In the elegant world of Philippine antiquities, Aileen Beltrano Bautista stands taller than most. Hers is an unparalleled collection of pre-colonial and colonial vintage jewelry whose backstories she passionately tells in astonishing details.
That is just hers. When mixed with that of her husband, Edwin Bautista of the Union Bank of the Philippines—from whom she learned the love of antiques—the collection is even more impressive. He acquired over the years old maps, flags, religious artifacts, swords and furniture that are housed in their Rockwell and McKinley properties. The
39th floor of the Union Bank Plaza in Ortigas provides an added space for the artworks that is open to the public.
Their vast, combined collection was featured in August of this year in “Private Art, Public Lives,” a series of exhibitions that showcased privately-held art pieces. Carefully curated by undisputed Philippine art authority Floy Quintos, the public had a chance to see and appreciate the couple’s private collection that otherwise would have been accessible only to close friends.
The exhibit was attended by the who’s who in Philippine antiquities including the old guards like Jimmy Laya, Jimmy Gonzales, the Tantocos, the Ortigas and other highly-respected names in the industry—something that the couple considered their biggest reward for mounting the exhibit.
CREATING GOLD MASTERPIECES
Aileen started collecting antique jewelry in 2010. This was preceded by her passion for the art-deco—Edwardian and Victorian vintage jewelry that she would acquire from shops in Amsterdam, Paris, Copenhagen and London. This would be immediately superseded by her love for Philippine pre-colonial gold jewelry because of their detailed craftsmanship.
She added that before the Spaniards came, our ancestors were already creating masterpieces made of gold usually in 22 or 24 carats which allowed them to come up with intricate designs because gold was softer and easier to handle.
During the private exhibit, Renaissance man Jimmy Laya, a banker and a cultural administrator who served as the first Secretary of the Department of Budget and Management, told Aileen that her collection of pre-colonial jewelry trumps the collection of any museum in the country. Rightfully so, the gold bracelets and belts in Aileen’s collection is nothing short of amazing.
Part of the awe is how Aileen illuminates people on her collection’s history. Without a doubt, any listener would appreciate our very rich cultural heritage, thanks to Aileen’s skill in another field—teaching.
MAKING THINGS HAPPEN
For over 16 years now, Aileen has been teaching corporate leadership, strategic marketing and management at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde and the College of Asia Pacific. She is armed with a Master’s Degree in Information Management and most recently a certification from International Coach Federation in New York for her pro bono work as international life coach whose supreme advocacy is women empowerment.
Aileen admits “I’m very impatient. I will not wait to make things happen. I will make things happen. Because I want to see the result right away,” she says.
She has very little down time as she keeps herself busy by accomplishing things either as a mother, wife, teacher and friend despite her enviable position in life where she does not really have to work to make a living.
She blames this for her taking up smoking at an early age of 17 as a student in St. Scholastica’s College. She is unapologetic about this vice, saying smoking made her calmer and less stressed—a small price to pay for the stress of her go-getting personality—or so she thought. She made many attempts to quit without success.
HEATED TOBACCO TECHNOLOGY
It wasn’t until 2019 that Aileen got introduced to heated tobacco products during a trip to Japan. “I am so thankful for IQOS and the technology behind it because when I started using it, I never touched a single cigarette ever again. More so because I switched before the pandemic hit. Thus, our condo unit did not smell of smoke during the lockdown.”
IQOS is an innovative heat-not-burn tobacco product that was launched in 2014 in Japan and Italy. It is an electronic device that heats tobacco instead of burning it to deliver nicotine, which means no smoke is inhaled.
Aileen raves about the sophisticated electronics of the device which heat specially-designed tobacco sticks without fire, ash or smoke.
In February this year, she was again in Japan when she learned about IQOS ILUMA which she found to be an even more superb upgrade to the earlier versions of the device. She’s glad that it is also now available locally.
“The lack of smell and the absence of cleaning are epic. But the packaging is something else – it is just so sophisticated. It is just so me,” she says.
Aileen makes it a point to discuss the importance of switching from smoking to a heated tobacco when she is with smokers. She considers this her advocacy because she understands how extremely difficult it is to quit cold turkey. “I don’t bother with other less harmful alternatives because for me, IQOS is the closest to mimicking cigarettes. I never tried vapes—they are cumbersome for me—but it does work with other people, so it is fine,” she quips.
“When I started using IQOS, a lot of smokers in Union Bank that I engage with switched to heated tobacco too. It’s because I never stop talking about it to smokers. I never discuss it with non-smokers, and almost always, the smokers I talk to shifted,” says Aileen, whose husband is the president of the bank.
She is also happy that her eldest son, who is a pilot, switched from smoking to a better smoke-free alternative. Aileen claims that her son has a vast collection of devices as he gets to travel to different parts of the world where IQOS is available.
While Aileen is immersed in the world of antiques, her openness to new technology is palpable, and she will continue to embrace it. She draws inspiration from her husband who is responsible for the impressive digital transformation of Union Bank.
