Once a year, PURVEYR holds a gathering. The PURVEYR Fair is a celebration for and with Filipino creatives, from all backgrounds, industries, and communities. It is holistic, in the sense that it caters to every single one with a creative flow, promoting the idea that every person, every Filipino, is creative. As a two-day event, the Fair not only showcases different brands, establishments, and talks, but it also provides a space for people to meet and interact. It is an event that transcends the two-day duration, as people take whatever they may take from the Fair and apply it in their everyday lives. In PURVEYR founder Marvin Conanan’s words, it is “a [creative] congregation”.
Behind the Scenes
Within the planning stage for the ninth iteration of PURVEYR Fair, Marvin had already wanted to build on the success of the Fair in 2022. A lot of thought was put into the months prior to the event, in terms of replicating the good parts and pieces. Aside from retaining the good parts, the team also wanted to improve on them through the increase in number of booths within the vicinity, area space, and overall better curation.
Furthermore, Marvin also wanted to explore what the booth walls were able to do, and can further do, which is one of the best parts of the 2022 Fair. These booth walls — a mixture of creativity and resourcefulness — were aimed to be the highlight, as it was “the catalyst for brands to present their worlds better, and for guests to experience how diverse the Fair was”.
Altogether, the efforts of the team were indeed guided by the idea of diversity, and how creative pursuits and communities, though different, had creative value that each has to offer.
Booths at the PURVEYR Fair 2022
Spectacular D-Days
When the 2nd and 3rd of September 2023 came, this is what people had seen when they attended the Fair: individuals from different spaces, a wide range of options from which they could buy from or experience, and of course, the many faces and interpretation of creativity. With the diverse set of merchants PURVEYR Fair has had since 2016, surely one may find something that may pique their interest, ranging from crowd favorites and well-known brands, to those who are up and coming, still breaking from their shell.
Amidst the rain that may have hindered people from going and indulging in what the Fair offers, it still had the most people the Fair ever had, as it estimated at 3,500 attendees in total. With the number of people coming into Metrotent Convention Center, it is true when Marvin said that it was a social exercise. From meeting new people, catching up with the community, and conversing with countless creatives, one may feel exhaustion creeping into their system.
Scenes from PURVEYR Fair 2023
Despite the fatigue an individual may feel from the continuous vibrant energy from the crowd, it was too contagious for them to feel and think otherwise. As someone who was assigned by the entrance scanning tickets, exhaustion from the sheer number of people within the vicinity was something I did not think of until the end of day, when I finally came home. I couldn’t help but greet incoming guests and attendees warmly, chat with the guards and bouncers — the energy in Metrotent was clearly infectious. While it was something asked of me — to smile, to be accommodating — I didn’t feel the need to force myself to act as such. I just had too much energy, too much excitement, too much affection for the Filipino creative community. Looking back, I think of PURVEYR Fair with fond feelings. Truly, with the Fair in full swing, it is safe to say that while Filipino creativity flourished in this little corner of Pasig City, it also brought along the energy of openness, and warmth of the community.
Last year’s Fair garnered the best feedback and energy compared to all the previous Fairs PURVEYR has done, with the general comments of the fair praising the whole creative community, grateful for the number of activities that can be done within the venue, and hoping for another chance to experience it all first-hand.
More images from PURVEYR Fair 2023 on @purveyrfair
PURVEYR Fair 2024 now open for applications
The 2024 Successor
To serve as a teaser for what is to come in the tenth iteration of PURVEYR Fair for this year, I asked Marvin for his plans. “[We have] the same goals: bring together the many different creative communities under one roof, provide a safe space for creatives to explore and express themselves, and build a fair that is empathetic to commercial and cultural needs of creatives,” he said.
When it comes to concrete action plans, here’s what Marvin has to say: “What we [can] promise this 2024 is a bigger fair with more booths and merchants, and an improved programming including talks, performances, and installations.”
PURVEYR has always been about and for the creatives. To provide the epitome of a perfect space for them to thrive in, it requires months of preparation, not only focusing on what the brain can come up with, but also what the heart wants to showcase. It takes grit and effort to provide a holistic experience for the Filipino creative community, and PURVEYR will not shy away from challenges that may arise.
That is PURVEYR’s promise, and hopefully, on September 7-8, 2024, you will be there, and experience the next Fair in its full glory.
EDITORIAL & VIDEO TEAM
WRITER Ina Palaruan
PHOTOGRAPHERS Zaldine Alvaro, Joshua San Mateo and Rainier Gonzales
VIDEOGRAPHER Gelo Aldana
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