AYALA Museum’s newest exhibition, Turning Tides: Maritime Encounters and Exchanges of Power, reexamines the Battle of Mactan and the Battles of La Naval de Manila as a part of broader networks of trade, faith, diplomacy, and conflict that shaped Philippine history.
Running from July 16, 2026 to Feb. 14, 2027 on the museum’s 3F Foremost Gallery, the exhibition brings together historical artifacts, paintings, devotional objects, multimedia installations, and interactive experiences that explore how the archipelago’s maritime connections influenced Filipino identity.
The exhibition grew from curator Jei Ente’s interest in examining Filipinos’ relationship with the ocean and the role of maritime activity in shaping the country’s history.
“I had an idea for an exhibition in 2023 about how, as a people whose culture is built on maritime activity, Filipinos have a relationship to water which appear in ways in which we don’t all the time notice or realize,” Ms. Ente said in an interview.
She said the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and the Battles of La Naval in 1646 were chosen because “while very different, they’re parallel stories on how Filipinos have long belonged to a bigger network of exchanges connected through the seas”.
Slightly than presenting recent historical information, the exhibition goals to supply fresh ways of understanding familiar events.
“The exhibition doesn’t promise recent information, moderately it prompts recent insights into the way in which we remember these accounts,” Ms. Ente said. “Half of the discussion in Turning Tides is on the worldview and ways of the people within the islands in 1521 and 1646 to assist our visitors higher imagine and understand what was at stake for many who went into these battles.”
The exhibition broadens the discussion beyond military encounters by examining the business, cultural, and spiritual forces behind them.
“After we take into consideration battles and major conflicts, we regularly give attention to their military and political dimensions. But battles are often the culmination of deeper struggles over commerce, culture, religion, and other competing interests,” Ms. Ente said.
Among the many highlights are Fernando Amorsolo’s The Traders and The First Baptism, the Nineteenth-century image of the Virgin of the Holy Rosary generally known as La Japona, an ivory-and-gold rosary recovered from the San Diego shipwreck, and ceremonial vestments of Our Lady of La Naval.
The exhibition also features scale models of Spanish and precolonial Philippine vessels, a brief animated film inspired by Antonio Pigafetta’s chronicles, and five interactive digital modules, including a Battle of Mactan video game.
“Most Filipinos are accustomed to the importance of the Battle of Mactan, but not as many are aware of the role that Filipinos played within the Battles of La Naval, which sabotaged the search of Dutch forces to manage Southeast Asia,” Ms. Ente said. “Through these stories and interesting character dynamics, we hope visitors reflect on how decisions made a whole lot of years before still impact us today.”
Ayala Foundation Senior Director for Arts and Culture Jorell M. Legaspi said the exhibition highlights the country’s historical role in regional and global exchanges.
“Turning Tides presents the Philippines as an lively crossroads of trade, diplomacy, religious faith, and cultural exchange. It reflects Ayala Museum’s commitment to preserving Philippine heritage and making it accessible, relevant, and meaningful for our growing audiences,” he said.
Ms. Ente said she hopes visitors leave with a deeper appreciation of how history continues to shape the current.
“Ultimately, I hope visitors leave realizing that history becomes truly meaningful after we see it not only as a record of the past, but as a type of shared memory that continues to shape who we’re today.” — Kaizzer Angela Marie V. Manuba