An architecturally repurposed half-century-old house has transformed into a hub for artistic incubation, creative play, storytelling, and applied mathematics education
Unemployment among young people and college graduates jumped from 13.2% in June to 17.1% in July, as some 12 million students entered the labour market, before the August figure rose to its highest level since the National Bureau of Statistics decided to change the methodology to not include students in December 2023.
Alexander said Britain’s 2016 vote to leave the EU caused “significant disruption” to its trade policy and the country needed to recalibrate its global trade outlook.
“I think real education—that of lifelong learning—belongs to those unafraid to ask questions, to those who are willing to bring together new things—especially those that may initially seem unconnected,” says Elo Coronel-Quiambao, founder of Navitas Haus in Poblacion, Makati.
An educator, storyteller, and curator of immersive learning experiences for over two decades, the Harvard-educated visionary believes in the power of creative play and the necessity of asking questions. At the core of her personal philosophy is the never-ending pursuit to rekindle child-likeness amidst a hyper-stimulated, and oftentimes, mentally and physically tiring contemporary cultural landscape.
In her 2022 piece, “The Importance of Creativity,” University of South Carolina-Beaufort professor of sociology Deborah J. Cohan, Ph.D. writes: “Being creative means possessing curiosity, the ability to observe keenly, and a passion for innovation to move about it in space and time in new ways. It means trying something different, which requires us to take the leap to trust our intuition so we can play in the unknown.”
Elo Coronel-Quiambao, founder of Navitas HausFor Quiambao, creativity as an attribute that allows one to “play in the unknown” is a fundamental trait that is often glossed over in the 21st century. She believes that the human need to feel “deeply alive” and the power of being able to not just operate but play and re-invent oneself amidst the unknown are fundamental in today’s time. After all, we are human beings and not human doings—every individual is a unique, distinct, one-over-one being that is born with the limitless potential to thrive.
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The original carved wooden doors of the 50-year-old Poblacion house is incorporated into the design of Navitas HausA “haus” as a seedbed
To actualize her vision to rekindle child-likeness in contemporary life, Quiambao and her team of artists, designers, architects, and educators, reimagined and architecturally repurposed a half-a-century-old house in Makati’s hip and gritty creative district, Poblacion. Acknowledging the need for a creative space dedicated to artistic incubation, play, storytelling, guidance counseling, and applied mathematics education, the Navitas Haus team worked for almost a year to design a space where cultural transmission can take place.
“Being part of the architecture firm behind the repurposing of the 50-year-old Pobla house, the first challenge was to reimagine the preexisting materials and architectural elements that contain memories of the original house as we seek to create a new space for cultural transmission and creative play. We had to carefully find the balance between the desire to preserve aspects of the past and the need to design an inspired space for the future. I feel that the end result embodies this balance between remembrance and transformation,” shares Gerico Gungon, construction director of Stroca, Inc., the architecture firm behind Navitas Haus.
Elo Coronel-Quiambao with the team of designers, architects, and engineers behind Navitas Haus: Ar. Karla Toledo, and Ar. Jeff Siscar, Gerico Gungon, and Engr. Flavio AguasA climate of possibility
Quiambao’s dynamic and eclectic team behind Navitas Haus has a singular goal: to foster a climate of possibility for the 21st-century Filipino—a goal that is both inspiring and noble yet not without cultural and systemic challenges.
In the words of Ken Robinson, “We stigmatize mistakes. And we’re now running national education systems where mistakes are the worst thing you can make. And the result is that we are educating people out of their creative capacities. Picasso once said that all children are born artists. The problem is to remain an artist as we grow up. We don’t grow into creativity, after all, we grow out of it. Or rather, we get educated out of it. So why is this? Living within a culture wherein individuals are educated to grow out of being inherently and naturally artistic and creative has had seismic consequences. Today, it is not uncommon to hear individuals speak about a deeply seated feeling of being lost and lonely, a profound sense of anxiety and uncertainty, and a lingering sense of being ill-equipped to face the challenges of an ever-changing world.
Elo Coronel-Quiambao and the three founding members of Navitas Haus_ Jack Lagat, Sarah de Veyra-Buyco, and Sacheen Lee SandaloFor the team behind Navitas Haus, creating a climate of possibility, building and nurturing a ‘haus’ for creative play, and designing experiences that rekindle childlike wonder are challenges worth living and fighting for. Here, we joined Quiambao to learn more about how they repurposed a 50-year-old house in Poblacion to serve as a seedbed for art, culture, applied mathematics education, and creative play for the 21st-century Filipino.
You’ve been an educator, storyteller, and curator of immersive learning experiences for over two decades. Kindly share with us your personal philosophy in education.
I believe that education or, more accurately, the desire for learning is an act of bravery. I think real education—that of lifelong learning—belongs to those unafraid to ask questions, to those who are willing to bring together new things, especially those that may initially seem unconnected. Learning is both a labor of the mind and a work of the heart. It is about igniting the fire inside.
Can you share the story behind the name Navitas Haus?
“Navitas” is a word I’ve encountered even before the pandemic. It’s a Latin word that means “life.” It also means “energy.” In its literal translation, it means “get up and go.”
I just fell in love with all these concepts associated with the word. Because you’re absolutely right—we are the names we choose, maybe not right away, but eventually, inevitably. Such is the power of language; it shapes our reality.
The interiors of Navitas Haus exudes a rustic vibeAs for the “Haus,” well, there are several reasons behind this. The most obvious perhaps would be how we found ourselves to be the new steward of a beautiful half-a-century-old house in Poblacion, Makati. When we were planning for its renovation, the brief was already clear—to preserve whatever we could. The walls, the flooring, and the ceiling’s slope have all become cradles of time. For several decades, they have become keepers of the stories of their times.
Second, we are Asians. Isn’t our home essentially our first “school?” Aren’t our parents really our first “teachers?” It is our home that first gives us that primary filter through which we would see the rest of the bigger world.
super88bet slot You’ve mentioned that Navitas Haus is not a traditional/conventional learning institution but rather a space for creativity and alternative modes of learning. How important is a space such as Navitas Haus in our time today?
Our times are rapidly and constantly changing. The questions are now more woven, layered, and interdisciplinary than ever.
How do we keep grounded as these changes come wave after wave after wave? There are times when we must swim along but there has to be a sense of grounding too. Approaching things like this requires courage and a mind that is willing to be non-linear. And we at Navitas hope to create experiences that will be a platform for all these.
Aside from being the founder of Navitas Haus, Elo Coronel-Quiambao is also the program director for Navitas Storytelling Sessions If you were to change one thing about the current state of education in our country, what would it be?Teachers are not just orchestrators of learning encounters; some of the best teachers now are actually practitioners from different fields. Make it a regular thing and not just for a career week or for special occasions. Bridge learning and the real world more. Second, make nature and being outdoors very much part of almost every curriculum. It is not enough to educate the mind. The whole being must have various encounters to give depth and personal meaning to any learning. Then, make students move a lot. I think that what we’ve had for a very long time is compartmentalized learning so much so that we do not realize how an active body in itself is also already a brain in action.
Why did you choose to repurpose a five-decade-old house in Poblacion, Makati and turn it into a space for art and craft workshops, storytelling, applied mathematics education, and guidance counseling?We learn more when we are happy. I truly believe that. But there’s apparently a more fitting word for this. It’s “aesthetics.” I heard from Sir Ken Robinson how aesthetics is not merely what you see with your eyes. It’s the opposite of anesthetics from which the word “anesthesia” is based.
Aesthetics, then, is the exact opposite of anything that makes you numb. Aesthetics is the antithesis of anything that takes away the feelings, the delight, the joy, the energy in our encounters. And so that is the vision: that in a beautiful repurposed house in the middle of the city, we can experience things that make us feel so alive.
Inside Navitas Haus Aside from being the founder of Navitas Haus, what do you feel is your role as leader of a very diverse and dynamic team of creatives?I wish to be an initiator of more curiosities and investigations. Will this creative pursuit serve a need? Will that strategy work? I hope to not stop in inviting the possibility of trying out new things. I wish to be one of the sources of boldness but only the kind of boldness that is supported by a defined vision.
Jack Lagat, Navitas Haus’ guidance counselor As the caretaker of the Navitas Haus, Melvin Pascua makes sure that everything is in order Sacheen Lee Sandalo, program head of Navitas Haus’ applied mathematics program dubbed “Math is Not the Villain” Navitas Haus recently hosted a talk featuring you and American NBA star and global fashion icon Kyle Kuzma. As an educator and creative, what insights did you take to heart from your time spent with Kuzma?Be open. Open yourself up to new things and people coming from a field that may be new to you. Kyle Kuzma and I have several things in common (even if basketball is not one of them…I almost failed my P.E. class in college because of this sport). I learned that Kyle and I share the same appreciation for our childhood years, for unsupervised play which has led us to discover more of ourselves, for our moms (my mom was a single parent too), for nonlinear things and pairings (we believe in being fluid), and even oriental philosophy!
NBA star Kyle Kuzma and Elo Quiambao talk about their shared experiences and how creativity is forged in the home | Photo courtesy of Navitas Haus American innovator and agricultural scientist George Washington Carver said, “Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.” If you are to leave us with a quotable quote about the power of education, what would it be?“All education should lead us back to our being like little children again. Be educated enough to be like little children again.”
Why are you an educator?People think that when you’re a teacher, you know so much. Or that when you’re an educator, you are a foundation of knowledge. It’s actually quite the opposite for me. I’m an educator because I love first and foremost being a student. My favorite number is zero. I think that it is such a powerful place to be in. You can always be an empty cup. And as such, you can keep refilling yourself with new things and each time always brings a new experience.
Find Navitas Haus on 6218 Manalac2kbet, Makati, 1209 Metro Manila