11/27/22, 10:12 AM Philippine International Convention Center - Wikipedia

Philippine International Convention Center

The Philippine International Convention Center (Filipino: Sentrong Pangkumbensyong Pandaigdig
ng Pilipinas, or PICC) is a convention center located in the Cultural Center of the Philippines
Complex in Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines. The facility has been the host of numerous local and
foreign conventions, meetings, fairs, and social events.

Metropolitan Manila, officially

the National Capital Region, is
the seat of government and one
of three defined metropolitan
areas in the Philippines. It is
composed of 16 highly urbanized
cities: the city of Manila, Quezon
City, Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati,
Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina,

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Philippine International Convention Center

Sentrong Pangkumbensyong Pandaigdig ng Pilipinas

Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap

General information

Status Completed

Type Convention center

Architectural style Brutalist

Location Vicente Sotto Street, CCP Complex, Pasay, Metro

Manila, Philippines

Coordinates 14.554257°N 120.982618°E (https://geohack.toolfor

ge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Philippine_Internat
ional_Convention_Center&params=14.554257_N_12
0.982618_E_type:landmark)

Construction started 1974

Completed 1976

Inaugurated September 5, 1976

Renovated 1996

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Owner Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Technical details

Floor area More than 70,000 m2 (750,000 sq ft)

Design and construction

Architect(s) Leandro Locsin

Architecture firm Leandro V. Locsin & Associates

Renovating team

Architect(s) Raul Locsin (1996)

Other information

Parking 400 slots[1] (2014)

Website

http://www.picc.gov.ph/

The PICC served as the office of the Vice President of the Philippines until 2005. It also previously
housed the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

History

In 1974, then President Ferdinand Marcos signed the Presidential Decree No. 520 which authorized
the Central Bank of the Philippines (now Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) to construct an international
conference building, acquire a suitable area for that purpose, and organize a corporation to manage
a conference center.[2] Thus, the PICC was organized under the Corporation Code.

This was a part of Marcos' efforts to make Metro Manila as one of Southeast Asia's financial
centers.[3] The PICC building, along with other buildings in the Cultural Center of the Philippines
complex, has been associated with what has been termed Imelda Marcos' "edifice complex,"[4] which
one writer defined as "obsession and compulsion to build edifices as a hallmark of greatness or as a
signifier of national prosperity."[5]

The construction of the PICC Complex was undertaken in a short span of 23 months, from
November 1974 to September 1976, with Leandro Locsin as architect, who was subsequently named
a National Artist.
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On September 5, 1976, the PICC, Asia's first international convention center was officially
inaugurated when it hosted the 1976 IMF-World Bank Meeting.[1]

From its inception to the present, the PICC has also hosted the annual Awards Night of the Filipino
Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS), the Philippine-equivalent of the Academy Awards,
mostly at its Plenary Hall.

Presidential Decree No. 995 created the Batasang Bayan to function as a legislative body before the
Interim Batasang Pambansa convened in 1978.[6] So on September 21, 1976, on 4th founding
anniversary of the Bagong Lipunan (New Society), the Batasang Bayan held its inauguration at the
PICC. For the first time, the PICC was used to house a legislative body from 1976 to 1978.

The PICC was the venue of the World Chess Olympiad and the Miss Universe in 1994, the APEC
meeting in 1996, and the 3rd Informal Summit of the ASEAN in 1999.[7]

Renovation work of the PICC was completed in 1996, which took around seven months for the APEC
Meeting after the aging structure has been neglected since 1985. Renovations were headed by Raul
Locsin, the cousin of the original architect of the facility. The endeavour was funded by the facility's
owner, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.[8]

In March 2011, Bro. Bo Sanchez, the founder of Light of Jesus Family, transferred "The Feast" from
Valle Verde Country Club, Pasig to PICC. The Feast PICC has an attendance of 3,000 at the Plenary
and Reception Halls combined. Similarly, PICC was a venue of the Kerygma Conference (now Feast
Conference) in November 2013 and November 2014.[9][10]

On November 18–19, 2015, the PICC hosted the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting.[11] On April 29,
2017, the PICC hosted the 30th ASEAN Summit.[12] It was the site of protests on November 11, 2017,
against the arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Architecture and design

Plenary hall of the PICC

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The Philippine International Convention Center is composed of five building modules: the
Delegation Building, Secretariat Building, Plenary Hall, Reception Hall and The Forum. The facility,
which was designed by Leandro Locsin, who would be later named National Artist was built in
reclaimed land and has a floor area of more than 65,000 sq ft (6,000 m2).[1]

APEC Sculpture Garden

The APEC Sculpture Garden is located in the right, left and front lawns of the PICC. It was jointly
organized by the Department of Foreign Affairs and the National Commission for Culture and the
Arts, the curator of the garden, in commemoration of the APEC Philippines 1996.[13] The garden is
composed of 20 unique sculptures made by artists from their respective APEC countries. Each
sculpture embodies the collective ideals of the 20 APEC member economies. The countries that
donated their sculptures to the garden include Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Chinese
Taipei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Papua New
Guinea, People's Republic of China, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Singapore, Thailand,
United States and Vietnam. As of 2017, only Peru has yet to donate a sculpture to the garden.[13]

References

1. "About PICC" (http://www.picc.gov.ph/about-picc) . PICC. Philippine International Convention Center.

Retrieved November 7, 2015.

2. Presidential Decree No. 520, s. 1974 (23 July 1974), Authorizing The Central Bank Of The Philippines To
Construct An International Conference Center Building, Acquire A Suitable Site For The Purpose, Organize A
Corporation Which Will Manage And Administer The Said Center And For Other Purposes. (https://www.offic
ialgazette.gov.ph/1974/07/23/presidential-decree-no-520-s-1974/) , retrieved August 2, 2022

3. Bonabente, Cyril (September 5, 2006). "Did you Know" (https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=16VjAAA

AIBAJ&sjid=biUMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3443%2C15441950) . Philippine Daily Inquirer. Inquirer Research.
Retrieved November 7, 2015.

4. "Imelda Marcos: Style icon, for better and worse" (https://www.rappler.com/life-and-style/fashion/39154-i

melda-marcos-style-icon) . Rappler. Retrieved March 24, 2018.

5. Villa, Kathleen de (September 16, 2017). "Imelda Marcos and her 'edifice complex' " (http://business.inquir
er.net/236962/imelda-marcos-edifice-complex) . Retrieved March 24, 2018.

6. Presidential Decree No. 995, s. 1976 (10 September 1976), ACreating the Batasan Bayan, Defining its
Functions and Powers, and Appropriating Funds Therefor (https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1976/09/10/pr
esidential-decree-no-995-s-1976/) , retrieved August 2, 2022

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