Architecture Head Vanessa Gaston Conferred the Blue Mango Awards

Vanessa Gaston, program chair of the Department of Architecture, was recently named one of the region's leading creative forces at the prestigious 2025 Blue Mango Awards. This ceremony is an annual gathering of visionaries that celebrates the exceptional artistry of the Philippine creative sector.

As an active community organizer, Dean Gaston was conferred the Blue Mango for Creative Leadership in recognition of her career as a distinguished designer and educator. Dean Gaston’s philosophy is community-centered and is animated by a profound respect for native materials and indigenous knowledge. In her work as a multidisciplinary artist, she has steadily worked to amplify the voices of local artisans by integrating indigenous craftsmanship into her oeuvre.

Just last year, her vision reached a global audience with the “Common Fabric” collection in Milan, Italy, an exhibition that served as a reflective study of Visayan woodworking and heritage techniques.

Dean Gaston captured the essence of local communities by incorporating indigenous narratives in each piece. Her goal was to introduce the distinct sensory quality of Philippine coastal communities to urban audiences. The lineup included a Marina fish basket chair, the Tala Bar Cabinet, an Anito Lamp, and a Ballerina Lamp among others. The collection drew inspiration from the fishing and weaving communities of the Visayas with construction featuring traditional Filipino gouge work and materials such as sinamay, raffia, rattan, and wood sourced from Bohol and the Negros Islands.

Her tenure as a program chair has seen the renewed focus on sustainable materials. While leading the halls of the department, she oversees the activities of the Estudio Damgo project, the flagship student-led initiative at Foundation University which designs, funds, and develops community projects to underserved groups in the region. At present, this project is in its 14th year.

Dean Gaston is also the founding figure behind Negros Design Week and the Very Good Volunteer Group, one of the region’s first design volunteer networks that has grown significantly in recent years. This active platform of designers and cultural workers dedicate their efforts to share professional knowledge and nurture the next generation of creative professionals across the Philippines. In keeping with this mission, Dean Gaston travels nationwide to volunteer as a guest speaker and workshop facilitator. Through her studio, she also offers a free Design Summer School, where she mentors emerging talents in community-centered design practice.

As an active board member of the Arts and Design Collective Dumaguete, Dean Gaston also continues to shape the creative landscape of Negros and strengthen the local design practice by engaging with grassroots artists in the island.

Taking its inspiration from the imaginary “Blue Mango,” the Blue Mango Awards puts into focus the visionary works shaping contemporary movements in arts and design. Based in Cebu City, it was launched in 2024, and continues to honor pioneers that have consistently pushed the boundaries of creativity, and expanded the definition of socially conscious art within the country.