Rock Drilon builds a community library in Dumangas
Memory approximates a blur as we age, especially when it involves over a quarter of a century. Regarding not so remote a past, it took several of us in a circle of friends—poets and visual artists—to arrive at a rough estimate of memorable years involved.
As it turned out, it was way back in 2004 when Rock Drilon set up his private gallery at a two-floor unit in the building next to Rustan’s Supermarket on Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City, diagonally across the gate of Miriam College beside Ateneo, where I was still teaching poetry and fiction. The place also began to serve as a café on the ground floor, where some of Rock’s artist-friends’ works were exhibited, and wall racks had magazines and knick-knacks for sale. In effect, it relocated what was initially called Mag+Net, which Ces Drilon opened in 2002 in a small building by ABS-CBN’s gate.
Mag+Net Katipunan couldn’t help but become a venue for literary activities, given its setting within a radius bordering Diliman and Loyola Heights, where poets, writers and artists could congregate in harmony. I helped the visiting Fil-Am author Rod Garcia convince Rock to accommodate a first book launch, with Ces as the special guest.
It must have been on a latter event when Jimmy Abad, Mookie Katigbak, and I found ourselves being asked by Rock to come up to the upper floor where he had his private studio. While being treated to drinks, it was in that sofa-lounging atmosphere when I jokingly suggested that he convert his studio to a bar to complement the café downstairs.
Well, so Rock did, and Mag+Net Katips rolled on for some six years, starting with important launches like that of the last issue of the poetry journal Caracoa that premier poets Lourd de Veyra and Joel Toledo co-edited in 2006. Poet-musicians like Easy Fagela with Los Chupacabras played on the stage at the back of the second floor. Their gig became a fixture. Rock then asked for a reading before the set, so that it became an actual event, with poets Toledo and Drea Teran initially hosting. Musical performers like Cookie Chua and Up Dharma Down began to draw crowds while mixing in readings.
Toledo recalls setting up the first Happy Mondays reading on April 16, 2007. Soon after, CineKatips was set up by Sari Dalena. Performance readings were held right on the center of Katipunan Avenue, marking outrageous live events that featured the irrepressible Angelo Suarez. A Poet’s Alcove was also set up within a protective glass wall by the entry corner, with visual artists creating complex collaborative displays that lasted for weeks. By 2010, Joel had counted a total of 84 installments, with other nearby venues getting into the picture, such as Tomato Kick and Ride and Roll along Xavierville Avenue.
Rock had also opened Mag+net Gallery in Paseo and Ayala Avenue, and later BGC, which was more of a bar, where he remembers holding 36 shows a year. By 2012, he permanently relocated to Iloilo City to finish supervising his mother’s house. That same year, he reestablished the Iloilo Cinematheque, started a bike advocacy, and built his studio in Dumangas, his native town 23 kilometers from the city by coastal road. By 2016, he also started a native tree advocacy and created public art by way of murals.
No way the hyperactive artist could be stopped, as he opened his version of the Magnet Gallery Dumangas in April of 2005. Last October, he initiated his most ambitious project, a community library that has has fast become a reality with the help of relations and hundreds of artist-friends and generous book owners.
Ces donated half of her personal library and began conducting story-telling sessions to Dumangas kids, with the launch of a separate children’s section and activity space. Spirited responses from volunteers continue to popularize the new community book nook in Dumangas.
Assorted titles have come from the US, courtesy of Rock’s siblings, who also arranged for the transport of catalogued donations pre-arranged in Manila. I’ve sent a dozen books I’ve authored, plus a collection of the Santelmo Art and Literature Quarterly Journal since 2001. From artist Cris Villanueva Jr. came music and literature titles, also from Ester Sy, MD, while Severino and Rose Dominguez sent over eight boxes of assorted topics through AP Cargo. Over a hundred titles and copies from Adarna House have been sent by National Artist Virgilio Almario, while National Artist BenCab has also sent boxes filled with art titles from Baguio City.
Rock has welcomed critiques grounded in verified information. Some assumptions have been corrected, with Rock clarifying a few points for transparency. The book nook is not a private hobby, nor is it inside someone’s home.
Rock clarifies: “It is part of Magnet Gallery’s ongoing cultural initiative, run by volunteers, artists, student workers, and community partners. It exists for the community, and its development continues to be shaped with the community. The library is curated and follows a structure, implementing the Dewey Decimal System, with an established reference site as a model. All accepted books are encoded by student volunteers. We maintain a detailed internal database tracking book titles, authors, donation dates and donors to ensure organization and proper acknowledgment. A summary of our collection and donations is available for public viewing, without revealing personal donor information. Damaged or outdated materials including magazines and regular publications are stored separately.”
Priority is given to local authors and their works. Dedicated shelves are maintained for Ilonggo writers. This section will be expanded as more local writers donate copies of their books. The collection can only grow from what is made available.
Rock adds: “The book nook has community guidance. We work with pro bono community consultants who help us shape the space, the collection, and its programming. This is not a random accumulation of books but a guided, intentional project. The children’s section is underway. We are currently developing an additional dedicated space for children’s books to integrate early readership with art. This project is entirely volunteer-driven. Artists, students, cultural workers and community members share their time to keep the library organized, clean, catalogued and welcoming. Every donor will also receive an acknowledgment email once the current batch of books is fully encoded. And yes, this is a work in progress. Everyone involved is simply trying their best to build something meaningful for Dumangas one book, one shelf, one volunteer hour at a time.”
The PSN poetry readings held last year will continue under the new program “POETIKA,” soon to be paired with regular book readings and storytelling sessions. Priority is given to local authors and their works. Dedicated shelves are maintained for Ilonggo writers. This section will expand this section as more local writers donate copies of their books. As Rock stresses, “Our collection can only grow from what is made available to us.”
For someone who started as a visual artist and began to run a music bar cum literary corner, then progressed through advocacy programs that involved children’s literacy and cultural awareness, evolution through a couple of decades is always but a step away from as an all-aspiring creative like Rock Drilon.
