The last time somebody climbed up the exterior of a skyscraper in the Philippines, it was the so-called “French Spiderman” Alain Robert, who conquered the GT Tower in Makati City in March this year.
This time, an attempt to scale up a building in Makati is the concept behind a fashion editorial by Commonwealth Philippines. Shot in the heart of Makati’s business district, the editorial features a select group of Manila’s climbing community scaling the cityscape photographed by Renzo Navarro and conceptualized by Monday Off.
Buildering—a portmanteau of bouldering and building—is the act of climbing artificial structures, as opposed to bouldering or rock climbing. While rock climbing and bouldering are becoming popular activities in the Philippines, with more than a handful of gyms available across Metro Manila, buildering itself is an unexplored phenomenon (if you don’t count akyat-bahay, that is).
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While it may seem disorienting to some, the localized editorial provides a new perspective into familiar places. An intentional decision for sure, given that it’s reminiscent of Gramicci’s own imagery throughout its brand history.
