The wonder of memes
The quarterly art and literature journal SANTELMO has made it to its tenth issue in two-and-a-half years, in time for late September. Characteristic of its arresting covers is an anonymously photographed closeup of a Philippine woven hat with a distinctive colored illustration on its brim, with the Eiffel Tower soaring behind it during the Olympics.
The artwork is by Migs Villanueva, former president of the Saturday Group of Artists, distinguished for both her award-winning short fiction and highly collectible genre art of portrait sets of young people. On the cover’s left space occupied by Paris’ blue sky and wisps of while clouds, announced in bold is: “Kabataan Isyu.” At once, readers know that the contents in Filipino and English are essays, short stories and poems dwelling on this theme. With some allowance, the visual passes for a meme.
A meme is defined as “an idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture,” often as “an amusing or interesting item (such as a captioned picture or video) or genre of items that is spread widely online especially through special media.” It can be a pun, graffiti, sarcasm, self-deprecation, your usual Rumi quote (often miscredited) or a viral picture of Philippine officials consorting uber-genially with an arrested party.
In the Edith L. Tiempo Binder produced and about to be released jointly by the CCP and NCCA, the labor of love honoring the National Artist for Literature offers “Lesson Plans on the National Artist of the Philippines: Edith L. Tiempo.” Behind the collaborative effort were: editor Alfred A. Yuson; managing editor & layout designer Erika Antuerfia; copyeditor Salvador Taroy Biglaen; ebook & website specialist Ronie Chua Padao; and Lesson Plan writers Ian Rosales Casocot, Susan Lara, Niccolo Angelo Vitug and Alaric Riam M. Yuson, with the overall support of Beverly W. Siy, officer-in-charge, CCP Intertextual Division.
Lesson 4 is “Enhancing the Literary Content: From Critical Essay to Meme Adaptation” by Susan Lara. Under “Learning Competencies,” a high school student is guided by a teacher to cite literary works that make use of: reverberation; indigenous wit and humor; learned and scholarly and esoteric materials; and unusual and startling idea or concept to serve as the core of poetic content. A session asks learners to “Describe the various responses of readers to Instapoetry (poems posted on Instagram that have been published and become bestsellers), bearing in mind Tiempo’s concept of enhanced content.” Also introduced is “the concept of indigenous wit, and how it contributes to the richness of the poem.”
Lara stresses that in the process of a literary work’s adaptation, “the text deepens or expands, it mutates, and the adaptation attains a life of its own, independent of the source.” The learner is also “introduced to the concept of meme as a literary form,” and is asked “to explore possible extensions of ‘Enhancing the Poetic Content.’ Admittedly, “makers of posters, billboards, etc. know that a combination of words and images is more arresting and memorable than words alone.” To make a long lesson short, the sessions eventually produce three Tiempo memes, based on her poetic content.
Content creation, Instagram, TikTok, Meta, X, Generative AI join an increasingly rapid advent of terms and concepts that are as dizzying as a myriad whirligigs, which also quickly cast into passé mode what used to be Nick Joaquin’s fave “mod.”
Sometimes, memes are as blasé as a simple poster that brings together an interesting cohort. Such is one that’s been making the rounds of foodie receptors. The word “Sangkap” in colorful letters attracts centrally. It also reminds me that the book Sangkap 2 will be launched Sept. 28, as a sequel to an anthology of winning essays in the Doreen Gamboa Fernandez (DGF) Food Writing Contest for the last five years. This will be the highlight of the awarding of the 2023 winners, eight from among 56 entrants in the year’s theme of Inihaw.
First prize went to “Liquid Inihaw” by An Mercado Alcantara; Second prize to “Linagpang: A Grilled Soup” by Francis Dave Lacson Selorio; Third prize to “In Inkalot Country” by Resty S. Odon; andHonorable Mentions to “Chicken Inasal: Ilonggo by Way of Mexico” by Caesar Horatius H. Mosquera; “Ode to Inihaw na Bangus” by Eugenio Paul Mercado Lorenzo; “The Premise and Patience of an Ilocano’s Tinuno by Kaye Leah Cacho Sitchon; “Chicken Inasal, Bardagykab, and All Things In Between” by Vincent Morales; and “Savoring the Skies: Mystique of Inihaw na Tagakbanwa of the Tagbanwa Tribe of Palawan” by Wilson Lee Flores.
Food Writers Association of the Philippines (FWAP) and the new DGF Awards chair Myrna Segismundo supervised the deliberations last July 5, with judges Karina Bolasco, Thelma San Juan, Alya Honasan, Felice Sta. Maria and Krip Yuson. The winners will receive their prizes on the special food and literary event organized by FWAP, the highlight “Sangkap” (Main Philippine Cooking Ingredients)—a sumptuous merienda cena that will also feature five restaurants and guest chefs Tina Legarda of Bamba Bistro, Sau del Rosario of Sawsaw, Kevin Navoa and Thirdy Dolarte of Hapag, Francis Lacson of Francesco’s, and Jackie Ang Po of Fleur de Lys,
This will be held at 3 p.m., Saturday Sept. 28 at Palm Grove, Amorsolo Square, Rockwell, Makati. Seats are limited, at P2,000 per person. Payments should be sent via GCash to Maria Veronica B at 09178271480. For reservations and inquiries, please text or call the same number. The meme with the visual treat of Sangkap should draw foodies in no small measure.
