industry night, and then having a coffee chat that lasted for hours talking about our upbringings as Filipino Americans, I thought she’d be perfect for the blog!
Ashley is one of the amazing chefs in Boston that is bringing Filipino food to the masses by highlighting special dishes wherever she goes. We’re stoked that she was able to do this interview with us. And don’t worry, we’ll be highlighting more of the amazing Filipino chefs here in Boston throughout the year.
Where are you and your family from?
Ashley: I was born and raised in Massachusetts, but my parents are both from the Bicol region in the Philippines. Half of my mother's siblings reside here as well as the west coast. And my maternal grandfather was in the U.S. Coast Guard. He was stationed here in Boston and in San Diego, CA.
Photo provided by Ashley Lujares
What do you do?
Ashley: I am the savory chef at Flour Bakery + Cafe in Fort Point.
What inspired you to become a chef?
Ashley: Many situations in my life have inspired me to become a chef. The first inspiration came from a day I was watching cartoons and my dad said, “Why don’t you watch something that you can learn from. You are rotting your brain.” He put on PBS, and Julia Child’s show was on. I was instantly hooked!
Soon after that I moved to the Philippines for 3 years, and one of my earliest memories is going to the market with my grandmother. My cousin Joy and I would take turns going there with her, and I would throw tantrums when it wasn't my turn. I loved how full of life the market was; I loved the smell of the street food and seeing fresh produce.
My grandmother owned a pancitan (noodle factory). She also had a green thumb and planted all of the fruits and vegetables in our backyard. Any exotic fruit you can find at your local market in the US, my grandmother had in her backyard. My grandfather owned a balutan (balut factory), and my aunt raised pigs and sold meat at the town market. She also helped my mother prep for parties. Through those parties my mom taught me the importance of eating with your eyes first.
Well we know that Flour is one the best places to work in Boston (like really, not just because of the sticky buns), but how did you end up working there?
Ashley: I was the sous chef at Myers+Chang for a few years and I needed a change. I love Joanne Chang’s management style, and I felt like I would learn a lot about how to be a better manager from her as well as the business aspect of the food industry.
On Boston...
Provided by Ashley Lujares
How long have you been in Boston?
Ashley: I have been in Boston for the majority of my life. I briefly lived in different places like New York City, the Philippines, and San Diego, CA.
What are your favorite Boston spots (could be restaurants / parks / anything!):
Ashley: My favorite restaurants are Sarma, Coppa, Toro, and my best friend’s family restaurant in Chinatown called Wai Wai’s. I frequent the back of the ICA overlooking East Boston, and I love going to museums like the MFA, ICA + Isabella Stewart Gardner. Mostly I'm in the South Shore where the Lujares family compound is located.
On Filipino Food...
What's your all time favorite Filipino dish?
Ashley: I really love my mom’s palabok (variation of Filipino noodle dish, pancit). It’s so rich yet so bright! I also love my mom’s lumpia shanghai (spring roll). Through the years she developed these recipes and made them her own, and both are her signature dishes.
What's your favorite Filipino recipe / dish to make?
Ashley: I love making Filipino barbeque and my grandmother’s atchara (pickle made from grated, unripe papaya). These components complement each other well, and they remind me of summer. I often make these at Flour!
On staying in touch...
Photo provided by Ashley Lujares
How can people stay in touch?
Ashley: My Instagram account is serajul. It’s my last name backwards if you are wondering where I got it from.
We’re always looking for BOSFilipinos blog writers / subjects! If you’d like to contribute or have a suggestions, feel free to send us a note: info@bosfilipinos.com.
Dragon Lady is Comin' To Town: An Interview with Sara Porkalob
WHAT? Why hadn’t I heard of this show before? Will actual Filipinos be playing the characters? The last question was a gut response in reaction to some recent conversations I’ve had around minority actors. More specifically, the discussions were about Evita being produced without a Latinx cast here in New England, and the Daily Beast piece about the movie ‘Annihilation’ and Hollywood’s erasure of Asians. So as you can imagine, I was stoked to learn more about the woman behind Dragon Lady, Sara Porkalob. Straight from her bio, “Sara Porkalob is an award-winning solo performer, director, and arts activist recognized on City Art’s 2017 Future List and has recently finished her term as Intiman Theatre’s 2017 Co-Curator. She is a co-founder of DeConstruct, an online journal of intersectional performance critique.”
Something I totally missed as I was feverishly scrolling through her blog and her performance list is that she’s based in Seattle. Well, while Sara isn’t a BOSFilipino, she is a boss Filipino and you need to catch her while she’s in town performing her latest show Dragon Lady at The A.R.T (OBERON) March 22nd - 24th.
And thank you to Sara for taking some time to chat with me about her past work, inspiration, and how we can make theater more inclusive.
Dragon Lady picture provided by Sara Porkalob
Do you remember a particular moment growing up that inspired you to be a performer?
Sara: I was born a performer! My mother says I came out of her vaginal canal performing and I am inclined to believe her.
I loved going through your performance list and seeing you playing characters that aren’t traditionally cast with Asians or POCs (people of color). What do you think the theater community can improve upon or do to be more inclusive?
Sara:
Hire POC in all areas, especially in positions of power.
Allocate resources, infrastructure, and decision-making to POC.
Make EDI (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion) Training mandatory for all Trustees and employees. Implement this ideology into the mission, vision, and programming.
Create systems of accountability and actionable quarterly objectives.
Engage with the community outside of your audience demographic, maintain these relationships and deepen them through community programming curated BY them, FOR them.
Theatres can do more, but I charge a consultant fee for those :)
Did you find that the more you studied acting, the more you were driven to be an activist? Or were you always engaged in conversations and work around social change?
Sara: I’m privileged to have been raised by two women who value social change and justice. Our household was talking about intersectional activism before they became buzzwords. The more I studied acting, the more I realized how problematic and white American theatre and arts education was. It was this disparity that pushed me to become an advocate and activist within the arts community.
Dragon Lady picture provided by Sara Porkalob
Reading through your blog post “Institutional Racism Made Me a Better Artist,” we get to hear a little bit about the early inspiration for Dragon Lady, which is your family. What has been their response to the show and your other work?
Sara:
In this order:
Disbelief and suspicion
Incredulity and laughter
Tears and catharsis
Anger and healing
Pride and joy
Sharing MORE stories of the past, making sure I know all the details.
My family is my rock. They keep me humble. They are a constant reminder of where I come from and why I should never forget that. They love my work and think I’m the best of my peer group, but they could be biased. Or not. ;)
Did Dragon Lady always have music? What drove you to make it a full musical?
Sara: Dragon Lady has always had music. Transitioning to a musical made sense but required more capital and institutional support. The first two years of performing it, I had musical tracks and sang covers of popular songs that had special significance for the story. The third year, I had enough resources and support to commission a composer to create original music, plus create covers of the past songs. My grandmother was a singer in the Philippines. All of the women in my family are singers and the men are musicians. Music is in my blood. It wouldn’t be a Porkalob show without music.
Who / what (else) inspires you?
Sara: My entire family. Black women. Children. Asian Grandmas.
Dragon Lady poster provided by Sara Porkalob
Performing can be physically and emotionally draining, are there any activities you like to do to recharge?
Sara: I eat Korean, or Filipino, or Japanese food. I also enjoy a hot shower, with a cold beer, and then some good ol’ marijuana after. I also love cats and enjoy relaxing with mine because she’s sassy and silly and doesn’t bore me with small talk.
How else can our community here in Boston support you (besides attending your show)?
Sara: GET MORE BROWN AND BLACK PEOPLE OUT IN THE AUDIENCE!!! That’s the dream, as many POC as I can get, I’d love for them to see this show.
One last question, because I read somewhere that your happy place is “food in my face,” so naturally, I had to ask... what’s your favorite food? Favorite Filipino dish?
Sara: Korean food allll the wayyyyy. Sorry, Filipino ancestors! Fave Filipino dish? Sinigang, all the way. With some patis and hot rice, yesssssss.
Dragon Lady picture provided by Sara Porkalob
Thanks again to Sara Porkalob for being amazing, and taking time to do this interview.
If you don’t have tickets to her show Dragon Lady, playing over at OBERON in Cambridge, get your tickets now! The show is running for 3 nights at 7:30PM, March 22nd - 24th, with one 2PM matinee on March 24th: https://americanrepertorytheater.org/events/show/dragon-lady
We’re always looking for BOSFilipinos blog writers / subjects! If you’d like to contribute or have a suggestions, feel free to send us a note: info@bosfilipinos.com.
Figuring Out My Filipino American Self
(Taken by Trish’s parents, or some other excited relative in the Philippines)
Unlike my fellow BOSFilipinos founders, I didn’t grow up in the Philippines. I’ve actually only been once, and I had a really good time if you couldn’t tell by the picture (I’m on the far left). My parents, however, were born in the Philippines but on different islands. My mom is from Pangasinan (Luzon) and my dad grew up on a farm in Iloilo (Visayas). They came to America around the same time in the 60s, and actually met in Newark, New Jersey where there was a Little Manila at the time. Both of them grew up in big families with little money, so they came to the US to live that “streets paved in gold” American dream.
When I was a kid, my dad was adamant that we be "American.” To him that meant always speaking English to me and my brothers, and assimilating whenever possible. On the other hand, my mom always made sure that we were connected to the Filipino community, especially when it came to parties and food.
The best way I can describe my Filipino experience growing up is by talking about the two birthday parties I had each year. It wasn’t because of any particular extravagance, it was because my mom insisted that I have an “American” birthday party and a Filipino one. The American party was a Saturday lunch with my classmates from school. We had Domino’s pizza and Blimpie subs and a white cake with calligraphy writing from Pathmark, our local supermarket. The lunch was generally two hours long. The kids and their parents were on time, and they left on time. The Filipino party “started” at 5, but people didn’t show up until 6 or 7. The food was all Filipino, and mostly made by my mother with the exception of the lechon (a whole roasted pig). There was karaoke and line dancing and mahjong (an Asian tile game) and loud laughter that went into the wee hours of the morning. Or until my neighbors called the police, which is a whole other fun blog post on race relations for another time.
So for a very long time, the way I lived was much like the parties I grew up with. There was my “American” self that walked around most days fitting in as best I could. Then I was my Filipino self on the weekends and at home. And without many people that looked like me in the media - movies, magazines, etc - it was hard for me to imagine that you could be Filipino “out loud” and be accepted. Ah, one of the many reasons why representation is important.
Now after living in Boston for 15 years, a couple years off from being here half of my life, it’s now all coming full circle. But instead of the segregated identities I grew up with, over the past several years here, I’ve started to build a community to merge my Filipino American experience. And I know that may feel completely foreign to some, but I believe it will resonate with anyone out there who is Filipino American or a first generation kid or just trying to figure themselves out. BOSFilipinos is for all of the above, and more.
This project rose up from a place of warmth and hospitality (thanks for that influence, Mom!), and I’m so excited for you all to be a part of this community.