Life of
Leandro V. Locsin
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The Story
One of Manila’s notable landmark is the CCP Complex. Built on reclaimed land, it holds the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Folk Arts Theater, Philippine International Convention Center (PICC), Philippine Center for International Trade and Exhibition (PHILCITE), and the Sofitel Philippine Plaza – all designed by Leandro Locsin, making it a virtual Locsin complex.
Getting Started
The Roots
Leandro V. Locsin (1928-1994) is the 3rd Philippine National Artist for Architecture (1990), after Juan Nakpil (1973) and Pablo Antonio (1976). Most Filipino architects of his time were trained in Europe and the United States, or have taken undergraduate or graduate studies abroad. He, on the other hand, pursued his studies solely within the Philippines. A talented pianist, Locsin enrolled at the University of Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music to pursue a career in music. A year before graduating, he shifted to the School of Architecture in the same university. While pursuing his architectural studies, he worked as an artist-draftsman at the Ayala Corporation. He graduated in 1953 but before establishing his practice, he designed stage sets for ballets. Later on, he would design for the esteemed dance pioneer, Martha Graham.
The History
In 1955, Locsin was commissioned by the Catholic Chaplain of the University of the Philippines, Diliman, to design a chapel that is open and with a capacity of 1,000 people. The Church of the Holy Sacrifice, the first round chapel in the Phils. with the altar in the centre, and the first to have a thin shell concrete dome, is now a landmark not only in the university, but is a declared National Cultural Treasure by the National Museum and a National Historical Landmark by the National Historical Institute.
Locsin’s designs are marked by his distinct use of concrete, themes of floating volume, the use of native materials, the roof emphasized as the dominant form, wide overhanging eaves, massive supports, interior lattices and trellises, ornamental detail contasted with simple forms, and spacious interiors. His peers have described him as the “Poet of Space” for the way he articulated space using straightforward geometry.
Wife of Locsin
Cecilia Lulo
wife