Just moments away from the bustling area of Bonifacio Global City is 171, a multi-level villa set on a 302-square-meter lot. M.CAL Architecture Design Studio, headed by Ar. Monique C. Albert-Lopez, built the residence as a minimalist modern sanctuary surrounded by landscaped gardens. This creative direction was drawn from the homeowners’ brief to create a […]
White Brick Studio: From a Nostalgic Landmark to a Creative Playground
In the heart of Midtown Cebu lies White Brick Studio, a creative hub where visual professionals gather to collaborate and elevate design standards across Visayas and Mindanao.
Midtown, more known as a vibrant entertainment district, owes much of its growing network of creative spaces mainly to Mango Square Mall where White Brick is located, Atúa Midtown, and Robinsons Fuente. For co-founder Jude Stanley Crisostomo, the choice of location reflected a personal connection to the place.
The move to Mango Square in 2023 was motivated by a need for a bigger space and driven by nostalgia.
“[The move] was a really personal thing because growing up in Cebu, I used to skate and then Mango Square Mall is actually the only place that we go to because there was no Ayala and SM before. So we grew up there basically and it kind of died along the way,” Crisostomo shares. “After the pandemic, we were deciding to move to a new place, a new studio—maybe in the center of Cebu. And I immediately proposed to the board, like, ‘it would be nice to be in this old, but not abandoned old mall.’”
Today, White Brick Studio is one of many spaces contributing to the neighborhood’s growing creative ecosystem, serving as a playground for artists, designers, students, and professionals alike.
Related Reading: Inside Atúa Midtown: Cebu’s Creative Community for Artists and Entrepreneurs
More than just a Studio
Founded in 2017 by Jude Stanley Crisostomo, his wife Alexa Crisostomo, and creative partners Angel Tudtud, Stephanie Tudtud, and Carla Adlawan, White Brick Studio was established as more than just a company. With backgrounds in design and the arts, the founders envisioned a design studio where ideas could be developed and brought to life.
While that ambition was not initially deliberate, the relocation expanded White Brick’s role beyond a conventional studio.
The larger space created opportunities not only for the team’s own design practice, but also for making and exhibiting ideas. It became more deeply involved in Cebu’s local art and design scene, establishing Making Space, a co-making space equipped with a makerspace, craft room, and gallery.
In doing so, the studio evolved into a place where designers, artists, and makers could share both space and process, extending design beyond commissioned work and into collective learning and experimentation.
It also co-founded Makers of Midtown, a non-profit organization that brings together crafters, artists, and creative businesses to help cultivate a vibrant creative district.
“We didn’t really think, ‘okay, let’s create something for the community.’ But since we’re doing this, we might as well open it to everyone so everyone can use the space [….] So it’s not a response to what’s lacking, it’s more of something that we needed. And then we realized that, ‘okay, maybe we have this sort of purpose to help the community,” Crisostomo shares.
Related Reading: Creative Placemaking: Designing Public Spaces that Reflect Shared Memory
A Collaborative Effort Between Artists, Professionals, and the Community
The studio’s evolving sense of purpose is also rooted in Crisostomo’s background as an educator. For him, creativity is not something people are simply born with, but something that can be cultivated by giving them the right opportunities and environment.
“I’m always a believer that creativity is not just a talent, but it’s also developed. And as an educator and a person holding such a degree, I think it’s kind of my purpose to help the young ones—because the young ones are the future of the creative world,” he muses.
This belief also shapes how White Brick operates. Crisostomo emphasizes that the studio is not built solely by him and the board, but by a team of visual professionals working toward the same vision.
That collaborative approach extends to the projects they undertake, where they work with clients and translate their brands through content production, graphic design, visual identity, publication, and more.
The same philosophy extends beyond the studio’s own team. White Brick regularly commissions creatives from different disciplines to help produce specific deliverables, strengthening relationships across Cebu’s creative community while enriching its own practice and identity.
In many ways, White Brick Studio’s journey mirrors that of Midtown Cebu itself. What began as a move born out of necessity and nostalgia has grown into a place where designers, artists, students, and communities continue to learn from one another—proving that sometimes, the most meaningful creative spaces are built not just through design, but through the people who gather within them.
Related Reading: Shared Spaces in Hiramoto Design Studio’s Hopscotch House
Photographed by Ed Simon.
About White Brick Studio
White Brick Studio is a Cebu-based design studio founded in 2017 by Jude Stanley Crisostomo, Alexa Crisostomo, Angel Tudtud, Stephanie Danielle Tudtud, and Carla Adlawan. Working across branding, graphic design, visual identity, publication, and content production, the studio has grown beyond a conventional practice by creating spaces for making, collaboration, and creative exchange. Through initiatives such as Making Space and the Makers of Midtown collective, White Brick continues to contribute to Cebu’s evolving design landscape.
Frequently Asked Questions
White Brick Studio is a Cebu-based design studio founded in 2017 by Jude Stanley Crisostomo and Stephanie Danielle Tudtud. It specializes in visual communication while also serving as a collaborative space for designers, artists, students, and creative professionals.
The studio relocated to Mango Square Mall to accommodate a larger workspace. The move was also deeply personal for co-founder Jude Stanley Crisostomo, who spent much of his childhood at the mall skateboarding and spending time with friends.
Making Space is a co-making space established by White Brick Studio. It includes a makerspace, craft room, and gallery designed to support making, learning, experimentation, and the exchange of ideas among creatives.
Makers of Midtown is a non-profit organization co-founded by White Brick Studio that brings together crafters, artists, and creative businesses to help cultivate a vibrant creative district in Midtown Cebu.
White Brick Studio works with clients on content production, graphic design, visual identity, publication design, and other visual communication projects while collaborating with professionals from different creative disciplines.
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