National Artists in The Philippines

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National Artists in the Philippines
Corporate Social Responsibility & Good Governance (Philippine Normal University -

North Luzon)
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UNIT 4: National Artists in the Philippines

Table of Contents
Introduction 2
Lesson 1: Understanding the National Artists Award
Jump Start 3
Learn about It! 3
Check Your Understanding 8
Did You Know? 9
Lesson 2: Traditions and Collaborative Works of National Artists
Jump Start 9
Learn about It! 10
Check Your Understanding 13
Let’s Create! 13
Check and Reflect 15
Wrap Up 16
Answers to Check Your Understanding 17
Bibliography 18
Glossary 18
1
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GRADE 11/12 |Contemporary Philippine Arts for the Regions
UNIT 4
National Artists in the Philippines
In the previous lessons, we have learned that it is essential to view an artwork in connection
with its context. With that in mind, it becomes necessary to understand the relationship of
local artists and their artwork to the national scene. This conversation is largely held by major
institutions and award-giving bodies like the National Artists Award.
In this unit, we'll discuss another national award for artistic people in specific disciplines, such
as the visual arts. Some of them have been mentioned earlier. In this study, we will take a
closer look and try to understand the motives and influences particularly via collaboration and
exchange, as people consider the National Artist Award in the context of society to which
creators and nomination organizations are responsible.
Learning Targets
In this unit, you should be able to:

● explain Filipino artists’ roles and identify their contribution to contemporary arts; and
● evaluate contemporary art forms based on the elements and principles.
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Lesson 1: Understanding the National

Artist Award
The NAA or the National Artists Awards remains to be the prestigious award giving panel in
the Philippine art scene which was established in the year of 1972 . The recipient of the award
is automatically considered as an eminent national icon in the country. It is necessary to know
the goals of NAA and how these winners are selected and what is the purpose of the event.
Focus Group Discussion
In groups of 4-6 members, come up with a set of guidelines for the NAA. These guidelines
should answer: how do you think the NAA nominees be judged and qualified for the award?
Answers should be in bullet form and should contain five criteria. Share your guidelines with
the class.
Learn about It!
The NAA confers the purest degree of appreciation on famous painters for their notable
artistic skills and literature. They are chosen from numerous organizational distinctions and
appreciation tools. It is on par with the Gawad ng Manlilikha ng Bayan (GAMABA) and the
National Scientist Award in terms of reputation. Every three years, the National Commission
for Culture and the Arts and the Cultural Center of the Philippines collaborate to present the
award, which is the product of a thorough deliberation and screening cycle.
President Ferdinand Marcos, issued Presidential Decree No. 1001 in 1972, establishing the
NAA. The artist Fernando Amorsolo was the first recipient of the award which was given to
him ceremonially. The institutionalization of the award created many changes. As of this
moment, 66 awardees have been announced, representing 7 disciplines: (1) architecture,
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design and allied arts (2) film and broadcast arts (3) visual arts (4) literature (5) dance (6) music
and (7) theater. Other types, such as ancient writing and fashion design are listed in the NAA's
tradition as a result of the president’s prerogative.
Works of National Artists in Public Spaces: A Look at UP Diliman
In universities across the country, a large range of works done by National Artists can be
identified. The University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Diliman, Quezon, has a number of
displays created by famous creative minds. The popular university icon is focused on
Guillermo Tolentino's Oblation (1935), a geometric sculpture portraying a nude male with
hands extended in an expression of sacrifice and freedom (awarded 1973). Guillermo
Tolentino later made it rigid by bronze cast. In art, Tolentino, alongside Fernando Amorsolo
(awarded 1972), is a proponent of the academic style. The Jorge B. Vargas Gallery in UP houses
Amorsolo's nostalgic images of quaint scenery and idealized depictions of famous figures
from the early 1900s era and Second World War. Quite apart from buildings or sculptures in
national places, large numbers of Tolentino’s pieces are on display at the National Museum.
Both National Artists were teachers at the University of the Philippines School of Fine Arts and
were known for both their passion in art as well as teaching. Abdulmari Asia Imao's
calligraphy artwork (awarded 2006) is one of his biggest international sculptures placed at the
Vargas Museum. The sculpture was created in the 1980s. The UP Theatre has Benedicto
Cabrera's (awarded 2006) classic Variations of Sabel (2015) constructed of aluminum sheets.
Fig. 1.1. Oblation at Quezon Hall, UP Diliman.
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Jose Joya (awarded 2003) who was a painter and Napoleon Abueva (awarded 1976) who was
a sculptor, both with contemporary sensibilities, created collaborative pieces which later
adorned the university's visual arts heritage. Joya’s mural in the Virata School of Business
titled Barter of Panay (1978) is composed of alternating zones of black, white, orange, brown,
and golden yellow in an Abstract Expressionist style. The strong color scheme provides ties to
the myth while making human shapes, illustrating the exchange involving Datu Puti and King
Marikudo, the former carrying gold accessories to buy the lowlands of Panay from the latter.
Abueva's abstract sculpture Spirit of Business (1979), looks like something pulled out from
science fiction as it consists of a metal disk with jagged spikes extending from it. Abueva also
made enormous progress on public sculptures for the University, using a variety of resources
such as wood, metal, and stones with styles varying from figurative tableaus to abstract
sculptures that embrace the spirit of the academic unit. Joya and Abueva have a number of
things in common like working at UP and serving as faculty and deans of the UP College of
Fine Arts. When doing additional art research in the USA, the two were influenced by the era's
modernist aesthetics. It's also important that Abueva and Joya were the representatives of the
Philippines in the Venice Art Biennale 1964, which is considered to be the oldest international
art event in the world.
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Fig. 1.2. Exterior of the UP Chapel
The Church of the Holy Sacrifice in UP Diliman was inaugurated in 1955. This is the first
Catholic Church in the nation to use a circular architecture with a thin shell dome. The circular
architecture was made possible by rigorous mathematical calculations and the increasing
prominence of concrete as a manufacturing material for buildings. It is different from the
rectangular shape of many other churches that were made of transept and nave structures.
The architectural vision of Leandro Locsin (awarded 1990) was inspired by the spirit of time.
The spherical structure was symbolized as reminiscent of a flying saucer and was highly
focused towards space travel and scientific and technological developments of the 1950s.
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Fig. 1.3.Jesus carrying the cross, Stations of the Cross mural by Vicente Manansala.
The National Historical Institute (now known as the National Historical Commission of the
Philippines) recognizes the Church as a National Historical Landmark and the National
Museum recognizes it as a Cultural Treasure. It brings together the creations of five National
Artists—Locsin for architecture and four additional modernists for visual arts. The works of all
these artists are on display in the chapel building. The double-sided crucifix sculpted in
hardwood by Abueva stands above the circular altar in the center. One side of the cross
depicts the crucifixion of Jesus, and the other vantage point depicts an image of the
resurrected Christ. A terrazzo floor work from Arturo Luz (awarded 1997) is another work of
the Modernist style. It shows the end of the rivers at the altar in a whirling pattern of planar
forms. Artistically speaking, the use of flat and angular forms resonates with 15 Stations of
the Cross, which are murals made by Vicente Manansala (awarded 1981) with the help of
Ang Kiukok (awarded 2001). Christ and his passion are portrayed with a slightly distorted
figure—limbs are elongated and volumes are shown in solid, hard-edged forms that give
cubistic quality to the compositions. In 1968, the leading composer, musician and
ethnomusicologist, Jose Maceda (awarded 1997) who was also declared National Artist for
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Music, played on this cutting-edge structure. Maceda's Pagsamba was composed of hundreds
of mixed voices of indigenous musical instruments, such as bamboo buzzers, clappers and
whistle flutes; and a prayer sung in Tagalog was incorporated. He also created the UP Center
of Ethnomusicology in the Philippines and Southeast Asia, where he donated his valuable
collections of sound recordings, field notes, and other material on ethnomusicology. The
UNESCO Memory of the World recognised the importance of the Maceda Archives.
Check Your Understanding
Recall
1. The iconic school symbol of UP relies on the __________ (1935), an iconic sculpture by the
highly accomplished visual artist Guillermo Tolentino (awarded 1973), depicts a human
body with hands extended as a sign of devotion and liberation.
2. Joya's ___________1978 mural in the Virata School of Business is composed of smooth,
alternating zones of dark, sunny, tangerine, maroon, and bright gold, and is an example
of Expressionism.
3. Maceda's __________ included chantings sung in Tagalog, as well as a thousand
combined vocals and local percussion devices such as broom whistles, ringers, and
horn accordions.
Application
4. What are the cultural offices that do rigorous deliberation and selection process of the
NAA?
5. What are the seven disciplinal areas of NAA?
Synthesis
6. What is the role of the NAA to the Filipino public?
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Lesson 2: Traditions and Collaborative

Works of National Artists
Although artists may deliver results on their own, creative partnerships aid in the
development of projects that include extensive production work. You will discover how
various NAA recipients work with many other artists to incorporate their designs into a unified
artwork and how NAA receivers contributed to the art as a collective in this section.
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Think-Pair-Share
In pairs, discuss the question: do the NAA recipients have any responsibility to the Philippine
art scene? Share ideas and present what you have discussed in front of the class.
Learn about It!
Fig. 2.1. Film still from Genghis Khan played and directed by Manuel Conde, set and costume design by Carlos Francisco
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In the art field, such as in film or theater, a collaborative spirit is required. In many of his
productions, actor, director, and producer Manuel Conde (awarded 2009) collaborated with
Carlos V. Francisco (awarded 1973). The renowned Genghis Khan (1950), which depicted the
epic journey of a Mongolian conqueror, was one of these movies. This was shot in Francisco's
hometown of Angono. Francisco's innovative stage architecture supplemented Conde's
cinematic perspective, yet he is better recognized for his majestic murals. The movie was
played at numerous movie festivals around the world and was converted into 16 languages
for global distribution. Venice Biennale in 2015 served as the venue for its latest screening.
Interestingly, many National Artists contributed to the pop-rock opera Tales of the Manuvu,
which was performed at the CCP in 1985. As per the origins of Manobo, the scholar, poet,
teacher and National literature Artist Bienvenido Lumbera (awarded 2006) wrote the libretto,
while the performances were choreographed by National Artist Alice Reyes (awarded 2014).
She is the founder of the Philippines Ballet.
Being a National Artist for Theater, the costume and stage design were handled by Salvador
Bernal (awarded in 2003). It represented a fusion of styles previously thought to relate to
separate domains as ballet and opera at one end and; popular music and folk music on the
other end. Noong Unang Panahon, a melancholic reminiscence of environmental change that
is still convincing in contemporary settings, has been one of the compositions popularized by
this production.
Moving images and the performance arts are often based on narratives from current literary
texts. Producers have been tasked with creating variations for the cinema based on the
combined drawings and tales popularized by the influential Francisco V. Coching (awarded
2014) in comics. In the late nineties, for example, before the appearance of the fantaserye
(fantasy series) on national TV, the young superhero, Pedro Penduko, first appeared in
Liwayway's comics in Coching's work. It was animated in 1954 by Gerardo de Leon, a national
film artist (awarded 1982). Nick Joaquin, a poet, novelist, and playwright who was named
National Artist in Literature in 1976, penned A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino in 1950. The
plot depicts a painting of the same name. The film was devoted to the two unmarried
daughters of a crippled artist, Candida, and Paula. The drawing caught the eye of people who
were interested in the works of a formerly famous painter and earned a variety of opinions on
it. The film, based on pre-war Intramuros, explores the plight of artists and the nostalgia for
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“peace” and glory days in Manila. Lamberto Avellana, National Artist for Film , developed it
for the big screen in 1965 (awarded 1976). Daisy Hontiveros Avellana, National Artist for
Theater (awarded 1999) who was his spouse and director, portrayed the protagonist (Candida
Marasigan) in both screen and theatre.
The collaborative spirit demonstrated by these NAA awardees is a testament to the

importance of art in society. This indicates that art and its artists are not isolated in their own
universe, but instead cooperate with other artists' creations and are recognizable to society.
This provides art a social dimension, which is vital to keep in mind when considering an
award like the NAA.
The NAA is a Presidential decree-based prize, given by two main artistic agencies, the National
Commission for Culture and the Arts and the Cultural Center of the Philippines. This means
that NAA exists primarily to promote the Philippine art scene. It aims not only to acknowledge
the artists and their creations, but also to enable a national discourse around the artworld.
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Check Your Understanding
Recall
1. What year was the National Artist for Theatre granted to Salvador Bernal?
2. Recounting the origins of the Manobo people, the scholar, poet, and teacher
Bienvenido Lumbera, National Artist for Literature (awarded 2006) wrote the ________.
Application
3. What is the role of collaboration in film or theatre?
4. What is Nick Joaquin’s The Portrait of the Artist as Filipino about?
Synthesis
5. What is the role of the NAA to the Philippine art scene?
Let’s Create!
Divide the class into seven groups. Each group must prepare a 10 minute presentation
covering one of the NAA’s seven disciplinal areas, namely: (1) architecture, design, and allied
arts (2) film and broadcast arts (3) visual arts (4) literature (5) dance (6) music, and (7)
theater.During the presentation, the following must be observed:
● Discuss the most significant recipients of the award, but not necessarily all the
recipients of the award.
● Aide your presentation with visual aids. Make sure to include images of the artists and
their artwork, if applicable.
● In presenting the recipients, make sure to discuss the following questions:
a. Why was the award granted to the recipients?
b. Do you think these recipients deserve the NAA?
c. How have the recipients and their artworks affected national discourse and the
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Philippine art scene?
The presentation will be graded based on the following criteria:
4 3 2 1
Traits:
100-75 75-50 50-25 25-0
The The The Barely any rigor

Rigor and presentation presentation presentation in research was
quality of exhibited exhibited exhibited the evident
research significantly satisfactory rigor minimum
rigorous in research required effort
research in research
Quality of The The The The information

information presentation presentation presentation included was not
discussed showcased high showcased showcased of quality and
quality and quality and average quality was not
relevant relevant of information necessarily
information information relevant to the
presentation
Audience Audience Audience Audience Audience was

engagement remained remained engagement was barely, if at all,
engaged all engaged significantly engaged
throughout the throughout wavering throughout the
presentation most parts of throughout the presentation
the presentation presentation
Overall The The The The

presentation presentation presentation presentation presentation
was clear, high was clear and of was of average was unclear, of
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quality, and decent quality quality and poor quality, and

well-prepared with room for called for called for major
for improvement improvement improvement
Total:_____
Comments and Remarks:
Check and Reflect
I think I need more I have a minimal I am confident that I

Skills
time and assistance. understanding of it. can do this with ease.
I know the process

behind the NAA
I know the
importance of the
NAA
I can name recipients
of the NAA
Reflect
I find __________________________ the most interesting because ______________________.

I got ____ checks because _______________________________________________________.
I need to improve on _______________________because _____________________________.
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I need to practice _________________________ because _____________________________.

I plan to _____________________________________________________________________.
Wrap Up
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Answers to Check Your Understanding
Lesson 1: Understanding the National Artists Award

1. Oblation
2. Barter of Panay
3. Pagsamba
4. Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and the National Commission for Culture and
the Arts (NCCA)
5. Architecture, design and allied arts; film and broadcast arts; visual arts; literature;
dance; music; theater
Lesson 2: Traditions and Collaborative Works of National Artists
1. 2003
2. Libretto
Photo Credits
Guillmero Tolentino, Oblation at Quezon Hall, 1935,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oblation_(statue)
Vicente Manansala & Ang Kuikok, stations of the Cross V: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry
the Cross, 1955-56,
https://lakansining.wordpress.com/2016/12/13/university-of-the-philippines-quezon-city-the-a
rt-of-the-parish-of-the-holy-sacrifice/08e-1955-56-vicente-manansala-ang-kuikok-stations-of-th
e-cross-v-simon-of-cyrene-helps-jesus-carry-the-cross/
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Bibliography
Datuin, Flaudette May, Roberto Paulino, Eileen Legaspi-Ramirez and Louise Marcelino.
Contemporary Philippine Arts from the Regions. Manila: Rex Book Store, 2016.
Datuin, Flaudette May, Brenda Fajardo, Patrick Flores, Alice Guillermo, Rosa Maria Icagasi,
Regalado, Jose, Elena Mirano, Elenita Ordoñez and Norma Respicio. Art and Society.
Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press, 1997.
"Order of National Artists." National Commission for Culture and the Arts. January 7, 2015.
Accessed February 15, 2018.
http://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-profile/national-artists-of-the-philippi
nes/.
Tiongson, Nicanor. CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Arts. Pasay: Cultural Center of the
Philippines, 1994.
Tiongson, Nicanor. Tuklas Sining: Essays on Philippine Arts. Pasay: Cultural Center of the
Philippines, 1991.
Glossary
Libretto: It is the text of a work (such as an opera) for the musical theater
Modernist: It is the modern artistic or literary philosophy and practice; especially
self-conscious break with the past and a search for new forms of expression
Tableau: It is a depiction of a scene usually presented on a stage by silent and

motionless costumed participants
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National Artists in the Philippines

Corporate Social Responsibility & Good Governance (Philippine Normal University -

Scan to open on Studocu

Studocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university

UNIT 4: National Artists in the Philippines

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

GRADE 11/12 |Contemporary Philippine Arts for the Regions

National Artists in the Philippines

In this unit, you should be able to:

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Lesson 1: Understanding the National

Focus Group Discussion

Learn about It!

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Works of National Artists in Public Spaces: A Look at UP Diliman

Fig. 1.1. Oblation at Quezon Hall, UP Diliman.

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Fig. 1.2. Exterior of the UP Chapel

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Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Check Your Understanding

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Lesson 2: Traditions and Collaborative

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Learn about It!

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

The collaborative spirit demonstrated by these NAA awardees is a testament to the

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Check Your Understanding

3. What is the role of collaboration in ﬁlm or theatre?

4. What is Nick Joaquin’s The Portrait of the Artist as Filipino about?

5. What is the role of the NAA to the Philippine art scene?

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

Philippine art scene?

The presentation will be graded based on the following criteria:

The The The Barely any rigor

Quality of The The The The information

Audience Audience Audience Audience Audience was

Overall The The The The

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

quality, and decent quality quality and poor quality, and

Comments and Remarks:

Check and Reﬂect

I think I need more I have a minimal I am conﬁdent that I

I know the process

I ﬁnd __________________________ the most interesting because ______________________.

Downloaded by Jeremy Tacuyan (tacuyanjeremy@gmail.com)

I need to practice _________________________ because _____________________________.

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Answers to Check Your Understanding

Lesson 1: Understanding the National Artists Award

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Tableau: It is a depiction of a scene usually presented on a stage by silent and

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I ﬁnd ____ the most interesting because .

I need to practice _ because _____.