On account of being known as a science stronghold, UPLB is often overlooked as a space for the arts and culture.

“We cannot be a comprehensive university if we don’t have a strong arts and humanities program,” said National Scientist Emil Javier during the launching ceremony of the UPLB Sculpture Garden on May 22, 2024.

The UPLB Sculpture Garden, designed by the “Father of Installation Art in the Philippines” Luis “Junyee” Yee, Jr., was recently opened to the public in a turnover ceremony on April 4, 2024. The Garden not only boasts a series of installation art by the Southern Tagalog artist, it is also a new performance space that many local artists in UPLB and the surrounding community can use for expression.

With its opening, the Garden has become a testament to the recently launched fifth UPLB Accelerating Growth through One Research and Extension in Action (AGORA) agenda, Social Justice and Cultural Flourishing, as Chancellor Jose V. Camacho, Jr. mentioned in his speech at the turnover ceremony. 

As the humanizing aspect of the five AGORA cores, its goals are to encourage a deeper understanding of Filipino pride and promote social justice through fostering the arts. Needless to say, the inauguration of the Garden provides the UPLB community with an additional venue for artistic performances.

Beside the Sculpture Garden, UPLB boasts an array of performance spaces. 

Oblation Park. The Oblation Park, situated just past the “Kwek-kwek” tower, more formally known as the UPLB Academic Heritage Tower, is where the iconic UP Oblation stands. This park has been a site of social experiments, public exhibitions of performances, and student movements, such as the Pride March.

CAS Auditorium. The CAS Annex 1 (NCAS) Auditorium, the building northeast of the Oblation, has a seating capacity of 271 people and has been the venue of several play productions including the Icebag/Elbi Pie series, Isko’t Iska series, Ondine (2010), BALAG: The Musical (2017), Sangandaan (2023).

CAS Annex 1 Gallery 1 and 2. The NCAS Gallery 1 and 2 are separate spaces usually used as classrooms that can be combined to form one big space for thesis theater plays, productions from theater and playwriting classes, and performances from student organizations.

CAS Annex 1 Façade. Even the NCAS façade has also had its share of performances such as “Sa mga hubog ni Lila,” a light production shown in 2024.

DL Umali Hall. The DL Umali Auditorium, named after Dioscoro L. Umali, the former dean of the UP College of Agriculture, is a commonly used space in UPLB for performances with a seating capacity of at least 638 people. Some of the performances that have been seen here are the annual Isko’t Iska staged by UPLB freshies, the Faculty Follies series, concerts from the iconic Harmonya: The String Ensemble of UPLB, and the internationally-renowned UPLB Choral Ensemble. It has also hosted performances from national and international guest performers including Ballet Philippines and student performers from the Philippine High School for the Arts.

DL Umali Hall Lobby. Aside from hosting waiting audiences of the DL Umali Auditorium, the DL Umali Lobby has also been used for performances and art and culture activities. Theater classes, including THEA 153, THEA 103, and THEA 152, have held their performances in these spaces. Harmonya and the UPLB Choral Ensemble have also used the lobby to perform on less formal occasions such as during their orientations.

DL Umali Steps. On regular weekends and some weeknights, the steps of DL Umali Auditorium can be filled with dance practices and Zumba sessions, but once in a while it also becomes the venue for grandiose events. Many UP alums would recall the DL Umali Steps as the stage of the UPLB Commencement Exercises. It has also hosted the concert tour of the UP Symphony Orchestra.

Baker Hall. Named after Dr. Charles Fuller Baker, the second dean of the UP College of Agriculture, Baker Hall is one of the oldest buildings on campus and has a reputation often associated with ghost stories and the crucial outcomes of the Los Banos Raid. As a historical campus monument, its stage has welcomed generations of singers, dancers, and performers who have regaled the University’s guests at its social functions. In recent years, it has hosted student productions such as the immersive play “Guerrilleros RPG: Kapitan Myo”, the Sandayaw anniversary concert “Muli, Sandayaw” as well as the “Himig at Sayaw” performance contest of the College of Engineering and Agro-industrial Technology.

Student Union Amphitheater. The Student Union (SU) Amphitheater has held performances such as the Southern Tagalog Pride Cultural Night (2024).

Photo Credits: Ang Barbero ng Laguna Facebook Page

Maquiling Performance Garden. The Maquiling Performance Garden, hidden at the center of CAS Annex 2, is also a well-known performance space in UPLB. It has held productions such as Ang Barbero ng Laguna (2015), Rampahan: Redefining Byukon (2018), Troilus and Cressida (2015), and Offending the Audience (2014). 

Sining Makiling Gallery. The Sining Makiling Gallery, located in the DL Umali Basement, is known for showcasing featured art exhibits. Nonetheless, it has also been an avenue to stage performances such as Happy Days (2024) and Pagtitipan (2024).

Makiling Ballroom Hall. The Makiling Ballroom Hall, found on the 2^nd floor of the SU Building is a venue for thesis theater plays held by resident Communication Arts students and performances from student organizations.

Seniors’ Social Garden. Located near the Edible Landscaping garden, the Seniors’ Social Garden is often rented for social gatherings and exhibits. Its round layout has become the perfect stage for the theater production “Banwa” in 2014, a Filipino adaptation of “The Jungle Book”. 

Electrical Engineering Auditorium. The Electrical Engineering (EE) Auditorium, albeit quite a distance from other campus buildings, is also used as a performance space. An example would be the Elbi Pie Series in 2014.

With the addition of the UPLB Sculpture Garden, the path to being an established support system for the arts and culture is a foreseeable one. Indeed, UPLB is transforming into a space that not only boasts its expertise in science but also caters to the artists in the community.