Pinto Art Museum - Antipolo City

I was feeling a little sluggish and heavy-eyed after we indulged on Antipolo's version of Pancit Batil Patong. The cool weather didn’t help as well. I was lost for a moment as I gazed into my watch and saw that it was past my siesta time. And then we went into this mysterious place tucked inside a gated subdivision and I quickly transformed into my normal lively self. The Pinto Art Museum is all ours for that day.

I fancy museums, galleries and art spaces. I can stay the whole day alone inside one. It never bores me. I can look at an artwork for hours without noticing the time passing by. It’s as if I’m being hypnotized by whatever powers or forces a single piece of artwork has.

Writing about a museum, on the other hand, is a challenging task for me. I cannot put into words what I experienced. On hindsight, I consider my museum write-ups to be unappealing which goes to show that I did have a hard time verbalizing my experience. But here I am, sharing a museum trip on a separate post because I so love the Pinto Art Museum that it needed to be shared.

One Saturday morning, we were invited by Robbie to this not-so-familiar museum in Antipolo. I immediately agreed upon hearing the magic word. The Pinto Art Museum is located at the Grand Heights Subdivision in Antipolo City. We met up at Santolan Station of the LRT-2 and hopped on a van service to Antipolo. Arriving at downtown Antipolo, we hailed a tricycle that brought us to the museum. It seemed like only a few knows about its exact location.

An arch of the museum we were looking for welcomed us as we alighted from the tricycle. Someone greeted us and graciously ushered us to the gift shop/information center. I was stunned for a moment when I get to see the vast and lush greeneries inside. It’s a whole estate (1.2 hectares) that houses several structures and art spaces. It’s so huge and I was so excited to start wandering right away.

The group paid 150 pesos each for the entrance fee while I paid 75 pesos (for students). We were told by the very cool front desk guy about the “rules” around the complex; take your time, enjoy and no flash photography. That’s it! No nonsense. No ridiculous rules and stuff; just no flash photography which is actually the norm inside art spaces. And by the way, we opted to not have a guide for we wanted to explore the spaces at our own pace.

The moment I saw the whole area, I felt like I was in Santorini with a great view of the huge white Meditteranean inspired structures (sans the beach). I dunno why but it felt like it. 

Lush greens, huge art spaces, flight of steps, sculptures, paintings, assemblages, books and art pieces.  I was looking at every piece through the eyes of a child; full of wonder and admiration.

We consumed the rest of the day lounging, chitchatting and exploring the whole expanse of the museum. I specifically loved the couches, the daybeds, the sofas and all the seating areas; two of which I slept into. It’s like they’re encouraging everyone to just chill and relish the moment. It's very comfy, homey and relaxed. No pressure. 

My buddies left me slumbering on a bay window; I’ve been forever dreaming to have one in my room by the way. The sound of raindrops trickling on the window awakened me. I looked around and noticed that me and a buddy were left in the room. Waking up on an art space after a nice nap was just perfect.

We found the rest of the gang on the museum’s café (Sira Ulo sa Pinto café) right in the middle of the complex. We wanted to have some coffee but we were cheapos so we saved the crave for a fun street food fest afterwards. We just settled for some drinking water; free and refreshing. And then the chitchatting, lounging and catnaps went on again. 

Two soon-to-be brides were having their prenuptial stuff on the museum’s premises at that time. They look happy as the shutter clicked for a hundred times. We were also told that the space can be used for actual wedding ceremonies. How cool is that eh?

We had fun lounging hanging around the museum. Every nook is smartly utilized. Unaccompanied, unguided and do-it-yourself tour is the perfect thing for me. I am on my own and wander in wonder to what, where and how.

Sometimes I detest rules and any form of conformity. Maybe I’m just stubborn or maybe I don’t want to be told all the time. I like the whole idea of this Pinto Art Museum; loose, relaxed and comfy. No pressure. And hey, it’s my first time to have slept inside a museum and nobody stopped me to do so; really cool.

I so love the Pinto Art Museum. If only all of the art spaces in the country are like that then people would probably shy away from the malls. 

Pinto Art Museum

1 Sierra Madre Street, Grand Heights,

Antipolo City, Philippines
Contact Numbers: (+63) 2.697.1015

Email Address: pintoartmuseum@yahoo.com

Museum Hours

Tuesdays – Sundays

9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Entrance Fees

Adult – 150 pesos

Senior Citizen – 120 pesos

Student – 75 pesos

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