Through the landmark First United Building, a community of creatives care for Manila’s history and culture. In Escolta’s pre-war heyday, the Perez-Samanillo building possessed one of the city’s most prestigious business and commercial addresses, with banks, law firms, and dental offices occupying its five floors. Nearly a hundred years since it was built, these same floors are now filled with artist-run spaces, design studios, and creative startups.
Outside, a snarl of electrical wires crisscrosses the street, while jeepneys and pushcart vendors ply the lanes. The scene is noticeably grittier and more crowded than the ones found in the sepia-toned landscapes posted on the Facebook page Manila Nostalgia . But the building still stands, a proud relic of Manila’s gilded age.
What could have been its inexorable slide into the hands of decay or demolition has been turned around by the collective efforts of the building’s stewards and entrepreneurial tenants. They have breathed new life, not just inside its walls, but out onto the streets of which Escolta was once hailed queen. The structure now known as the First United Building was designed by Andres Luna de San Pedro, son of the painter Juan Luna and Paz Pardo de Tavera.
After studying architecture in Paris, Andres returned to Manila and was appointed Chief Architect by the city governor. He later put up his own practice, training other architects like Juan Nakpil, who worked with him on designing the building commissi.