The Filipino Houses

and Buildings Through

the Years
Preliminary Activity:
a. What type of building do you see in your town and city. Are many of them
old or new, tall or low? What are the designs?

=> some houses or buildings were old and weathered by time

=> they are made mostly of hardwoods.
=> new houses or buildings are made of concrete and steel, they stand tall and
re painted with attractive colors.
What are different designs of houses found in many Filipino
communities?
When you go to towns and cities in our country, you will see
different types of houses.
In rural areas, you will see many houses made of native
materials like bamboo, cogon, nipa and wood.
The designs of these houses are made of our Filipino
ancestors.
Designs are based on the available natural materials, weather
conditions, and common cultural beliefs and practices.
However, in towns and cities, many residential houses are
made of concrete materials like cement
and iron roofing.
They have different designs like bungalows, two-story houses,
apartments, and condominiums.
There are also mid-rise or high-rise commercial buildings.
Theses designs have various influences.
Houses designed by generations of Early Filipinos
1. Bahay-kubo or rural native huts
Materials: Nipa, cogon, grasses, bamboo, coconut tree
Architectural Designs:
- Roofs are steeped.
- Doors and windows are wide.
- Windows can be folded and opened with a wooden support.
-Houses are raised, one or two meters above the ground as
protection against animals or flooding.
Bahay Kubo
2. Torogan
Materials: Posts are from huge tree trunks, walls are made of
woods or plywood sticks, roof made of bamboo, wooden plants or
galvanized iron sheets.
Architectural Designs:
-Hard and durable materials.
-Posts and huge, strong and long.
-Roofs are soaring and ornamented.
- Elaborate shapes are carved on its beams and columns.
-Decorated with Maranao design called okir and Sarimanok
Mindanao Moro House Torogan
 Buildings that have Spanish Influence
1. Bahay na Bato
Mateials: Hard and durable materials, cutout rocks, huge
stones, limes, refined hard wood, capiz or shelled
windows, roof tiles
Architectural designs:
-Doors and windows are arched.
- Some elements of the “Bahay na Bato” are not
suitable to the country’s weather condition, but Filipinos learn to
admire it because of its durability.
Sample - Bahay na bato
2. Simbahan
Materials: Cutout rocks, huge stones, refind hard wood, capiz or shelled
windows, roof tiles.
Architectural Designs:
-Roof beams are supported by walls.
-Supports are steeped.
-Doors and windows are arched.
Lumang Simbahan
3. Carcel
Materials: Cutout rocks, huge stones, refined hardwood, capiz or
shelled windows, roof tiles
Architectural Designs:
-Roofs are supported by walls and steeped supports.
-Interiors are too enclosed.
-Ventilation is minimal.
Carcel
 Buildings that have American Influence
1. Gabaldon School Houses
Heritage school houses built in the Pilippines during the American
regime
Materials: Wood, capiz-shelled window paels, corrugated iron roof
Architectural Designs:
-Porch are roofed and open.
Gabaldon house
2. Gymnasium and Musical Hall
Material: Hard and durable materials
Architectural Designs:
-This building is huge and well ventilated.
-Build by the Americans in 1920’s when they introduced vaudeville.
This vaudeville is an entertainment made up of unrelated acts by
comedians, singers, dancers, magicians, jugglers and many more.
Gymnasium and Musical Hall
 What is balance in drawing
Balance is the principle of art that deals with the
distribution of visual mass. It could be symmetrical or
symmetrical. There is balance in drawing when an image
at the let side of a paper is the same on the other side of the
picture plane. Ths is called symmetrical balance.
When the shapes are not the same on both sides then it is
considered as asymmetrical.
What rhythm in drawing?
When an element of art like lines, colors and shapes
are repeated in regular intervals, it could be said that there is
rhythm in the artwork.
Rhythm can create a sense of movement. It can also
establish pattern and texture. Rhythm can be shown by means
of repetition, contrast and progression.
 How is the drawing of Architectural structures
done to make it look realistic

Drawing of houses and buildings sometimes appear

flat and dull. To make drawing look realistic and three-
dimensional, a perspective technique, particularly the
one-point perspective is applied. The technique in
the one-point perspective is that there is only one
vanishing point on the horizon line.