A Look Through the Lens with Kim Requesto

Kim Requesto is a Philippine born, Bay Area raised cultural practitioner based in San Francisco, California. She specializes in 35 mm photography, videography, and dance. Requesto deconstructs Filipino folkloric performance to highlight the multiplicity of cultural perspectives and narratives.

Requesto has been part of the Filipino Folk Dance community in San Francisco since 2005 and continues to perform with Parangal Dance Company as one of their Dance Masters. In 2016, the Alliance of California for Traditional Art awarded Requesto a grant to apprentice under Kalinga Cultural Master Artist Jenny Bawer Young and in 2018, she went to the province of Lubuagan, Kalinga, Philippines to learn from renowned Kalinga cultural bearer, Cirilo “Sapi” Bawer. Through Parangal Dance Company, Requesto has been able to immerse and do research in various indigenous ethnolinguistic communities: Ata Manobo, Panay Bukidnon, Tagakaolo, Ati Tarog, Yakan, Subanen, Ifugao, Kagan, Maguindano, Bugkalot, T’boli, and Kalinga.

Requesto aspires to create more contemporary Philippine diasporic dance work and visual media using her background in Philippine dance to bring awareness and thoughtfulness to the realities of different communities in the Philippines and the diaspora.

“UNEDITED FILM: Gono Hofo, Lake Sebu, Philippines” is a zine that showcases photos of the T'boli community from Gono Hofo Heritage Center in Lake Sebu and will donate back to their community to support their School of Living Traditions and the artisans who live there.

Balay Kreative is proud to support Requesto with her project, as we believe the struggles of indigenous peoples are interconnected with those of ours here in SOMA Pilipinas. We hope that her work will help offer reflections about culture and solidarity.

- Kim Arteche, Balay Kreative Program Manager