RARE FORM

After a six-year hiatus, the celebrated designer Wynn Wynn Ong returns with Distillation, a landmark retrospective showcasing her singular, genre-defying artistic vision at the Yuchengco Museum By Maritess Garcia ReyesIn the Philippine art and design scene, Wynn Wynn Ong represents an exceptional level of craftsmanship.

- Maritess Garcia Reyes

For 18 years, she had produced 16 distinct collections, before retiring in 2019, with her last exhibit, titled Sa Dagat At Bundok held at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila.

Yet, true artistry rarely stays quiet. After a six-year break, Ong returns with Distillation, a retrospective exhibition, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the Yuchengco Museum. This exhibit seeks to celebrate her artistic legacy, while introducing her work to new audiences and providing an immersive platform for reflection, appreciation and dialogue around jewellery as both adornment and art.

Initially, Ong resisted the idea of another exhibit. "I actually had no plans to make a return to the scene nor to revisit my work. My tribute to the Philippines, Sa Dagat At Bundok, which was a fundraiser for Bantay Kalikasan held from November 2018 to April 2019, was intended as my final one," the creative genius tells Tatler. However, while she was enjoying the calm and quiet in the countryside, a visit from her longtime friend Jeannie Javelosa, the curator and director of the Yuchengco Museum, rekindled the idea of putting together a retrospective. "Jeannie mentioned that they were celebrating their 25th anniversary in November 2025 and broached the idea of my mounting another exhibit in celebration. I reminded her that I was now retired. Being the indomitable person that she is, she asked me to think about it."