Berlin exhibition LAKBAYAN archives 50 years of Filipino protest music but struggles with contemporary relevance

LAKBAYAN, an archive exhibition at Savvy Contemporary in Berlin from March 19 to April 9, presents nearly five decades of sonic resistance from the Philippines. Curated by the collective Dang a Dang Radio, the show features 18 songs, archival materials, a documentary film, and listening stations where visitors can hear protest music ranging from marching anthems to rap. The exhibition includes Filipino and English pages from the 1976 vinyl songbook Bangon! Arise!, essays on Philippine independence struggles, and a projection of Jose Luis Clemente and Nil Buan's 1984 documentary Daluyong (Waves). Three contemporary digital artworks by Federico 'boyD' Dominguez are displayed, including Sandugo (2016) and Dayaw (2009). A central column showcases over 100 cassettes and CDs from 1982 to 2022. While the exhibition successfully contextualizes music from the dictatorial era of Ferdinand Marcos Sr (1965-86), it struggles to communicate its contemporary significance to non-Filipino audiences in Berlin. The curators cite the need to preserve dissenting archival material given current president Ferdinand Marcos Jr's revision of his parents' violent period, but fail to adequately address wider current contexts or acknowledge ongoing targeting of activists and artists. The exhibition's reliance on Filipino languages and cultural knowledge limits accessibility, despite providing English translations.