Biography
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His employer used to buy antiques from the local church and made them replicate the design, this honed Eduardo’s skill for having an eye for fine details of ecclesiastical arts (Legarda, 2021), despite not having any prior knowledge of the sort. After five to six years of working as a furniture maker, his colleague introduced him to silver plating (Tobias, n.d), which is often used in decorating saints and religious screens in churches. Eduardo Mutuc often finds inspiration for his design in churches and a lot of his artworks can be found there or in private collections. This paved a way for an opportunity for him to start his own business. And with this, Eduardo was able to develop a craft of his own called “Pinukpok” (Legarda, 2021).
Eduardo " Tatang Edi" Mutuc
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Eduardo Mutuc, also known as “Tatang Edi” (Mercado, 2021), was born in Apalit, Pampanga on the 19th of October in 1949 (Mercado, 2021). He came from humble beginnings. Before he pursued the profession of being an artisan and a metalsmith, he was just a farmer and only finishing elementary school (Guevarra et al., n.d). He was married at the age of 20 but did not discover his passion for wood carving and metalsmithing until the age of 29 when he and his growing family of 3 -at the time- were in a terrible financial state (Tobias, n.d). Unfortunately, his daily wage of P3.00 was not enough to sustain the lives of all 5 of them causing an undesirable loss for one of his children (Tobias, n.d). In his first year after shifting occupations, he went to become an apprentice of a woodcarver for home furniture.
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With persistence and family on Eduardo’s mind, he was able to put food on the table with woodwork and metalsmithing. Out of all the six children -all men- he has, only two of them chose to follow in his footsteps to keep the tradition alive. According to Legarda (2021), Eduardo Mutuc became a widower in 2020. And with his age, his condition can no longer keep up with his work (Legarda, 2021).
His Successor
Awards
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“The real reward to one's craft is not money, but the inner satisfaction that one has done his craft very well.”
In 2005 at the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Eduardo Mutuc or Nong Eddie, from Apalit, Pampanga received the National Living Treasure Award in 2004, being the only Kapampagan recipient at this date. From his decorative works at various churches and houses with the use of metals in the variety of, silver, bronze, and wood and hand-crafted work such as retablos, altars, carosas, mirrors, and other decorative elements (Gateway Gallery, 2021).
Get to know him more!
Documentary Video by ABS-CBN News
