A chandelier from the Pulo Project at Please do Not Enter's flagship store. Chandelier was designed by Luisa Robinson in collaboration with Kenneth Cobonpue.
Please Do Not Enter’s Showcase of Philippine Arts at Pulo Project
The Please Do Not Enter boutique and gallery has placed past spotlights on fine artists and fashion designers from the native France of co-founders Nicolas Libert and Emmanuel Renoird. In 2019, Libert and Renoird shifted their focus to the Philippines. Their shop presented Pulo Project, a show of arts and fashions from the Southeast Asian nation in May. Michelle Aquino, Please Do Not Enter's store director, curated Pulo Project. On July 9, a second edition of the Filipino arts show was unveiled at the Please Do Not Enter flagship shop at 549 S. Olive St. in downtown Los Angeles and at their location, called The Lab, at the NoMad Hotel, also in downtown L.A.
Artists participating in Pulo Project appeared at receptions for the show on July 9. Carlyle Nuera exhibited Panit, a collection of five traditional Terno blouses, which are made in the various skin tones of Filipino people. Typically, only the lightest skin tones are represented in fashion and beauty media, Nuera said, and there is an unfair bias against people with darker skins in Filipino society. The Panit line aims to call attention to that bias. Nuera also is the lead designer for Mattel’s Barbie Signature division. Several years ago, he designed Mutya Barbie, a Filipina Barbie doll.
Rita Nazareno represented Zacarias 1925. It’s a Manila-based accessories studio which makes use of traditional handicrafts. Zacarias 1925 collaborated with street artist Dex Fernandez for the Zacarapata line of art, objects and bags, which are inspired by the common tick. Aromatic curators Barratt Riley & Co. also displayed botanical scents inspired by Philippines.
