Jacob Maentz

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In the Philippine province of Quezon there are still a number of men who wear elaborate costumes while preforming their act of self flagellation. This unique costume with its colorful headdress called the "tukarol" and its skirt called the "saya" is the last of it's kind in the Philippine Islands. The ritual is preformed during the early hours of Good Friday with preparations taking place at the start of Holy Week.
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A tattooed Kalinga woman from the village of Buscalan. Tattoos in this region are used as a form of beautification and identity. Tattooing in the Cordilleras is a thousand year old ancient art once commonly practiced among the major warrior groups in the region. Men traditionally got tattooed as a rite of being a warrior or taking a head which was fairly common place up until the time of WWII. Today, it is difficult to find men who still have tattoos especially among the younger generation. One of the primary reasons for this is the belief that male tattoos should be hard-earned by revered warriors, which has mostly stopped since the demise of headhunting. Women on the other hand would get tattoos to beautify themselves, signify acceptance, and show the different stages of their life. Body tattoos on women served as permanent upper garment and each design has different interpretations and meanings. (Kalinga, Cordilleras, Philippines)
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Jacob Maentz is a freelance documentary photographer based in the Philippines.

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Pygmy forest with fog setting in

Mount Hamiguitan World Heritage Site

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A Tausug woman during Friday prayer at a mosque in Bongao, the capitol of Tawi-Tawi. The majority of Tawi-Tawiís population is Muslim and belong to the Tausug or Sama-Bajau people.

Tawi-Tawi – Into the Sulu Archipelago

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Chinese tourists pose with an Ati child in Boracay. The Ati community here gets a number of visitors, mostly asian tourists looking to have their photos taken together with the Ati children. There is also a small on-site heritage house where visitors can learn about the Ati people. The whole of Boracay island was once originally home to the Ati people even long before the Spanish arrived centuries ago. After the tourism boom started in the 1970ís the Atis have been slowly pushed aside and today only occupy 2.1 hectares of the islands total 1,032 hectares. (Boracay Island, Aklan, Philippines)

The Ati & Tumandok People of Panay Island

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