Rooted in the grassroots
Every year, Artefino gets better at what it does best: connecting local Philippine craft with everyday contemporary life.
This 2025, the fair is expanding through Rockwell with collaborations that continue to stay rooted in tradition.
Founded by everyone’s favorite titas—Maritess Pineda, Mita Rufino, Susie Quiros, Cedie Lopez-Vargas, and Marimel Francisco, Artefino has evolved over the years to go beyond selling traditional crafts, and act as an incubator.
The non-stock, non-profit organization nurtures the talent of local designers and artisan communities, displaying and selling a range of items, from sculptural and functional home pieces to modish accessories and garments.
This year, Artefino plans to expand its base in the Rockwell Center. With attention to the culinary arts, the inaugural ArteFino Lounge will open at the Balmori Chef’s Table from July 26 to August 3. The lounge will serve recipes inspired by Filipino heritage and imagined by chefs Angelo Comsti and Don Baldosano of Offbeat Bistro.
With visual direction by Jet Acuzar of The Forewoman and Las Casas de Acuzar, the lounge will also showcase fine jewelry and accessories from ARAO, Caro Wilson, Golden Monstera, Katha Pilipinas, and Peewee Benitez.
The ArteFino Fair itself will run from July 31 to August 3 at The Fifth and R1 Lifestyle Hallway in Rockwell.
“We are rooted in heritage, but never stuck in the past,” say the founders, “The Filipino spirit lives in the way we adapt, preserve, and reimagine traditions.”
For its 2025 edition, the artisanal fair highlights three collaborations that explore new, nuanced approaches to creating.
Eco-printed wearable art
After the stirring exhibition “Earthbound” at MO_Space last March, visual artists Geraldine Javier and Marionne Contreras, and Idyllic Summers fashion designer Steffi Cua continue their collection of wearable art.
Using eco-printing and zero-waste processes, there is a watercolor-like quality to their patterns of foliage. Backed by botanical literature with dyes that come from the earth itself, the slow fashion pieces are designed for those who tend to nature and spend time outdoors, with real pockets for tools and herbs, gardening jackets and utility aprons, dusted with imprints of foliage like marigolds.
With a kind of beauty that appears lived-in and close to the earth, Cua states, “The collection is practical, but beautiful in its honesty–heavily inspired by the slow, yet intentional practice of tending to your own land.”
Stitching past and present
For this project, designer Jor-El Espina rose up to the challenge working alongside the grand dame of Filipiniana, Patis Tesoro. Guided by her decades of expertise in heirloom fashion, they created “Heirloom,” stitching together garments built on patchwork, needlepoint, and hand embroidery techniques that honor tradition, while pushing it forward.
Combining these time-honored techniques with the contemporary, Espina shares Tesoro and him share similar styles when its comes to details and aeshtetics, “Getting inputs from Patis Tesoro–and being inspired by her body of work–helped me to push my craft further and forward,” he says, “As I dove deeper into her techniques and details–patterns on patterns, rich textures, art on fabrics–I realized that there was so much more to learn. It was such an enlightening experience.”
Native blooms
In a collaboration that is equal parts clothing and canvas, Camille Villanueva, who studied at Central Saint Martins and is known for a style that centers on clean tailoring, handed her garments over to muralist Tara Soriano, with her ethereal style of painting.
Soriano painted the structured silhouettes with flora such as yellow-green ylang-ylang and turquoise-hued jade vines, as well as other undulating Filipino flora, giving the plants a platform in fashion.
“I’ve always wanted a Filipino floral print that is easy to wear,” says Villanueva, “Almost like a neutral or classic.”
HeArtefino
For years, Artefino has been cultivating their development grants program, HeArteFino, which provides direct support to creative communities across the country.
Thie year, Bohol-based Project Nova was announced as the HeArteFino grantee and received an initial seed of P500,000. The upcycling initiative transforms discarded kayaks into durable bags and pouches.
Meanwhile, returning grantee Zarah Juan releases her collection Full Circle, which uses natural dyeing, a technique Juan studied in Jakarta. She said at the ArteFino media launch, “Ang ArteFino ay hindi lang for prestige. Ang ArteFino ay buhay… Ang HeArteFino ay puso ng lahat ng masigasig.”
As ArteFino readies to launch their edition, they demonstrate that the fair has found itself in a steady rhythm, as it continues to support Filipino craft, leaving room to grow and change.
ArteFino Fair runs from July 31 to August 3, 2025 at The Fifth & R1 Lifestyle Hallway, Rockwell, Makati City
