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Bianca Weeko Martin

KEY WORDS

Manila, love, work, people, architecture, residency, calisthenics, artists, Philippines, sense, project, grant, friendship, feel, book, funny, building, speaking, family

I'm a writer and researcher, trained in architecture and raised on the internet, grounded by drawing (as a lifelong, inconclusive process) and the love of my family, friends, and ancestors. This year, I published my first book on Manila's contemporary architecture which has led to many current preoccupations including a small book tour (which I love to overdramatize) and a collaborative research project on alternative publishing and the Filipino diaspora. It has also given me steadily increasing agility within the fields of architecture, design, and public art, where I am consulting and writing strategically. I am always mentally preparing for my next scuba diving trip.

Photo Credit: Camille Rojas

This conversation took place in April 2024.

(Zoom recording consent prompt)

You have my consent.

Okay.


*laughter*

Eternal consent.


*laughter*

So we were just saying how we haven't explicitly talked a lot about each other's work but have, like you said, lived in each other's work, which I love. We met through the UKAI residency, The Poetics of Synthetic Laguage, which was virtual, until we met in person in Milan where everything cumulated, which is a cool, yeah, flex in our friendship beginnings.

Totally.

I was wondering if you could share more about the project that you were working on at that time and where you're at now. So much has happened even though it hasn't been that long. I feel like we've witnessed a really transformational period in each other’s lives.

“What I've realized is that whether I'm thinking about femininity or the Filipino diaspora, there's this source of power from things that we kind of dismiss as care, domestic or whatever, if that makes sense. That really played out in the project of the guidebook for sure, but also in my career in architecture. ”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

Yeah it's been a big year. I'm also just remembering now, because we always joke about how our friendship is also based off of voice notes, I remember that one of the assignments we had in this residency was to send each other little audio recordings, right?

Oh, my God. Yeah.

About what we were bringing to the residency? I don't remember what the prompts were. But I viscerally remember being in Manila, because I was doing field work for my guidebook at that time, but I was in Manila, and we were all in different time zones, and you and I were like, the only ones who sent the voice notes in. I don't even remember what platform we were using. It was like, let’s try discord, or let's try something that's not Google Drive. It's  funny that we've made it pretty full circle, since our friendship now involves exchanging so many voice notes. 

But essentially, I was working on Architectural Guide Manila, which I'm dropping next month, like literally within weeks (KT “wooing” in background). And at that time, I applied to that residency with UKAI because I already knew of their work and had done collaborations with them before. But in retrospect, that whole experience, I think, was a real source of grounding when I was returning to Toronto, because I didn't have any projects coming up yet. That really gave me something to do and think about in the realm of AI. So I’m thankful for that and thankful that it brought me to you and your friendship.

Likewise. Yeah, you're reminding me too, because that was the first residency I'd ever done, and I just was so nervous to send those introductions or answer those questions.

It was like speaking to the void.

Yeah, and not knowing anyone... it was truly speaking into the void. And getting to know you through those few facts, you being in Manila doing research for this guide you were putting together... I was like, holy shit, like, I am not supposed to be here! But yeah, it was so cool.

I know you've shared a bit about people under estimating you along the way in architecture. Now you have a published book and you're gonna be traveling the world launching it, which is so sick. Could you say more about that journey?

Yeah, honestly, I love being humbled I've realized, but I come from, you know, the architectural field. So I think that there's always been these dynamics of being underestimated or, that's not even the right way to capture it, because I feel like that relationship is so linear. It's like one person is better or smarter or whatever. What I've realized is that whether I'm thinking about femininity or the Filipino diaspora, there's this source of power from things that we kind of dismiss as care, domestic or whatever, if that makes sense. That really played out in the project of the guidebook for sure, but also in my career in architecture.

The guidebook specifically put me in touch with a lot of architects and practitioners in the Philippines who I had to meet with in person while I was doing field work there, often for sponsorship opportunities, which I’m terrible at. I remember the very first meeting that I had was within a week or two of landing. And I was just situating myself in Manila with the knowledge that I am a member of the diaspora and grew up elsewhere, but I have never worked on a project there. That meeting was like, yeah. I came away feeling like shit. The guy was super entitled. And, you know, I just got the sense that he didn't think that I was qualified to be the person writing architectural guide Manila. And I was really in my head about it. And I remember, like texting someone in Toronto and all they said was, was that guy shorter than you? *both laugh* I was like... yeah. And that perspective shift was really helpful at that point. I felt really ungrounded when I was initially adjusting to life in Manila. Having those pathways of communication and humor and sense of Torontoness still helped me through that, because I was pretty much traveling alone.

One thing I admire and just love about your work is how caring, and sentimental and intentional it is, and how humble you are, for how much you're doing. I'm noticing the artists and people that I'm super drawn to are not doing the work for certain accolades. It's like, literally a part of who you are. And because of that there's no hierarchy in it. It's like, you know, you're genuinely contributing to like- whether it's an ancestral story line, or you're actually actively being a part of the world and that involves relationships, and building things with people. That story you just described of interacting with that man, it's like, yeah, that resistance that people can have towards others, it's so not about the work. Like so much of it's just about other things that get muddled into who is "qualified" to be making an architectural guide. Yeah, I don't know. It's just, it's like, truly silly.

Yeah. And it is really self-centered. Because I think yeah, that sense of purpose you were talking about or like, not caring too much about the accolades that come from that conviction in something larger. But this man, like, I later realized that he had originally wanted to write the same guidebook for the same publisher, and they had this email exchange, and I was like, wow, that was not a me problem.

Whoa.

“I'm noticing the artists and people that I'm super drawn to are not doing the work for certain accolades. It's like, literally a part of who you are. And because of that there's no hierarchy in it. It's like, you know, you're genuinely contributing to like- whether it's an ancestral story line, or you're actually actively just being a part of the world and that involves relationships, and building things with people.” 

– KT

Yeah, yeah. I guess everybody's just on their own journey and it’s his problem to sort out, not yours.

Yeah. Short King problems.


*laughter*

I'm wondering if you could say more about how your time evolved being in Manila? How long were you there for again?

So in total, I was in Southeast Asia for five or six months. I haven't actually counted how much of that was in Manila. But Manila was definitely my base, and where I did all the field work. From there, I also went to Indonesia, where I was born, and some smaller islands that are quite different from Manila, the capital.

Do you feel like your relationship to building the field guide changed over that five to six months? How would you describe the process?

So when I first arrived, it was getting close to Christmas time, which is honestly the most chaotic time to be in the Philippines. Like, there's just so much traffic and all the buildings that I was supposed to be photographing, had like Christmas decorations on them. Logistically, I was stressed. There was definitely a lot of anxiety for many reasons at the very beginning, not even just related to the work, but personally. And then I think over time I started seeing the charms and complexities of Manila, for sure. I was really blessed to be staying with a host family, a family friend that really took me in. I've been reflecting on that family a lot.

Yeah, there were definitely moments where I just had to see the humor in it all, like hanging out in malls and getting around on motorbike taxis. Those are all the ways I was navigating the city and the buildings I had to document. Taking breaks to those smaller islands I mentioned was necessary, but jarring in the process. I remember, all of February I was in Siargao, which is known for surfing  and subsistence fishing and just like being a super rugged Island, like barely any infrastructure. It's getting better, or not better, but gentrified and developed. I remember having a bit of an existential crisis when I was there, because I was like, why am I working on a book about buildings when they're like no buildings here? Or like, buildings in the way that we understand it the West. And yet I felt so healed and fulfilled there. You know?

Yeah, that whole journey was pretty, I don't know the shape that I'm seeing in my head. It had highs and lows. But I think all of it was part of the big picture. Yeah. Now I'm just trying to reflect on all of that before I tap into that part of the world again in a few weeks.

“I feel like this very moment is the first time I'm like, wow, I'm pretty aligned with my purpose.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

When you were in school did you know you wanted to take this direction? Like, in writing and storytelling? How would you sort of describe your practice and architecture?

I've always wanted to be a writer. I think one of the first times when I was a kid, and I was asked, like what do you want to be? And my mom definitely has like evidence of this, but I would always answer, an author and illustrator. So she's always saying like, wow, you're achieving that dream. But I feel like in school, I was too wrapped up in how hard architecture school was to think about what my place in it would be. I just feel really grateful that it panned out this way. But my undergrad in architecture wasn't that research based, we had these co-op programs. So my priority at that time was actually to travel while I worked. I did most of my placements abroad and obviously that came with a lot of like embodied knowledge. But I wasn't thinking about it, too like macroscopically, I was just like in it, and I wrote when I could. So I’m glad it worked out.

I've heard this about a master’s in architecture that it's just as intense as engineering and just really sort of engulfs people. I'm wondering if there was any moment, maybe after graduation or towards the end when you started to see your place in it?

I feel like, now. I don't know if it's me being overly humble. This is the first time I'm starting a project that I have control over and can actually see what the end product will be. I've had a string of really amazing mentors, I have to say that, but I have always been more focused on their vision and finding ways to support it. And obviously, they’ve contributed to how I can navigate this world of moving autonomously and definitively now, but I feel like this very moment is the first time I'm like, wow, I'm pretty aligned with my purpose.

Yeah, I'm curious about the timing of this and the grant that you just received and being more autonomous in your work. Because obviously there's aspects of building the guide that would support you as an independent artist and architect, but then I think having that additional funding or like, project support so that you can really expand it... I'm just curious how you saw that coming into play as well. What prompted you to apply for a grant during all of this other work?

So the guidebook, like the idea was planted actually pretty prematurely in a way. That really came out of a friendship that I made in the summer of 2017. This was in my Berlin era. I feel like it was kind of cosmic that things shaped up and I later got the contract. I was on vacation right after graduating in the Philippines and Indonesia for a family reunion and then this friend sort of WhatsApp’d me. He was like, hey, how would you feel about doing an architectural book for your homeland? I was like, whoa. I had seen his father's guidebook to Berlin, when I was living in Berlin, and I loved the books, and I loved the publisher. And yeah, maybe I had an inkling in my head that I would have liked to do a project like that. But that really started materializing in 2019, right before COVID. And then a lot of things happened between that, the project started on and off and I had other things going on at the same time. But yeah, I guess, late 2022 was when I finally actually got myself physically to Manila to wrap up the work.

I applied to the grant right around the time that me and you got to know each other. I think that I wouldn't have had the confidence or knowledge to apply for a Seed grant if we hadn't met Jerry and the UKAI team who really kind of pushed it as if it was something pretty easy to do and get, which it wasn't. Like, obviously, it was doable. But it was a very iterative process and it took a lot of work and tears to get the grant to be where it was at the end when it was accepted. B ut I think that was necessary because now, it just makes so much sense. And it makes sense how it connects to all this publishing work and experience I've had. So yeah, the grant kicked off this month and even that is a learning process, the research. But yeah, I'm sure you know how it is. 

“I was reflecting on this question and I almost feel like as I grow older, I claim the term artist less and less, almost like, out of the utmost respect for the artists I do respect and admire. But I do feel like when I get confused by the term and that world, I just go back to drawing.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

Yeah. Yeah. I’m only just figuring it out and starting to ask questions around like, oh, what does this actually mean to be successful and get the grant? And how you even, I don't know, pay everybody and keep track of all of it. Where do you put it? Even following up with everyone who, you know, gave you support letters, or like, had said they would sign on. I'm like, oh, wow, nine months later, do you still want to do this with me?

That’s real. I had a dream about one of the people who gave me a letter of support who I feel like, I need to have a little bit more resolution with in a way.

Yeah, yeah. So I guess to that, and this is more personal curiosity, do you think the project will change at all? From where you were at when you applied to now in real time?

Yeah, yes and no. I mean, I kind of want aspects of it to change or surprise me. I feel like I have a good sense of what I want, like the dream, physical, tangible outcome to be, also from kind of having experience with other people’s Seed grants and seeing where they missed. But I'm really happy to be working collaboratively with my research assistant, Zoe. I'm taking in her feedback and yeah, seeing it as more of a non-hierarchical relationship. Also the artists and publishers we're interviewing, I've just been really happily surprised by some of the things that they've brought to my attention. So I’m trying to be really open to the direction and then how it will change, but also, like keeping my eyes on the prize.

Yeah, that's cool. Something I'm wrestling with now, and I think this is a realization with any work that's research based, is that within that process so many future project ideas sort of start bubbling up... learning to be like, I want to continue looking into this, but it will be the next project and it will not take me off course. Even though at times, yeah, you might need to pivot.

To the next funding package.


*laughter*

“So I called it the White House, because it was this domestic space and domestic history that was the counter narrative to the public or monumental architecture that I was studying for the guidebook. So I see those two halves working together to illustrate Philippine identity.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

Yeah, um, okay, so, you've sort of touched on this, but I'll just wheel back around to it. You said you told your mom about wanting to be a writer and then went to architecture school. Have you always thought of yourself as an artist? What has that looked like in your life? Even since being a kid?

Yeah. I always drew. I still feel like I maintain that as something that is accessible in all the programming and workshops I do. I was reflecting on this question and I almost feel like as I grow older, I claim the term artist less and less, almost like, out of the utmost respect for the artists I do respect and admire. But I do feel like when I get confused by the term and that world, I just go back to drawing.

I like that. Yeah, a lot. Were people artistic around you? Were your parents artistic? Or, like, how did you come to learn about art?

Yeah, I mean, you brought up my mom. And she's definitely like, she's an Artist. I'll say that with a capital A. Even though she works full-time at a non-profit. I used to call her more of a crafts person, cuz she makes cards and these little collages and scrapbooks and stuff, but that's totally art. And I've done projects where I even tried to like collage some of her drawings into my work. But she also has an artful soul which I'm realizing more and more. Her cards are love letters and I’m always writing people love letters as art.

Also, when I went to my dad's ancestral home, I was looking through a lot of artifacts and belongings from his grandfather. So on my dad's side, he definitely had like a builder, builder energy in him. He was a Mason. He wasn't even Catholic. He was a Mason and had all these very particular objects around the home that kind of spoke to that. As well as having dictated the design of a lot of the house itself.

So I feel like those two people. And even though I haven't met my great grandfather, I shout him out in the book. I think it's almost like a melding of those two artistic souls. 

“He has a lot of beautiful metaphors. And he was saying that family is kind of like firmament. We choose our building materials and we build upon that foundation of family, but we're so concerned with having chosen the wrong building materials. I just thought that was such a beautiful statement. There's so much more to think about and obsess over besides those selections.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

Yeah, that's really neat. Did you go to that home on your last trip?

Yeah, I should have mentioned that home is what got me on this like Filipino architecture journey. But the thing is that it came after the guidebook contract. So that's why I'm saying the journey is very nonlinear, the arc whatever. I studied that house for my thesis research, my master's thesis. So I called it the White House, because it was this domestic space and domestic history that was the counter narrative to the public and monumental architecture that I was studying for the guidebooks. So I see those two halves working together to illustrate Philippine identity. But I was able to go back the last time I visited and the thesis was almost this way to grieve the house, because it's going to be sold. I don't know what's happening to it. But even besides that fact, none of my family is living there. So that really speaks to like larger global forces and the things that make us migrate and disperse. But that house plays into my memories and a lot of summers I would spend in the Philippines, more so than Manila. So, yeah, it really does feel like this repository for a lot of ancestral things, but also for historical stories from the larger Philippine nation.

I feel like this is a perfect place to ask, and again, you've already started talking about it, but what did you think of the question who do you bring forward in your work or what will live on through your work?

Yeah, I mean, the first thing that comes to mind is family, but I'm really trying to unpack that word. I feel like it can also get into the territory of being really like, Republican. Like, *approximated Republican voice* “MY family,” and like, that’s not what I mean. I definitely think of family as something that encompasses my close friends and chosen family too. But I had this really nice conversation with my spiritual healer, who really just honed in on the fact that family means a lot to me, and that I should sort of acknowledge that. He had this beautiful metaphor. He has a lot of beautiful metaphors. And he was saying that family is kind of like firmament, we choose our building materials and we build upon that foundation of family, but we're so concerned with having chosen the wrong building materials. I just thought that was such a beautiful statement, and that there's so much more to think about and obsess over besides those selections. I don't know. Like, maybe it's all just predestined. But anyways, I'm trying to bring all of that, those questions more so to family itself, into my work. Like, what is family? What is not?

Yeah, that's really beautiful. I really like that perspective as well. It’s grounding and humbling in a way of like, yeah, what occupies our mind? Like, is that beside the point, sometimes? I can't help but also make the connection that the architecture metaphor, the building, is the one that speaks to you.

Yeah, Taichi is just like a very grounding man and even though that was my first time meeting him, I feel like he really like, doubled down on the architecture metaphors. I was like, Yo, how are you reading my organs and my chakras? And he was like, well, this building, you can tell how old it is if you look into the materials. And I was like, yeah, yeah. He got it.

That's so funny. Um, I would love to hear more about spirituality or destiny, the vibe that there's something bigger than us, I guess, happening around you and your work. I would love to know if that's always something that's been meaningful to you and how open you are about speaking about it's relationship to your work.

Hmm. Yeah, I feel like that sense of connection or synchronicity maybe has always been something I've tried to live out more so than incorporate into my work. It actually is a hard question because I almost feel like sometimes I don't want to jinx what I’m doing by speaking on it with too much certitude. Yeah. So I think all I'll say is that I definitely grew up with a lot of faith around me. And I'm trying to sort of interpret and live it out in my own way and define what goodness is to me. I just hope that my work can be of service to what you said earlier, people in a community and something larger than me. I don't want to prescribe it too much without really knowing if my work is even the right channel or vehicle for that, you know? Like, maybe it's just friendships and how I treat people. But right now it feels good to have work as a vehicle, even through involving people in the grant and paying them you know, small things like that. I just don't want to jinx myself. I'm superstitious, as you can tell.

Yeah, no, I feel that. Yeah. I feel like, the more I think about spirituality and its role in my life, it's one of those things that I try and not overexplain because it's such a personal journey. Somebody brought up spirituality at work a few weeks ago, and they were just trying to describe the practice and what it means to somebody who was just like, I don't know what I believe. And all I could say was that it’s just so personal.

Yeah, I think existing in a lot of like fitness spaces now, too, it's something you just, like, put into action, whether that's how you treat your body or whatever. But also in that space you can see where it goes south and people kind of manipulate that idea of wellness or like, just desecrate Eastern practices of wellness, too. So yeah, that's a whole other world, but I’m definitely exposed to it a lot. So I think about that.

Yeah. You've sort of alluded to this in your work being of service, but what do you hope to leave behind for the archaeologists of the future? What kind of ancestor do you hope to be?

Oh, yeah. Honestly, I was thinking a lot about ruins when I considered this. I think going back to architecture, again, like there's this trope. Some of the people you meet, you ask them about why they wanted to pursue that, and they’re like, I want to build a building that lasts forever. It's funny because when I knew I was going into architecture school, I was volunteering at a museum and there was a security guard who was like, oh, you should read The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand or whatever. I don't know if you know that book. But it's literally about this guy who just wants to assert himself by building skyscrapers. Like, that is essentially the plot. But it was hilarious that this man thought that it was a book that would kind of help me in my architecture journey. But anyways, thinking about that desire, like this really archaic desire and like phallic desire, to insert something physical that lasts forever. I was thinking of ruins because of how you can't control how it'll weather and disintegrate over time.  There's a beauty in that too, and things being repurposed in ways you don't design.

Also, there's the possibility of humor. I'm really enamored by this idea of ancestors who have left something behind that is totally mysterious and funny, like a cave drawing that we're just like, what is it? And we spend so much time and money deciphering it, but maybe it was just a joke. So those are the kinds of things I hope to leave behind. Rather than something so final.

“I'm really enamored by this idea of ancestors who have left something behind that is totally mysterious and funny, like a cave drawing that we're just like, what is it? And we spend so much time and money deciphering it, but maybe it was just a joke.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

Yeah, I love that answer. Even pausing on this idea of being able to control what you leave behind is really interesting. It’s making me think of the practice of showing work or sharing work in the present and that being such a relationship that you have to like, acclimatize to. Inevitably, everybody's gonna take something different from the work.

Yeah, it's kind of a scary thing, to be honest. Because yeah, as you may know, I later returned to that museum to work in curatorial. And all the things in that exhibition were historic objects and works of art from across the former Spanish Empire. And the sort of like, interpretive or curatorial narrative we placed on everything was like, we weren't glorifying the artists. So that could easily be us, I guess, getting dissed or deconstructed. Like, I don't know what those future contexts are, but I’d like to leave behind something that's complex enough to be understood in different ways.

No, I love that. Is there any area that you're really looking to work within, or new method that you want to learn? And this is where I was kind of thinking of bringing up that you do have this like fitness, boxing fighting side…

You’re so spot on. That was exactly what I was thinking of. I'm so happy to get to speak on it a little bit more clearly to myself. But yes, I started boxing about a year ago in Manila, when I was there, sending my voice notes and trying to get the book off the ground. But yeah, it's given me a base of physical fitness to do more things freely with my body and like having control over it, having strength.

So now, I have entered the world of Kali, which is a Filipino martial art that is more weapons based, so, sticks and knives. It's just totally lethal, actually. But I think I feel a lot of pride in it and the way it's perceived as lethal, I guess, among the martial arts. Or, I didn't know that there was Filipino martial arts growing up and it's not something I was encouraged to explore or even recognize. But I am manifesting some projects where I can draw out some of these more poetic aspects.

For example, in Kali, there's something called a roof block, where your arm goes up at an angle with your stick or knife or whatever. And it creates, yeah, a triangular guard. I thought that was so beautiful, and something that I can obviously connect to architecture. I don't know if that's making it too nerdy, but there's that and the space of the boxing ring, and the feeling you get when you're inside in a space that's usually pretty exclusive. I think it's quite recent, too, that these martial arts forms are becoming more inclusive. I mean, with Kali, there is still this sense of mystery around it because there's a lot of oral tradition and past mentors and gurus passing down some skills and lessons and things that aren't so well documented. So I appreciate the magic of all of that. And I think that there is this new niche, where people like us who think a little bit more artistically are entering into these spaces. So I hope that's something that I can explore with more rigor in the future.

“I have entered the world of Kali, which is a Filipino martial art that is more weapons based, so, sticks and knives. It's just totally lethal, actually. But I think I feel a lot of pride in it and the way it's perceived as lethal, I guess, among the martial arts. Or, I didn't know that there was Filipino martial arts growing up and it's not something I was encouraged to explore, or even recognize. But I am manifesting some projects where I can draw out some of these more poetic aspects.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

How did you start in Manila, like, what led you to start boxing there?

I started because my, my aunt, my tita was like, overfeeding me. And it was so hot, I could barely jog. I just needed to move my body and I needed to be outside of my head and away from people who were constantly talking about architecture. A lot of the people who come into boxing from the Philippines are from the provinces, are from these blocks of life that are kind of looked down upon in the city. It's why Manny Pacquiao was such a hero to people. He really, he came out of poverty. So I think I was bringing a lot of this mentality, a lot of this anxiety and angst almost, to boxing.

I remember coming into the gym, it was called Elorde. It's named after an old Filipino boxer named “Flash” Elorde, and there was a sign on the front that said “NO FIREARMS ALLOWED” in like, all caps, and I was so scared. But I think I'm super proud of myself for showing up and being consistent. I've been looking back at old videos of when I was training there with Kuya Alan, my coach. I'm just so excited at how I've progressed and gotten faster and been consistent. That's definitely going to be one of the first places I hit up when I'm back. Yeah, I can't wait to train there again. That's where it all started.

That’s so cool. I was listening to something talking about how we may be lacking in communal spaces in the way that our parents or grandparents, you know, looked to church or religion. It was saying how fitness or athletic communities sub in for that a little bit because of that relationship you can have with a coach or teacher, and the celebrations of progress. It’s fun being so excited to show up and know the person who started you off would be proud. That's really special. I don't know, I know not everybody feels that way if you're just going to the gym and working out on your own, but there's something special in learning a skill that is so embodied with someone else witnessing your progress.

Yeah. When we were in San Siro, you remember that neighborhood? (KT nods) What you were just saying about communal spaces triggered this memory. I just kind of was walking alone on one of those last days we were in Milan, around that neighborhood.  I was really excited to be in San Siro because I listened to this Italian drill rapper who's like always rapping about it. I remember the big stadium coming up over the horizon and I was like, this is so much more impressive than the cathedral to me right now. Like, physically, but also having afterwards seen the footage of it when there is a game and people are walking up these spiral staircases that are like optical illusions... that sense of something sacred. I'm not even a football fan or anything like that but I think that goes hand-in-hand with what you're saying about sports and fitness. I never considered myself an athlete, so it's funny to be in this era.

Yeah. I remember you saying that about that stadium and I think I'd like, gone on a jog the next day and saw it, but wouldn’t have known the significance of it. 

I thought, actually, that was funny. I thought that where you were going with that was gonna be the story that you used one of the outdoor workout spaces.

Okay, that's actually full circle too. You're so tapped in.  I’m basically interviewing artists, I'm saying artists as a loose term, but people I know who I respect and I'm close with and who have told me in passing that they have a book idea. One of the emerging artists that we interviewed is my friend Gervais, one of my best friends. He's actually the person who really started my fitness journey. The prelude to the boxing in Manila, even though he teaches at a boxing gym. He got me and a bunch of my artist friends out to the calisthenics park at Bloor and Salem, Salem Parkette, and just yeah, he was super dedicated to getting us to use the equipment and being aware of its existence.

So when we interviewed him for this project, I knew that he had this book idea related to those calisthenics parks and just calisthenics as a whole. But it was the first time he had, you know, a full hour slot to really articulate those ideas and for me to hear them and connect it with this urban planning background. So yeah, speaking of projects that I need to like, just put on the docket for future grants, potentially an outdoor fitness guide.

I love outdoor spaces that like, I don't know. That's why I've started to really love jogging.  You just step outside. It's free. Like, obviously, you're restricted to the elements, but there's something just nice about being outside, too. Yeah. But also, those parks do make me nervous because it does feel vulnerable working out, outside. *laughs*

Yeah, for sure, especially in a new city. I bring up Gervais, too, because he has a whole Google Maps database of parks that he's visited abroad, which is just amazing.

But yeah, I went out in Milan, to a random calisthenics park. It was super quiet. And obviously, when you're in a new place you're just that much more sensitive to any interaction because you don't speak a language, you are an outsider. So that compounded with like being an outsider to the world of calisthenics bros... I don't know. It was cool. It was it was a personal win.

Yes, yeah. I loved that.

I can’t do a pull up, just so you know. I feel like that is the key, like as soon as I can do a pull up, I can show up to any calesthetics park.


*laughter*

That's amazing. That's so funny. Um, okay, coming sort of, to the end. Yeah... song, movie, phrase... is anything on repeat in your mind right now or has anything stuck with you?

Yeah, I've been listening to a lot of, I don't know, I don't know if this is like a new wave of female rappers. I keep listening to Anycia, who's this rapper from Atlanta. They bring this really calm energy, like very low key and chill. I love a girl boss rapper, but the New York energy's really fast paced. Now I'm in Atlanta mode. I definitely use music sometimes to get a sense of where I'm at, if I'm feeling more like country or more high energy. But at the moment, I'm listening to these female rappers who yeah, are chill. So I'm hoping that I'm embodying some of that before all the chaos of Manila.

I love the switch of genres. I just heard something about how like, our trauma responses are also related to our memories with music or certain sounds. So like, we might be more attracted to certain paces or sounds in music, because it triggers certain memories that like could be traumatic and keep you in that like stress loop. I feel like it's a really good sign actually, that you're like leaning towards the calm.


*laughter*

Do you ever have a phase of listening to Elliot Smith? Because I feel like my COVID songs I was just like, only Elliott Smith. And it was so funny. It was just the darkest time. Yeah like, Between The Bars everyday.


*laughter*

Yeah. I've talked about this with friends about periods in my life where I’ve listened to really like emo music or whatever, or indie, bedroom pop. And like, it's just a period of time that, at least right now, I'm like, I can't go back there. No. Yeah. That's a no. Love it, respect the people that are doing that. And just the headspace music puts you in to function with whatever it is you want to be doing.

Yeah, cuz then you have different music for work or walking. Yeah, but I'd have to say that these new Atlanta, baddies. Yeah.

I want to check them out.

I'll send you some songs.

I would love that. Okay, is there anything else you want to add before I stop recording?

I just wanted to say thank you because I don't know, this is really fun, your questions but also your intuitions for what I was gonna say next. I feel seen.

Well, it's an honor, truly. It's fun, because this is only part of the evolution of the conversation getting to the site. When it comes time to actually publish it, it's like all this time will have passed. I'm curious where you'll be when we do that.

“I don't know what those future contexts are, but I’d like to leave behind something that's complex enough to be understood in different ways.”

– Bianca Weeko Martin

BIANCA WEEKO MARTIN 

I'm a writer and researcher, trained in architecture and raised on the internet, grounded by drawing (as a lifelong, inconclusive process) and the love of my family, friends, and ancestors. This year, I published my first book on Manila's contemporary architecture which has led to many current preoccupations including a small book tour (which I love to overdramatize) and a collaborative research project on alternative publishing and the Filipino diaspora. It has also given me steadily increasing agility within the fields of architecture, design, and public art, where I am consulting and writing strategically. I am always mentally preparing for my next scuba diving trip.