Man Made Modern: Lor Calma (1928-2026)

Lor Calma was said to repeat that a designer must know when to stop designing. He never did. This giant of Philippine modern design, who passed away at 97, just a few months shy of his 98th birthday, continued sketching well into his 90s, a man whose body may have aged but whose mind still roiled with a hunger to create.

A graduate of the Mapúa Institute of Technology in 1954, Calma came of age when Philippine architecture favored ornamentation and tradition. He introduced minimalist modernism, emphasizing clean lines, functional clarity, and pragmatic responses to tropical conditions. His Makati residence, completed in 1980, evokes this ethos: interconnected glass volumes softened by curvaceous corners, an ode to Johnson, Neutra, and Niemeyer, but with a distinctly breezy, tropical flavor.

Calma’s creativity extended beyond buildings into whatever caught his eye; he designed furniture and jewelry, and later in life took up sculpture and painting. A man generous with his ideas, Calma co-founded and served as president of the Philippine Institute of Interior Design, helping shape professional standards for what was then a young discipline in the country. He also held active roles in the United Architects of the Philippines (Makati Chapter), the Philippine Sculpture Society, the Art Association of the Philippines, the Metropolitan Museum, the Cultural Center of the Philippines, and the Asian Cultural Council Philippines.

While National Artist honors proved notably elusive, Calma was widely celebrated for his talents, garnering accolades over five decades: Most Outstanding Kapampangan in Arts & Architecture (2010), Hall of Fame honors from the Philippine Institute of Interior Design (1992, 2006), Outstanding Professional of the Year in Interior Design (1997), and numerous lifetime achievement awards in architecture, interior design, and allied arts.

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