The allure of the Orient

This chapter problematizes recent Spanish official representations of the Philippines, arguing that there is colonial baggage attached to them. From the analysis of several exhibitions, the Chapter concludes that several colonial discourses on evangelisation, and ‘discovery’ can be identified. Furthermore, the Philippines is still portrayed as exotic, within an Oriental discourse that is embedded within a process of othering. This chapter argues that even though these discourses come from a colonial context, they acquired new meanings in the new Millennium. The focus on the ‘achievements’ of Spain as an ex-empire in Asia feeds into a political strategy, in which Spain is presenting itself as a country with a long history in global politics. This chapter examines recent Spanish official representations of the Philippines, arguing that there is colonial baggage attached to them. Furthermore, the Philippines is still portrayed as exotic, within an Oriental discourse that is embedded within a process of othering. The catalogue explains that Spanish curiosity with the Orient is currently alive through shared images that are part of a 'collective imaginary'. There is an acknowledgement of the unquestioned existence of such a unifying culture, without any discussion of what it might entail or what it might actually be. These depictions of the Orient as a given construct that does not need any explanation, clarification, or discussion can be studied as part of a system of regimes of truths that the Spanish cultural producers set and disseminate through the different displays. The islands strategic point of reference for Spain in the first decade of the twentieth century, as much as they were during the period of the Manila Galleons trade.