Among the goals of Ang INK is to boost professional opportunities for its members. To this end, the creation of a catalog was a logical step.
The first bare-bones Ang INK Catalog came out in 1996. It was a ring-bound compilation produced via assembly line. In it were black and white, photocopied pages of original art by INKies together with their contact information. This was the catalog template for the rest of the decade. These catalogs were then sent to publishers, advertising agencies, and other potential clients in the hopes of clinching projects.
By the 2000s, membership had grown. The organization had a few more resources and a lot more imagination to work with. The entry into the new millennium also prompted a shift in technology. At the time, it seemed everything was going digital. For a few years, digital catalogs in compact disc (CD) format were favored. They were compact, indeed, but lacked the accessibility and tactile appeal of the hard copy catalogs to which the group eventually reverted.
The catalogs grew more creative and colorful as the 2000s progressed. Still largely ring-bound, browsing the catalogs became a delightful experience due to unique details found in pages that used specialty paper, contained pop-up features, or even had moving parts.
In recent years, more sophisticated catalogs—including exhibit catalogs—have been produced in partnership with friends from the industry. The Ang INK Catalogs have certainly evolved over the decades, becoming both a vehicle for marketing and an outlet for expressing creativity and individuality. Some even consider them collectible and give them pride of place on the bookshelf, as long-time publisher, Karina Bolasco, shared: “Like Neni [Sta. Romana-Cruz], I collect your catalogs every year and they’re precious! Anytime anybody borrows [a catalog], I make sure it’s returned to me.” These catalogs represent the harvest of talent and wealth of possibilities welcomed by Ang INK each year.
