Guests fill the galleries at the International Hotel Manilatown Center during the sold-out opening of Inday: Manilatown Celebrates Women’s History Month, celebrating the work of American Filipina artists.
Artist Roundtable to Be Held on April 26th at the I-Hotel Manilatown Center
San Francisco, CA — The I-Hotel Manilatown Center, home of the Manilatown Heritage Foundation, is proud to announce that Inday: Manilatown Celebrates Women’s History Month opened to a sold-out audience on February 28, 2026. Due to overwhelming community response and popular demand, the exhibition has been extended through April 30, 2026.
The dynamic opening evening featured performances by the Manilatown Jazz Ensemble and the Manilatown Ancestral Ensemble, bringing together artists, community leaders, and supporters in celebration of American Filipina creativity. Executive Director Caroline Cabading also performed a live jazz vocal set, and Deputy Executive Director Desiree Quintero presented a Pangalay dance, adding depth and cultural resonance to the evening.
On view at the historic I-Hotel Manilatown Center, Inday honors the artistic voices, cultural contributions, and lived experiences of American Filipina artists. Presented in recognition of Women’s History Month, the exhibition reflects intergenerational stories of migration, identity, perseverance, and cultural pride while affirming the Center’s enduring legacy as a space for community empowerment and cultural advocacy.
Featured Artists:
Frances Cachapero
Holly Calica
Maya Crolene
Maria Luisa Escalambre
Jeanette Gandionco Lazam
Glady Lee
Caroline Ocampo
Annie Panlibutan-Keas
“Inday demonstrates the power of community-centered art to bring people together across generations,” said Caroline Cabading, Executive Director of the Manilatown Heritage Foundation. “The sold-out opening is a testament to how deeply our community values the voices and creative leadership of American Filipina artists. By extending the exhibition, we are ensuring that even more visitors have the opportunity to experience this important and timely body of work.”
Co-curator and exhibiting artist Caroline Ocampo emphasized the exhibition’s broader cultural significance. “Inday is both an affirmation and an invitation,” said Ocampo. “It affirms the creative force of American Filipina artists whose work carries memory, migration, and empowerment. It also invites the public to witness how art becomes a living bridge. Connecting ancestral homeland to diaspora, and personal story to collective history.”
At the opening event, Co-Curator, artist, and activist Jeanette Gandionco Lazam spoke powerfully about the significance of International Women’s Day, underscoring the vital role of women—particularly American Filipina artists—in shaping cultural narratives, advancing social justice, and sustaining intergenerational movements for equity, visibility, and collective empowerment.
Through painting, textile arts, ceramics, mixed media, photography, and performance, Inday captures the breadth and spirit of American Filipina artistry. Within the history of Bay Area exhibitions, it represents a rare and focused undertaking by a community-based organization dedicated exclusively to American Filipina women artists. Inday derives from the Visayan (Cebuano/Ilonggo) language, where it is a common and affectionate term of endearment for a woman or girl—a fitting title for an exhibition that uplifts women’s voices with warmth, respect, and pride.
On April 26, 2026, from 11 AM – to 1 PM, the Manilatown Heritage Foundation will host a public Artists’ Roundtable featuring participating artists in conversation about process, identity, and the evolving landscape of Filipina creative expression. Register to attend on Eventbrite.
This year’s exhibition was presented as an invitational, bringing together a distinguished group of American Filipina artists whose work reflects the depth and diversity of contemporary practice. Building on the extraordinary response from the community, the Manilatown Heritage Foundation is pleased to announce that next year’s exhibition will transition to a juried format. A public call for artists and submission guidelines will be released by the end of 2026 in preparation for a March 2027 exhibition, further expanding opportunities to showcase the dynamic and evolving voices of American Filipina artists.
Exhibition Details
Inday: Manilatown Celebrates Women’s History Month
Extended through April 30, 2026
Gallery Hours: Wednesdays through Sundays, 1-6 PM
International Hotel Manilatown Center
868 Kearny Street
San Francisco, California
Eventbrite link to register.
For more information, visit manilatown.org.
