Mga Pagninilay (reflections, ruminations)
2025
hand-cut paper
13.4 W × 12.8 H × 11.2 D inches
The Tagalog word pagninilay roughly translates to reflections or ruminations. It refers to being in deep thought or contemplating. These 6 hand cut layers of paper are a reflection made in four chapters: tahanan (home), lipunan (society), kabuhayan (livelihood), and pag-ibig (love).
Light and reflection are inherently intertwined, shaping how we see and remember. Memories resurface when illuminated by thought, sometimes clear and vivid, other times distorted by time and perception, just like how light changes as it bounces off surfaces to create reflection. In this state of introspection, we revisit and reevaluate experiences under a new light, teaching us that memories are not static. Just as light can reveal hidden details out of the shadows, reflection can uncover forgotten emotions, deeper truths, and new understandings of past experiences, allowing us to see the past in a different way.
Photography by Kimmy Noonen and Victoria Pater
Roots and Remnants
2025
hand-cut paper
7 W × 7 H × 4 D inches
Trees are nature’s record keepers. Their growth rings are silent witnesses to survival. The Narra, Philippines’ national tree, carries this story. Its strength lies in its symbolism: heritage and the unyielding spirit of Filipinos. Yet this wisdom carries a paradox, one captured in the saying, “to forget our roots is to lose sight of our destination.”
In revisiting our roots, remnants of our past assemble into the very foundation upon which we build. Honoring the intricacies of our history allows us to connect it with our present as we learn that belonging grows from understanding where we’ve been. But when we own our roots, how much do we owe our roots? Do they empower us to chart new territories or suppress us with an incessant demand to look back?
The layered abstraction of this work mirrors this complexity: elements of a Narra tree as fragments that simultaneously reveal and conceal, nourish and constrain. Because understanding how our roots shape us, and sometimes vex us, is the work of a lifetime.
y. pulongbarit-cuevo 