Balikbayan means ‘To return home’

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A Balikbayan box is a cardboard box filled with gifts and souvenirs brought by Filipinos returning home. 

Filipinos use Balikbayan boxes to send gifts home to their families from overseas. 

As Filipinx immigrant and diasporic artists, Balikbayan boxes hold special meaning for us

as an expression and practice of care to our loved ones. 

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In some ways the Balikbayan box can be considered a community care package.

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In June 2020 a prototype of the187 Balikbayan box was 

developed through Ukai Projects' Migration Residency, 

 it is the very first of it's kind and created by Filipinx and Tibetan artists and prototypers.

The Balikbayan box contains digital work encapsulating the 187 legacy as well as

personal objects contributed by 187’s artists that serve as reminders of ‘home.’

 

For one year our Balikbayan box will circulate within 187’s community, 

once the box has completed it’s journey and is returned home,

it is our greatest hope that we will be able to gather once again at our home, 187. 

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The box is representative of 187 as holding what is most precious to us--our community. 

Transporting the box within this time becomes an act of faith;

faith that within this time of great uncertainty and upheaval, 

our community will endure and survive the enormity of

the challenges we will face in this coming year.

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In this time of great upheaval, we boldly bring hope with us into a bright future. 

 

Balikbayan  

'ba·luhk·bai·uhn'

To return home