You may remember him as the engaging Kuya Robert from the morning art show you watched as a kid, or the illustrator behind the Papemelroti products you bought as a teen, but Robert Alejandro is more than that. In an interview with Tatler, he bares his humble beginnings and why his passion for arts and crafts is something he cannot let go of
Robert Alejandro was raised in a household nurtured by art. At a tender age, he witnessed how his parents' shop of stationery, crafts, gifts, and home decor grew from a humble gift shop along Tomas Morato into a cult-favourite stationery store scattered in the country's biggest malls. For more than 50 years, the shop which the family called "Papemelroti" (the portmanteau of Alejandro siblings Patsy, Peggy, Meldy, Robert, and Tina) has offered a distinctive art style that appeals to clients with whimsical and eco-conscious tastes.
"Isn't that funny?" Alejandro laughs as the idea entered his mind. "That almost every young person, particularly teens in high school, enter a so-called 'Papemelroti phase'?" The artist of the homegrown brand shares that he feels honoured that a 50-year-old company remains relevant to such young audiences. Having been the artist and designer of Papemelroti for most of his life, Alejandro finds the said family business as an integral part of his development as an artist. "I had the greatest honour to have Papemelroti as an incredible avenue for my creativity," he says. Alejandro knows for a fact that not all artists have the machinery to put their works in mass production and for this, he feels humbled.
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Alejandro shares that during his mother's time as the principal artist of the brand, most of the products would be floral and feminine, and religious articles for Catholic patrons. When he became more active in the business while studying Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines, he wanted to change a lot of things and introduce new ideas but it would always be a struggle with his mum and sisters. Thus, he associates Papemelroti's shift to more modern designs when his niece, Elyse Alejandro Pilapil (Peggy's daughter), joined the business as the current creative director.