A towering 46-foot-tall (14.02 meters) 3D-printed monument of National Hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal that is eyed to become the tallest in the world is set to be erected in Dapitan City in 2027.
With the Dapitan City government and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) joining forces, the monument, named ‘El Dapitanon,’ will portray the hero’s life during his exile in the city for four years from 1892 to 1896.
‘May [El Dapitanon] stand not only as a symbol of Rizal’s greatness, but also [as a] beacon of what Filipinos can achieve when science, technology, innovation, culture, and nation-building come together,’ Science Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr. said in his speech.
El Dapitanon, as described by the Dapitan government, will be the Rizal whom locals may have remembered: a teacher, physician, scientist, artist, and community worker.
In a statement by the city government during the groundbreaking for the monument, it said: ‘This does not place Rizal above Dapitan, but walking with it; and recognized as one who lived, worked, dreamed, and served among them.’
The DOST officials, led by Solidum, and Dapitan City Mayor Evelyn T. Uy, put the project into motion with a groundbreaking ceremony last August 13, during the Regional Science, Technology, and Innovation Week in the Zamboanga Peninsula.
The sculpture-model features Rizal in a forward stance, wearing simple ‘camisa de chino’ (traditional Chinese-Filipino undershirt) and plain trousers, while carrying ‘Mi Retiro [My Retreat],’ a poem he wrote during his exile.
Designed by Prof. Jose Manuel ‘Manolo’ Sicat of the University of the Philippines Diliman, El Dapitanon is sculpted in a 5-foot-and-4-inch model, which will serve as the basis for the 3D print statue.
The city government added: ‘He [Rizal as depicted by the statue] appears ready to take another step, undertake another task, solve another problem, and once again be of service.’
The DOST-Metals Industry Research and Development Center (DOST-MIRDC) has yet to do a 3D-scan of the 5-foot sculpture for it to scale-up to almost comparable to a 4-story-high building once printed.
Through the Advanced Manufacturing Center of the DOST-MIRDC, the outer shell of Rizal’s figure will be made of 3D-printed acrylonitrile-styrene-acrylate, a high-quality plastic reinforced with concrete and reinforcement bars.
‘[We will make the 3D printing of the statue portion by portion] from below, the outer shell around the steel structure will be filled with cement, then another layer will be created until it rises upwards,’ Engr. Robert O. Dizon, director of DOST-MIRDC, explained in Filipino.
Out of the 46-foot-high monument, Dizon said only the 26-foot Rizal statue with a bronze finish will be 3D-printed atop a 20-foot cement pedestal.
Similar technology was used on the ‘The Filipino Scientist’ Rizal monument at the DOST plaza in Bicutan, Taguig City, which sculpture model was also commissioned to Sicat.
‘This is an even bigger challenge, literally a bigger challenge, because what we had then [in Bicutan] was 12.5 feet [The Filipino Scientist statue]. Challenge accepted. We can easily do it [El Dapitanon],’ Dizon affirmed partly in Filipino.
A P9-million budget is allotted for the 3D printing, materials, and logistics of the monument, with the Dapitan City government shouldering the materials.
‘Hopefully, we will be launching this soon. One year is more than enough for us,’ Dizon said in his target to finish El Dapitanon in 2027.