The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is opening its vault of contemporary art to the public in a rare exhibition at the National Museum of Fine Arts, marking a shift from storing these works behind closed doors to sharing them in one of the country’s most visited cultural spaces.
Titled Kultura. Kapital. Kasalukuyan., the show opens on August 15 and features 36 artworks from the BSP’s collection, now on view in Galleries 18 and 19 until 2027.
The project is part of the BSP’s ongoing partnership with the National Museum, which also houses more than 100 other pieces from the bank’s holdings, including 19th-century works by Juan Luna and Félix Resurrección Hidalgo.
BSP’s Bea Belen-Ferrer said the move addresses a long-standing limitation: the central bank’s headquarters does not have a large gallery for public exhibitions.
“Art is for everyone,” she said. “We don’t want these works to be seen only by employees or visitors to the offices. By partnering with institutions like the National Museum, we make them accessible to more people.”
The BSP’s art collection, now numbering more than 4,000 pieces, began in the 1970s under then-Governor Gregorio Licaros, initially as decorative pieces for the newly built head office on Roxas Boulevard.
By the 1980s, under Governor Jaime Laya, the program evolved into a more strategic approach, acquiring works that reflected significant developments in Philippine art.
The newly opened exhibit is arranged in two sections. Pagmulat, in Gallery 18, draws from works created between the 1960s and 1990s, a period regarded by art historians as the start of the country’s contemporary art movement. Many of the pieces capture daily life, social conditions, and the realities of ordinary Filipinos.
In Gallery 19, Pagtanaw focuses on art from the late 1980s onward, reflecting changing styles, techniques, and subject matter as artists pushed boundaries in the new millennium.
The roster of featured artists spans generations, from National Artist nominees and awardees to younger contemporary names. Viewers will find works by Antonio Austria, Pablo Baens Santos, Santiago Bose, Brenda Fajardo, Roberto Chabet, Charlie Co, Danilo Dalena, Ofelia Gelvezon-Tequi, Mario Parial, Marina Cruz, Patricia Eustaquio, Emmanuel Garibay, Geraldine Javier, and others.
Many of these pieces had been in storage or displayed in BSP offices before this show. Others had been loaned in the past to local and overseas institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Manila, the Cultural Center of the Philippines, and the National Gallery Singapore.
Kultura. Kapital. Kasalukuyan. runs until 2027, with plans to rotate some of the works over time so visitors will have reasons to return.
Ferrer said this ensures the exhibit remains fresh while allowing more pieces from the collection to be seen.
For the BSP, the exhibition is part of its broader role as a custodian of cultural heritage. While the bank is known for its currency and economic policy, Ferrer said its art collection represents another form of national capital—one rooted in creativity, history, and shared identity.
“Even if we don’t have all the space we need, we will continue to find ways to share these works,” she said. “These are part of our heritage, and they deserve to be seen.”
The National Museum of Fine Arts is open Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.
