Exhibition Credits

Maintaining Impermanence exhibition examines how maintenance influences Philippine domestic architecture and cultural identity. While building maintenance is often viewed as a burden, in the Philippines, it has long functioned as a collective practice that preserves both structures and communities. Indigenous forms of housing, built from local materials and adapted to the environment, depend on constant renewal—an “impermanent” practice that sustains cultural knowledge and community bonds. Through centuries of Spanish colonization, American imperialism, and ongoing regional and global effects, new housing typologies have emerged, reflecting a tension between traditional impermanence and the colonial ideal of permanence. By exploring this history and combining architectural research, visual documentation, and cultural analysis, Maintaining Impermanence reinterprets maintenance as a form of preservation—one that safeguards community and culture amid climate and humanitarian challenges.