It will portray the National Hero’s life during his exile in the city.
As part of the Regional Science, Technology, and Innovation Week (RSTW), an annual event organized by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) regional offices across 17 regions, a technologically-driven monument of the country’s national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, was formally announced.
This, as DOST officials, led by Secretary Solidum, and Dapitan City Mayor Evelyn Uy set the project into motion by conducting a groundbreaking ceremony last August 13.
Called the El Dapitanon, it will be built through the collaboration of the the Dapitan City local government unit (LGU) and the DOST.
In his speech, Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. said, “May [El Dapitanon] stand not only as a symbol of Rizal’s greatness, but also [as a] beacon of what Filipinos can achieve when science, technology, innovation, culture, and nation-building come together.”
The sculpture isby Prof. Jose Manuel Sicat of the UP Diliman College of Fine Arts and will portray Rizal as what locals may have remembered him for: a teacher, physician, scientist, artist, and community worker.
“He wears a simple camisa de chino, plain trousers, and shoes, his sleeves rolled up as though ready to work… (and) holds in his hand his poem for Dapitan, while his gaze looks outward, contemplative yet purposeful,” shared the local government.
The said poem is Mi Retiro, which Rizal wrote during his exile in the city.
The city government added: “It is Rizal the Dapitanon, the man who healed, taught, planted, built, studied, discovered, and lived among the people.“
It also stands as a symbol of Dapitan reclaiming its own story of Rizal and aims to “show future generations not merely the national hero they read about in books, but the man their ancestors encountered, worked with, learned from, and learned to love.“
3D-PRINTED
The DOST and its Advanced Manufacturing Center (AMCen), the El Dapitanon will demonstrate how 3D-printing technologies can extend beyond conventional industrial applications and utilized for culture, public art, heritage interpretation, and historical preservation, the LGU said.
According to the DOST said that the DOST-Metals Industry Research and Development Center (DOST-MIRDC) has yet to 3D-scan the original five-foot sculpture—which serves as the basis for the scale-up .
The outer shell of Rizal’s figure will be made of 3D-printed acrylonitrile-styrene-acrylate (ASA), a high-quality plastic reinforced with concrete and reinforcement bars.
“[Portion by portion ang pag-print natin] mula sa baba, nakabalot na ‘yung outer shell around the steel structure, at bubuhusan ng semento. Tapos, panibago na namang layer hanggang sa umabot sa taas,” said DOST-MIRDC director Engr. Robert Dizon.
The sculpture that will be 46 meters high (comparable to a four-storey building) once completed. Although, out of the said height, monument, only the 26-foot Rizal with a bronze finish will be 3D-printed atop a 20-foot cement pedestal.
Similar technology was also used on the Rizal monument in the DOST plaza in Bicutan, Taguig City, named “The Filipino Scientist,” which Professor Sicat was also commissioned to model.
The DOST also disclosed that a budget of nine million pesos has been allotted for the printing, materials, and logistics of the monument, with the Dapitan City LGU shouldering the materials for erection of the monument.
“Hopefully, we will be launching this soon. One year is more than enough for us,” Dizon said as he laid targets for finishing El Dapitanon until 2027.
ROTUNDA
Aside from the sculpture, a rotunda will alzp be built to house the monument, with Architect Frattiane Triambulo designing with an eight-sided octagonal base, that was conceived not simply as a pedestal, but also as an interpretive space.
“Three sides will carry bas-relief artworks portraying Rizal’s varied contributions during his years in Dapitan, while the remaining sides will feature historical and commemorative markers, information on the technology behind the project, and portions of Rizal’s poem associated with his life in Dapitan,” the LGU further disclosed.
The surrounding landscape will also extends that narrative through vegetation, pathways, and sculptural representations that are said to have been inspired by the flora, fauna, and scientific discoveries connected with Rizal’s work as a naturalist.
The LGU also stated that the El Dapitanon is the first of many heritage projects envisioned for the city, with projects honoring Datu Pagbuaya, Subanen heritage, and the many other personalities and stories that form the rich tapestry of Dapitanon culture.
“If we are serious about protecting our heritage, then we must do it properly, and we believe Dapitan is moving in the right direction,” said Mayor Belen.
