Artists in Motion: Cultivating a Culture of Health and Wellness in Artletics 2016

What began as a fun summer outing is now a summer habit for artists.

More than 60 artists escaped the heat of the city and flocked to De La Salle Lipa in Batangas on April 16 to 17 to join Artletics, an annual gathering for sports, health and wellness that began in 2009.

The sixth Artletics event is a testament to the artists’ commitment to health and wellness. The two-day event comprised of sports and games, health seminars and art workshops.

Artletics 2016 delved deeper into multimedia art forms and the issue of reproductive health. The roster of speakers included a film production designer, an expert on creative movement, and sex education advocates.

Artletics provides artists with a venue to connect with one another in the spirit of holistic living which the event promotes. It extends the promotion of individual physical wellness to the well-being of the artist’s community and his environment.

Sports and Competition

This annual artists gathering would not be complete without the competitive games that bring out the athletes out of the artists. This year’s major sports events are basketball, volleyball, chess, and dodgeball.

The artists poured their hearts out on the court, but after two days of competing, only the best teams took home awards.

The Blue Team excelled and topped the volleyball event while the Green Team won the chess tournament.

The biggest champion of Artletics 2016 was the Pink Team, which bagged first place in both dodgeball and basketball.

‘Love Yourself’

The spread of HIV or the Human Immunodeficiency Virus is a reality that some still consider a taboo topic in our country. There were at least 27 cases of HIV diagnosed every day in the first month of 2016, a rise from the 22 cases per day in 2015, according to the Department of Health (DOH).

Artletics tackled this pressing health issue with help from Love Yourself Inc., a community of volunteers that encourage people to practice and propagate ideas of self-love. Pete Tan and Earl Penabella from Love Yourself Inc. gave a talk on HIV 101, breaking myths surrounding HIV and encouraging artists to be pro-active in protecting themselves from HIV.

A live demonstration of how to properly use a condom followed HIV 101. Free condoms and lubricants from the DOH were distributed to the participants at the end of the session.

Moving Art

Artletics 2016 invited two artist speakers to inspire fellow artists: film production designer Fritz Silorio and Daloy Dance Company member Brian Moreno.

Day 1 featured Silorio, a multi-awarded film production designer who rose to fame through hard work. He has designed Hollywood action movies and local films such as Boy Golden and The Healing. He has won accolades and recognition for his work, especially Asiong Salonga where he recreated old Manila.

Silorio recalled his humble beginnings before becoming a decorated production designer. He shared that he started as a painter in Star City. Now, he has more than 20 films on his film production resume.

The artist-speaker for the second day challenged the participants to put down their brushes and create masterpieces with their body.

Brian Moreno of Daloy Dance Company facilitated a creative movement workshop on Day 2 to help artists tap the natural rhythm of their body. The workshop had the artists moving around the room at different speeds, allowing each person to be more aware of the space in the room and the presence of other persons.

The dance activity culminated with the artists painting a scene through their body movements.

Fit for the Arts

With continuous support from artists and the creative community, Artletics has developed into a bigger platform that encourages artists to express their views on holistic living through art. This year, Artletics hosted the touring art exhibit of Body Positive and Embody HIV Awareness.

Artists who regularly join Artletics consider it a fun and meaningful summer activity where they can meet and engage with friends and peers in the art world. With such a positive outlook, there is no doubt that Artletics will continue to move artists in the coming years.