Mic Diño Boekelmann, Writer | Karin Luner, Editor
Mic Diño Boekelmann is a Filipino American artist born in Quezon City, Philippines. She was raised in Germany, Israel and the US and received her BA from UC Berkeley. She is a dedicated arts advocate.
Her work is included in the permanent collection at Princeton University and has been shown at the at American University Museum Katzen Arts Center, the Chautauqua Institution, the Filipino American Contemporary Art exhibit at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton, CA, the NARS Foundation on Governors Island, Princeton University, Salmagundi Club, Allied Artists of America and is a contributing author to “Last Artist Standing: Living and Sustaining a Creative Life over 50” edited by Sharon Louden.
She received a 2026 Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the Sustainable Arts Foundation Fellowship, the Chautauqua Visual Arts Residency, the NYFA Immigrant Artist Program and is a founding member of the ERL Collective, emerging residency leaders developing nurturing systems for BIPOC artists. She has facilitated artist talks at the Princeton Public Library and Pratt Institute, NY. Boekelmann lives and works in Princeton, NJ.
In 2019, I began using the Manila envelope in my art. It started as a small experiment while documenting my family’s stories. One day, my mother told me about growing up in the Philippines and watching workers process abaca, also known as Manila hemp, a strong fiber derived from a native banana plant. She explained that this was the original material used to make Manila envelopes. That conversation stayed with me. The envelope suddenly felt like more than office paper. It became a simple way for me to connect to my Filipino roots.
The Manila envelope is designed to hold documents and other important materials. In my studio, I began cutting into it, turning into fragments of skin, figures, and floral shapes. What was once a plain office supply slowly becoming something alive, something that grounded, energized and kept me company during times when I felt like I did not belong in the US. Instead of holding paperwork, the envelope began holding stories, memory, and lived experience.
In 2021, while attending an artist residency at the Chautauqua Institution in New York, the material pushed me even further. The envelopes became sculptural, and one piece transformed into a dress, which carried the words of my elders for the new generation to come. Limiting myself to this ordinary material has opened an unexpected world of possibilities. I’m excited to see where it leads next.
Join me in April for a deeper conversation about my journey as a late-starting artist, the Filipino values that fuel my work, and how I follow intuition in my practice.
Note: All images are courtesy of the artist.
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