Houses that Sugar Built: 
An Intimate Portrait of Philippine Ancestral Homes

Book Talk with Gina Consing McAdam
Featuring award-winning images by Siobhán Doran

January 25, 2025 (Saturday)
2:00 – 4:00 PM
Ayala Museum
(Sold out)

London-based writer Gina Consing McAdam explores the sense of home and identity manifested by the grand domestic architecture and interiors built by the sugar planters of Iloilo, Negros and Pampanga during the sugar industry’s peak in the early 20^th century. Drawing on the narratives shared by their owners and heirs and her own family history, Gina will delve into how these homes, blending Art Deco, Neoclassical and Modernist styles, served as majestic expressions of personal, cultural and economic aspirations.

The event will also showcase a selection of her co-author Siobhán Doran’s spectacular photographs from the book, including the “Sala Mayor” series that garnered global accolades, notably first prize in the Professional Architecture & Design category of the 2024 Sony World Photography Awards.

The book Houses that Sugar Built, chosen by The World of Interiors as one of its recommended nonfiction illustrated books of 2024, is available for research at the Filipinas Heritage Library.

Gina Consing McAdam
Speaker

London-based writer Gina Consing McAdam explores the sense of home and identity manifested by the grand domestic architecture and interiors built by the sugar planters of Iloilo, Negros and Pampanga during the sugar industry’s peak in the early 20^th century. Drawing on the narratives shared by their owners and heirs and her own family history, Gina will delve into how these homes, blending Art Deco, Neoclassical and Modernist styles, served as majestic expressions of personal, cultural and economic aspirations.

The event will also showcase a selection of her co-author Siobhán Doran’s spectacular photographs from the book, including the “Sala Mayor” series that garnered global accolades, notably first prize in the Professional Architecture & Design category of the 2024 Sony World Photography Awards.

The book Houses that Sugar Built, chosen by The World of Interiors as one of its recommended nonfiction illustrated books of 2024, is available for research at the Filipinas Heritage Library.