Truly Rizalian

My family used to visit Rizal almost every week in my younger days in search of some property down south and besides the subdivision where I live is practically located at Taytay, Rizal already. Even when I was young, I enjoyed travelling and went places I really wanted to explore. And among the places I would never ever forget was Nemiranda's home in Angono.

I used to hear Nemiranda's name from my tito who was also an artist and when we drove up to Angono and Morong to check on potential property sites, we passed by the Balaw-Balaw restaurant that stands beside a "museum", which apparently turned out to be Nemiranda's home. The only thing I remembered from Nemiranda's home was that it was made of wood, entirely of wood, with huge carved designs on the entrance. This is typical of Rizal, where sculpted dinosaurs would seem to be trudging along some vacant lot for the pleasure of the visitors. But what is not so typical about Nemiranda's home was that the sculpted images can be found on their home entrance and not on the ground. I admit Rizal is a fascinating provice where artists unconsciously thrive everywhere, not just painters but also sculptors who do sculpting just for fun.

Among the images I remember seeing were dinosaur heads which fascinated me for I have never seen a home as weird or as interesting as Nemiranda's home. There was a blue mermaid reclining romantically over the entrance of the Miranda home and although it was a little bit modern and contemporary for a Filipino architectural design, it was still distinctly Filipino with the use of wood for its floor and ceiling and concrete for the walls.

At the same time, it was a bold decision for Nemi Miranda Jr. to use his sculptures as his architectural design as can be seen in his cafe, his home and his family museum. It was both primitive and modern, in terms of architectural design, and primitive with his use of native materials like wood and sawali for the parts of his home. In a society where bricks and cement are used for the appearance and strength of a house, Nemi Miranda Jr. has used his own tricks not only to ensure home safety but also to beautify it. - ALEXIS LAURA FELICIANO