Filipinas Heritage Library turns over a new leaf

For 16 years, Nielson Tower was home to the Filipinas Heritage Library. Today, the library turns over a new leaf as it reopens on the sixth floor of the Ayala Museum just a few steps away. Only a few minutes away from the busy elevated walkway from Ayala to Dela Rosa, Nielson Tower is the only existing pre-war structure in Makati. With its Art Deco architecture, the former aviation tower of the Manila Airport was a charming location for the rare collection of books, vinyl records, and photographs. There was a certain thrill about having to go down to the basement, leaving the world above and losing yourself in the pages. The library, with its focus on Filipiniana, is a rich source of information on Philippine art, culture, history, and literature. Being close yet not right smack in the middle of the crowded mall area also added to the library's charm. But the fact that you had to exert extra effort to visit the library meant people were less likely to decide to drop by on a whim. "You really need to push art and culture... if it's not within a two-block radius, people won't walk," Mariles Gustilo, Senior Director for Arts and Culture of Ayala Foundation, Inc., said during the Filipinas Heritage Library media day on March 18. The library's new space at the Ayala Museum hopes to attract more visitors with its "contemporary space for the contemporary researcher." Embarking on an ambitious digitization project, the library is making its rare books accessible on the Internet. The collection includes around 2,000 volumes of books printed prior to 1946. Visitors may also listen to music like Maria Carpena's "Ang Maya" (1913), which is one of over 5,000 Filipino songs from the 1900s to the 1990s. The library updated its Himig Collection of vinyl records and music sheets by converting the pieces to digital formats for listening at the library's audio station. "We're very inspired to be working now at the sixth floor, and we will truly soar high. We'll really go into the cyberworld," said Susan Yupangco, Filipinas Heritage Library manager. The space is a far cry from the Nielson Tower basement, where the librarians never knew whether it was sunny outside. "It was such a joy to see finally the light. Truly. Now we see if it's raining, if it's cloudy," she said. The new library will be manned by the same old faces, but this time with a touch of modernity. "You need a librarian to curate information," said Yupangco, who stressed the importance of librarians, even in the digital age. At the Filipinas Heritage Library, extra measures are taken to keep the materials well-preserved. "It's a closed stack library, so we all have to go through the librarian. You can't borrow it, you have to read it in the room," Yupangco said. At the conservation lab, they prevent further damage to their collection, cleaning pages manually with a paintbrush and special erasers. They use pH strips to test the pH level of materials. "The older the book is, the more acidic it gets, kasi nagbbrown 'yung mga page because of the acidity," explained librarian Ella Gonzales. For certain books, they use wet treatment to deacidify the paper. "Before we wash it, we test the ink solubility. We make our own solutions for deacidifying," she explained. For the Filipiniana Online project, they use the Atiz scanner. Gonzales demonstrated how two DSLR cameras are used to capture high-quality images, which are automatically cropped by the Atiz software. Staff members make minor edits, such as resizing photos. The images are then sent in PDF format to their partner, Trade Channels, which converts the files into Flipbook form. "This is a nondestructive book scanner," she said. The project aims to digitize the library's collection of rare books, some of which can already be accessed online. The preliminary pages are available for free, but a subscription is needed to view the whole book. Apart from its rare books collection, librarian Cecil Ayson said the library has over 10,000 contemporary books on Philippine history, culture, art, literature, and the social sciences, as well as the Retrato photo archive of over 35,000 photographs on Filipino life and culture from the 15th century to the early 1970s. Its special collection includes maps from as early as 1872, manuscripts, serials, and microfiches of rare print publications dating back to the 17th century. There is also the Roderick Hall collection of World War II documents and books, with an annotated bibliography by Dr.  Ricardo T. Jose, UP professor and expert on World War II. Membership to the library, with museum admission, costs P1,000 for one year. Per visit research fees are P50 for students and P100 for professionals. "We recommend they make prior reservations with us to make sure that they will enjoy a space," Ayson said. — BM, GMA News The library is open from Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 6F Ayala Museum, Makati Avenue corner Dela Rosa Street, Greenbelt Park, Makati City. For more information, visit the Filipinas Heritage Library website, email asklibrarian@filipinaslibrary.org.ph or call (02) 7577117 local 36.