66 NAA (National Artist Award)

1. Fernando Amorsolo (May 30, 1892 – April 24, 1972)

- Awarded on 1972
- First National Artist of the Philippines for Painting
- Portraitist and painter of rural Philippine landscapes
- Pioneering use of Impressionistic Technique
- "Grand Old Man of Philippine Art"
- Painted and sketched more than 10,000 pieces over his lifetime using
natural and backlighting techniques

2. Francisca R. Aquino (March 9, 1899 – November 21, 1983)

- Awarded on 1973
- “Mother of Philippine Dancing”
- First National Artist for Dance
- Filipino Folk Dancer
- Preservation and Propagation of the folk dance of the Philippines
- Consultant of Bayanihan Folk Dance Troupe

3. Carlos V. Francisco (November 4, 1912 – March 31, 1969)

- Awarded on 1973
- National Artist for Painting
- Muralist From Angono, Rizal
- known as “Botong”
- Discovering the Angono Petroglyphs (the oldest prehistoric artwork)
- Created enormous canvasses that chronicled the mythical world of the
Filipino and its history
4. Amado V. Hernandez (September 13, 1903 – March 24, 1970)
- Awarded on 1973
- National Artist for Literature
- Filipino Writer and Labor Leader known for his criticism of social
injustices in the Philippines
- Was later imprisoned for his involvement in the communist movement
- Wrote Isang Dipang Langit (A Stretch of Heaven), which later won a
Republic Cultural Heritage Award
- Bayang Malaya (Free Nation), which later won a Balagtas Award
- Written in prison was his masterpiece Luha ng Buwaya (Tears of the
Crocodile)
- The Supreme Court allowed Hernandez to post bail on June 24, 1956

5. Antonio J. Molina (December 26, 1894 – January 29, 1980)

- Awarded on 1973
- National Artist for Music
- Filipino Composer, Conductor and Music Administrator
- The Dean of Filipino Composers
- Known as the Claude Debussy of the Philippines due to his use of
impressionism in music
- Mastered playing the Violoncello and learned to play various Western
and Indigenous Instruments
- One of the first composers to combine ethnic/native instruments with
Western instruments and infuse Eastern modality with Western
harmony
- Wrote over 500 musical compositions, including “Hatinggabi” and “Awit
ni Maria Clara”
- He completed “The Triumvirate of Filipino Composers”, together with
Nicanor Abelardo and Francsico Santiago

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6. Juan F. Nakpil (May 26, 1899 – May 7, 1986)
- Awarded on 1973
- National Artist for Architecture
- Filipino Architect, Teacher and a Community Leader
- The Dean of Filipino Architects
- Studied freehand drawing, painting, and decorative arts under Fabian
de la Rosa and Fernando Amorsolo, and sculpture under Maestro
Ocampo
- His major works are the Geronimo de los Reyes Building, Magsaysay
Building, Rizal Theater, Capitol Theater, Captain Pepe Building, Manila
Jockey Club, Rufino Building, Philippine Village Hotel, University of the
Philippines Administration and University Library, and the reconstructed
Rizal house in Calamba, Laguna
- Nakpil founded the “Philippine Architects Society” in 1933

7. Guillermo E. Tolentino (July 24, 1890 – July 12, 1976)

- Awarded on 1973
- National Artist for Sculpture
- The Father of Philippine Arts
- A former director of the UP School of Fine Arts
- Filipino sculptor in classical style
- Sculpted the University of the Philippines most recognizable emblem,
the UP Oblation, as well as the Bonifacio Monument in Caloocan City
- Recognized for his rare excellence and significant contribution in
sculpture

8. Jose Garcia Villa (August 5, 1908 – February 7, 1997)

- Awarded on 1973
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino Poet, Literary Critic, Short Story Writer, and Painter

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 - Awarded as well as the Guggenheim Fellowship in creative writing by
Conrad Aiken
- Introduced the "Reversed Consonance Rhyme Scheme" in writing
Poetry as well as the extensive use of punctuation marks especially
commas, which made him known as the Comma Poet
- He used the pen name Doveglion (derived from “Dove, Eagle, Lion”)
- These animals were also explored by another poet, E. E. Cummings, in
"Doveglion, Adventures in Value", a poem dedicated to Villa
- His notable works include The Anchored Angel, The Emperor's New
Sonnet, and Footnote to Youth
- Publishing various collections of poetry, Villa also added to the world of
poetic style, introducing a new rhyme scheme called “Reversed
Consonance”

9. Napoleon V. Abueva (January 26, 1930 – February 16, 2018)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Sculpture
- The Father of Modern Philippine Sculpture
- Finishing his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture at the University of the
Philippines (UP) in 1953
- Adept in both academic representational style and modern abstract
- Used almost all kinds of materials for his sculptures such as hard wood,
adobe, metal, stainless steel, cement, marble, bronze, iron, alabaster,
coral and brass

10. Lamberto V. Avellana (February 12, 1915 – April 25, 1991)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Theater and Film
- A prominent Filipino Film and Stage Director

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 - Despite considerable budgetary limitations that hampered the post-war
Filipino film industry, Avellana's films such as Anak Dalita and Badjao
attained international acclaim
- Had the distinction of being called “The Boy Wonder of Philippine
Movies” as early as 1939, with the release of his first film Sakay
- Developed a style where the camera was used to present a point-of-
view
- The first Filipino director to have his film Kandelerong Pilak (silver
Candlesticks) screened at the Cannes film festival. Anak Dalita (1956)
and Badjao (1957) perhaps stand as his most prominent works.

11. Leanor O. Goquingco (July 24, 1917 – July 15, 2005)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Dance
- An Author, Mentor, Dancer and Art Critic
- Graduated summa cum laude from St. Scholastica’s College, Major in
English literature
- Took up graduate studies in Theater, Drama and Music at Columbia
University’s Teachers College
- Took up professional and teacher courses at the Ballet de Monte Carlo
- Founded the Filipinescas Dance Company and the Philippine Theatre
Dance Group
- Her book, “The Dances of the Emerald Isles” has been dubbed by
Teodoro A. Agoncillo, ‘A towering contribution to Philippine cultural
history’

12. Nick Joaquin (May 4, 1917 – April 29, 2004)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Literature

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 - Filipino Novelist, Poet, Playwright, Essayist, and Biographer whose
works present the diverse heritage of the Filipino people
- A historian of the brief Golden Age of Spain in the Philippines, as a
writer of short stories suffused with folk Roman Catholicism, as a
playwright, and as a novelist
- Wrote his works in English
- The novel The Woman Who Had Two Navels (1961) examines his
country's various heritages

13. Jovita Fuentes (February 15, 1895 – August 7, 1978)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Music
- A Filipina soprano singer
- Was exposed to music at age five, when she learned to sing habaneras
and danzas
- Responsible for producing operas in the Philippines with dreams of
developing the love of opera in the country
- In 1955, she retired from the concert stage and focused on voice
teaching
- Became an active advocate of music and the arts
- Founded various music associations such as Asociacion Musical de
Filipinas, the Bach Society of the Philippines, and the Artists' Guild of
the Philippines

14. Victorio C. Edades (December 23, 1895 – March 7, 1985)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Painting

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 - A Filipino painter who was the leader of the revolutionary Thirteen
Moderns who engaged their classical compatriots in heated debate
over the nature and function of art
- Dubbed as the "Father of Modern Art in the Philippines"
- Argued that art can be more than representation of reality, it can be
representation of reality as seen through the mind and emotions of the
artist
- Introduced modernism into the Philippines but also gave it his guidance
and related it to the issue of national identity

15. Pablo S. Antonio (January 25, 1901 – June 14, 1975)

- Awarded on 1976
- National Artist for Architecture
- A Filipino architect
- A pioneer of modern Philippine architecture
- Recognized in some quarters as the foremost Filipino modernist
architect of his time
- Antonio's major works include the following: Far Eastern University
Administration and Science buildings; Manila Polo Club; Ideal
Theater;Lyric Theater; Galaxy Theater; Capitan Luis Gonzaga Building;
Boulevard-Alhambra (now Bel-Air) apartments; Ramon Roces
Publications Building (now Guzman Institute of Electronics)

16. Vicente S. Manansala (January 22, 1910 – August 22, 1981)

- Awarded on 1981
- National Artist for Painting
- A Filipino cubist painter and illustrator
- One of the first Abstractionists on the Philippine art scene Vicente
Manansala is also credited with bridging the gap between the city and
the suburbs, between the rural and cosmopolitan ways of life

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 - Commemorate his lifetime dedication and distinguished contribution to
the art and culture of his country
- It was in the 50s that he came out strongly as an artist with his famous
painting of jeepneys and of the Madonna of the Slums, a masterpiece
of the period

17. Carlos P. Romulo (January 14, 1899 – December 15, 1985)

- Awarded on 1982
- National Artist for Literature
- A reporter at the age of 16, a newspaper editor by 20, and a publisher
at 32
- A co-founder of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines, a general in the US
Army and the Philippine Army, university president, and president of
the United Nations General Assembly
- Philippine general, diplomat, and journalist known for his activities on
behalf of the Allies during World War II and his later work with the
United Nations

18. Gerardo de Leon (September 12, 1913 – July 25, 1981)

- Awarded on 1982
- National Artist for Cinema
- Was a director and actor, known for Noli me tángere (1961), El filibusterismo
(1962) and Huwag Mo Akong Limutin (1960)
- The most awarded film director in the history of the Filipino Academy of
Movie Arts and Sciences' FAMAS Awards
- From 1952 to 1971, he was awarded seven FAMAS Awards, three of
them received consecutively

19. Honorata dela Rama (January 11, 1902 – July 11, 1991)
- Awarded on 1987
- National Artist for Theater and Music

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 - Commonly known as Atang dela Rama
- The producer and the writer of plays such as Anak ni Eva and Bulaklak
ng Kabundukan
- In 1979, she was hailed Queen of the Kundiman and of the Sarsuela in
honor of her accomplishments and contributions to the Philippine art
form

20. Antonio Buenaventura (October 14, 1904 – January 25, 1996)

- Awarded on 1988
- National Artist for Music
- A distinguished composer and educator
- Highly acclaimed for his brilliance in the field of Music
- Took over the cudgels of the Philippine Constabulary and Philippine
Army Bands and transformed them into one of the finest military bands
in the world
- Composed the Symphony of C that won him the Cultural Heritage
Award in 1966
- A pioneer in the research on Philippine Ethnic and Folk Music
- Founded several schools and became Director of the UST
Conservatory of Music

21. Lucrecia R. Urtula (June 29, 1929 – August 4, 1999)

- Awarded on 1988
- National Artist for Dance
- A Filipino Choreographer, Theater Director, Teacher, Author and
Researcher on Ethnic Dance
- The founding director of the Bayanihan Philippine National Folk Dance
Company
- Adapted indigenous dance traditions to the demands of the modern
stage, and performances of her works received international attention

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22. Lucrecia R. Kasilag (31 August 1918 – 16 August 2008)
- Awarded on 1989
- National Artist for Music
- A Filipino composer and pianist
- Studied at the Philippine Women's University and at St. Scholastica's
College before further study at Eastman School of Music
- Occupied a leading position in music in the Philippines as a composer,
a teacher, a writer and an administrator
- Kasilag was instrumental in developing Philippine music and culture
- Founded the Bayanihan Folks Arts Center for research and theatrical
presentations, and was closely involved with the Bayanihan Philippine
Dance Company

23. Francisco Arcellana (September 6, 1916 – August 1, 2002)

- Awarded on 1990
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino Writer, Poet, Essayist, Critic, Journalist, and Teacher
- Had ambitions of becoming a writer early in his childhood
- His actual writing started when he became a member of The Torres
Torch Organization during his high school years
- Pioneered the development of the short story as a lyrical prose-poetic
form

24. Cesar F. Legaspi (April 2, 1917 – April 7, 1994)

- Awarded on 1990
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- Known for Abstract, cubist figurative painting, illustration, advertising art
- An art director prior to going full-time in his visual art practice in the
1960s
- Exploring issues of social injustice in his Cuban-inspired works

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 - As part of the infamous artistic group Thirteen Moderns, he brought into
the country the Neorealist style
- Gradually shifted from conventional depictions of human figures to
more Modernist visual language throughout his career

25. Leandro V. Locsin (August 15, 1928 – November 15, 1994)

- Awarded on 1990
- National Artist for Architecture
- A Filipino architect, artist, and interior designer
- Designed numerous modern buildings, which adopt climatic features of
Southeast Asia and the traditional style of the Philippines
- Accomplishment contributed remarkable to the development of
architectural culture in Asia.

26. Hernando R. Ocampo (April 28, 1911 – December 28, 1978)

- Awarded on 1991
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- A Fictionist, a Playwright and Editor
- Taught himself to paint
- Filipino artist best known for his abstract paintings
- Was credited for inventing a new mode of abstraction that exemplifies
Philippine flora and fauna, and portrays sunshine, stars and rain
- Using movement and bold colors, Ocampo utilized fantasy and science
fiction as the basis for his works

27. Lucio D. San Pedro (February 11, 1913 – March 31, 2002)
- Awarded on 1991
- National Artist for Music

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 - A master composer, conductor, and teacher whose music evokes the
folk elements of the Filipino heritage
- Produced a wide-ranging body of works that includes band music,
concertos for violin and orchestra, choral works, cantatas, chamber
music, music for violin and piano, and songs for solo voice
- Among his famous compositions are “Simbang Gabi”, “Lahing
Kayumanggi”, and “Sa Mahal Kong Bayan”, which touch on Filipino
culture
- He is remembered for his contribution to the development of Filipino
regional band music and for his well-known compositions such as the
Filipino lullaby, "Sa Ugoy ng Duyan" and the symphonic poem, "Lahing
Kayumanggi". Angono, Rizal, Philippine Islands, U.S.

28. Lino Brocka (April 7, 1939 – May 22, 1991)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Cinema
- A director and writer, known for Dirty Affair (1990), Bayan Ko (1984)
and Above Everything Else (1991)
- Was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature
and Creative Communication Arts in 1985, for "making cinema a vital
social commentary, awakening public consciousness to disturbing
realities of life among the Filipino poor"
- Widely regarded as one of the most influential and significant
filmmakers in the history of Philippine cinema
- Co-founded the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines
(CAP), dedicated to helping artists address issues confronting the
country, and the Free the Artist Movement.

29. Felipe P. de Leon (May 1, 1912 – December 5, 1992)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Music

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 - A Filipino classical music composer, conductor, and scholar
- Known for composing different sonatas, marches and concertos that
reflect the Filipino identity
- Recognized as a composer who experienced different regime change
throughout the course of his lifetime
- Credited for being the "Crisis Composer" of the Philippines, having
served under 13 different presidents as chief advisor on culture and
music and being part of multiple regimes and shifts in Philippine politics

30. Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero (January 22, 1910 – April 28, 1995
- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Theater
- A Filipino Playwright, Director, Teacher and Theater Artist
- Studied at the Ateneo de Manila University, at the University of the
Philippines, and briefly, at Columbia University
- Wrote his first play at age 14, and his play in Spanish, "No Todo Es
Risa", was produced at the Ateneo when he was 15
- Wrote over 100 plays, 41 of which have been published
- His unpublished plays have either been broadcast on the radio or
staged in various parts of the Philippines

31. Rolando S. Tinio (March 5, 1937 – July 7, 1997)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Theater and Literature
- A Filipino poet, dramatist, director, actor, critic, essayist and educator
- Known for translating Western classics, which includes the works of
Sophocles, Shakespeare, Ibsen, Chekhov, Puccini and Verdi, into
Tagalog. He did these translations to advance the Filipino language.

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 - Among his notable works are “Now and Forever”, “Gamitin Mo Ako”,
“Bayad Puri”, “Milagros”, “Ang Mestisa”, “Ako”, “Ang Kiri”, “Ana Maria”,
“Orosman at Zafira”, and “Larawan”

32. Levi Celerio (April 30, 1910 – April 2, 2002)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Music and Literature
- A Filipino composer and lyricist, credited with writing over 4,000 songs
- Known for using the leaf as a musical instrument which led to being
recognized as the "only man who could play music using a leaf" by the
Guinness Book of Records
- He wrote Filipino folk, Christmas, and love songs and some of his
songs were used in feature films

33. N.V.M Gonzales (September 8, 1915 – November 28, 1999)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Literature
- N.V.M — Néstor Vicente Madali
- A Filipino novelist, short story writer, essayist and, poet.
- Wrote five novels, eight short fictions and multiple essays, with his work
translated into languages like English, Chinese, German, Russian, and
Indonesian
- His first novel, The Winds of April, was published in 1941 and won
honorable mention for the Commonwealth Literary Awards

34. Arturo R. Luz (November 26, 1926 – May 26, 2021)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- A Filipino visual artist
- A known printmaker, sculptor, designer and art administrator

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 - A founding member of the modern Neo-realist school in Philippine art
- Apart from his numerous painting and sculptural achievements, Luz
also ran the foremost modern art gallery, the Luz Gallery, in the
Philippines for three decades, making an indelible contribution to the
Philippine art scene by pioneering one of its most heartwarming traits,
"a gallery by an artist for artists”

35. Jose M. Maceda (31 January 1917 – 5 May 2004)

- Awarded on 1997
- National Artist for Historical Literature
- A Filipino Ethnomusicologist and Composer
- He studied Piano, Composition and Musical analysis at École Normale
de Musique de Paris in France
- He became a professional pianist, and later studied musicology at
Columbia University, and Anthropology at Northwestern University
- Musical style focuses around traditional Asian and Western Avant-
garde

36. Carlos Quirino (January 14, 1910 – May 20, 1999)

- Awarded on 1999
- National Artist for Painting
- A Philippine Biographer and Historian
- Known for his early biography of Jose Rizal entitled "The Great
Malayan" (1940), he also wrote several works on Philippine history, as
well as biographies of President Manuel Quezon and the painter
Damian Domingo. Quirino joined the Philippine Army and became
second lieutenant before the outbreak of World War II.

37. Jeremias Elizalde Navarro (22 May 1924 – 10 June 1999)

- Awarded on 1999

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 - National Artist for Music
- A Prolific Painter, Sculptor, and Graphic Designer
- Navarro was very passionate in creating new ways of art
- Initially known for abstract paintings in oil and watercolor, Navarro
worked in a range of mediums, creating painted steel sculptures,
mixed-media assemblages, reliefs of found objects, and hardwood
masks
- He uses the "incision painting" this method is applied on the stop
surface by carving out the artist’s desired pattern on the stone materials
and layering paint or plaster on the stone surface.

38. Prof. Andrea Veneracion (July 11, 1928 – July 9, 2013)

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 - Awarded on 1999
- National Artist of Music
- A Filipino choral conductor and a recipient of the 1999 National Artist
for Music award
- She founded the Philippine Madrigal Singers in 1963
- She is fondly called, is highly esteemed for her achievements as
choirmaster and choral arranger
- Two of her indispensable contributions in culture and the arts include
the founding of the Philippine Madrigal Singers and the spearheading
of the development of Philippine choral musi

39. Edith L. Tiempo (April 22, 1919 – August 21, 2011)

- Awarded on 1999
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino Poet, Fiction Writer, Teacher and Literary Critic in the English
language
- In 1999, in recognition of her magnanimous devotion to inspiring
generations of Filipino writers in expressing their poetic insights through
the pen
- Her lifework as a writer and teacher has placed an indelible mark on the
landscape of Philippine literature in English

40. Daisy H. Avellana (January 26, 1917 – May 12, 2013)

- Awarded on 1999
- National Artist for Theater
- A Filipino stage actress and theater director
- The first graduates of the UST Graduate School with Master of Arts
(MA) in English
- Strongly advocated for the professionalization of Filipino theater

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 - Among her directorial credits were Diego Silang, and Walang Sugat.
She helped raise the Philippine theater scene from the 30s to the 70s.
She would stage and perform in breakthrough productions of classic
Filipino and foreign plays and encourage the professionalization of
Filipino theater.

41. Ernani J. Cuenco (May 10, 1936 – June 11, 1988)

- Awarded on 1999
- National Artist for Music
- A Filipino Composer, Film Scorer, Musical Director, and Music Teacher
- His works embody a Filipino sense of musicality, and the classical
sound of the kundiman is evident in some of his ballads. Up to this day,
his compositions are popular and well-loved
- An award-winning film scorer in the early 1960s, working in
collaboration with Levi Celerio
- Was also a teacher and a seasoned orchestra player

42. Francisco Sionil Jose (December 3, 1924 – January 6, 2022)

- Awarded on 2001
- National Artist for Literature
- His works have been translated into 22 languages, including Korean,
Indonesian, Russian, Latvian, Ukrainian and Dutch
- Five of Jose's works won the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for
Literature
- Sionil José was UST Varsitarian editor in chief from 1948 to 1949.
While studying, he was a staff member of The Commonweal from 1947
to 1948 and Assistant Editor for the United States Information Service
from 1948 to 1949
- He was Managing Editor of The Manila Times Sunday Magazine from
1949 to 1960

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43. Ang Kiukok (March 1, 1931 – May 9, 2005)
- Awarded on 2001
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- A Filipino painter of Chinese descent
- It has been called “one of the most dynamic figures in contemporary
Philippine arts.”
- One of Ang Kiukok's most enduring contributions lies in his reimagining
of cubism, a movement pioneered by Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) and
Georges Braque (1882-1963)
- Kiukok seamlessly infused this avant-garde style with his personal
narrative, fusing it with Philippine socio-political realities and cultural
heritage

44. Ishmael Bernal (September 30, 1938 – June 2, 1996)

- Awarded on 2001
- National Artist for Cinema
- A director and writer
- He studied at Burgos Elementary School, Mapa High School and at the
University of the Philippines where he finished his Bachelor of Arts
degree in English in 1959
- Himala ('Miracle') is a 1982 Filipino film directed by Ishmael Bernal and
produced by the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines

45. Severino Montano (January 3, 1915 – December 12, 1980)

- Awarded on 2001
- National Artist for Theater

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 - A Playwright, Director, Actor and Theater Organizer with an output of
one novel, 150 poems and 50 plays in his 65-year lifetime
- Through the foundation of the Arena Theater, Montano institutionalized
“Legitimate Theater” in the Philippines.
- Severino Montano’s works include:The Love of Leonor Rivera (poetic
tragedy in two-parts), My Morning Star (poetic historical tragedy in
three-parts), But Not My Sons Any Longer (poetic tragedy in two-parts),
Gabriela Silang (poetic historical tragedy in three-parts), The Merry
Wives of Manila (comedy of manners in three-parts)

46. Jose T. Joya (June 3, 1931 – May 11, 1995)

- Awarded on 2003
- National Artist for Visual Arts (Painting)
- A pioneer modern and abstract artist who was active as a painter, print
maker, mixed-media artist and ceramicist
- It has been said that it was Joya who "spearheaded the birth, growth
and flowering of abstract expressionism" in the Philippines
- His work is “characterized by calligraphic gestures and linear forces,
and a sense of color vibrancy emanating from an Oriental sensibility”
- Jose Joya is best known for his abstract paintings of harmonious colors
inspired by Philippine tropical landscapes

47. Virgilio S. Almario (March 9, 1944 -)

- Awarded on 2003
- National Artist for Literature
- Better known by his pen name Rio Alma
- A Filipino Visual Artist, Author, Poet, Critic, Translator, Editor, Teacher,
and Cultural Manager

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 - He formerly served as the chairman of the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino
(KWF), the government agency mandated to promote and standardize
the use of the Filipino language

48. Alejandro R. Roces (July 13, 1924 – May 23, 2011)

- Awarded on 2003
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino Author, Essayist, and Dramatist
- Was a short story writer and essayist, and was considered as the
country's best writer of comic short stories
- Known for his widely anthologized “My Brother's Peculiar Chicken”
- He served as Secretary of Education from 1962 to 1965, during the
term of Philippine President Diosdado Macapagal

49. Edgar Sinco Romero (July 7, 1924 – May 28, 2013)

- Awarded on 2003
- National Artist for Cinema and Broadcast Arts
- Commonly known as Eddie Romero
- An acclaimed and influential A Filipino Film Director, Film Producer and
Screenwriter
- Romero has served as deputy director of the Film Academy of the
Philippines (FAP)
- His career spans three generations of filmmakers

50. Salvador F. Bernal (January 7, 1945 – October 26, 2011)

- Awarded on 2003
- National Artist for Theater Design
- Acknowledged as the “Father of Theater Design in the Philippines”

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 - Was instrumental in elevating theater and production design as a fine
art and a profession
- He helped establish the Production Design Center (PDC) as a division
under the then CCP Performing Arts Department which he headed from
1981-1994
- His output included over 300 productions in Art, Film and Music

51. Benedicto R. Cabrera (April 10, 1942 -)

- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- Better known as "BenCab"
- He has been noted as "arguably the best-selling painter of his
generation of Filipino artists"
- Benedicto Cabrera, better known as BenCab, is a figurative painter
from the Philippines
- Recognised as a pioneer of Philippine art
- BenCab's paintings often depict figures wrapped in flowing fabrics in
muted tones and earthy colour palettes

52. Abdulmari Asia Imao (January 14, 1936 – December 16, 2014)
- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- A Filipino painter and sculptor
- A Tausūg, Imao is the first Moro to receive the recognition
- Aside from being a sculptor, Imao is also a painter, photographer,
ceramist, cultural researcher, documentary film maker, writer, and a
patron of Philippine Muslim art and culture.
- His contribution to the growth of Philippine art spans beyond the wider
use of Islamic motifs, especially after being the first person from the

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 Bangsamoro region to be conferred the title of National Artist for
Sculpture.

53. Dr. Bienvenido Lumbera (April 11, 1932 – September 28, 2021)
- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino Poet, Critic and Dramatist
- Wrote and lectured prolifically on literature, language, drama, and film
- He composed librettos for new musical dramas such as Rama Hari and
Bayani
- He published three award-winning books of criticism and, with his wife
Cynthia, an anthology of Philippine literature
- Known for his nationalist writing and for his leading role in the
Filipinization movement in Philippine literature in the 1960s, which
resulted in his being one of the many writers and academics jailed
during Ferdinand Marcos' Martial Law regime.

54. Ramon Obusan (June 16, 1938 – December 21, 2006)

- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Dance
- A Filipino Dancer, Choreographer, Stage Designer and Artistic Director
- Credited for his work in promoting Philippine traditional dance and
cultural work
- An acclaimed archivist, researcher and documentary filmmaker who
focused on Philippine culture
- Founded Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group in 1972
- Among the awards Obusan received was the Patnubay ng Kalinangan
award by the City of Manila in 1992, the Gawad CCP Para sa Sining
award in 1993 and the prestigious National Artist of the Philippines for
dance in May 2006

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55. Fernando Poe Jr. (August 20, 1939 – December 14, 2004)
- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Cinema
- Appeared in around 300 films spanning from 1955 to 2003
- The teenage Poe joined the film industry as a stuntman after the
untimely death of his father, actor Fernando Poe Sr.
- His film debut was Anak ni Palaris (1955), a sequel to a film that starred
his father
- Accolades include five FAMAS Awards for Best Actor—a joint record
that inducted him into the FAMAS Hall of Fame in 1988
- Won Best Director for his films Ang Padrino (1984) and Kahit Butas ng
Karayom, Papasukin Ko (1995)
- In 2004, FAMAS posthumously granted him the Natatanging Alagad ng
Sining Award
- FPJ inspired a generation of television and movie impersonators with
his iconic movie roles in more than a hundred of films that he starred
and made

56. Archt. Ildefonso P. Santos, Jr. (September 5, 1929 – January 29,

2014)
- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Landscape Architecture
- Popularly known simply as "IP Santos"
- A distinguished Filipino architect known for his works conducive to
social interaction
- He got his degree in Architecture at the University of Santo Tomas and
then pursued his master’s degree at the University of Southern
California School of Architecture

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 - Santos, Jr.'s contribution to modern Filipino landscape architecture was
the seminal public landscape in Paco Park. Santos, Jr.'s most recent
projects were the Tagaytay Highland Resort, the Mt. Malarayat Golf
and Country Clubin Lipa, Batangas, and the Orchard Golf and Country
Club in Imus, Cavite.

57. Ramon O. Valera (August 31, 1912 – May 25, 1972)

- Awarded on 2006
- National Artist for Fashion Design
- The first to introduce the one-piece terno that was fastened in the back
with a zipper
- He re-imagined the Maria Clara outfit by adding bell sleeves and
making it into a wedding gown
- He was celebrated for his ingenuity and craftsmanship, for
revolutionizing the national costume, for his masterly embroidery and
beadwork and for translating Philippine motifs into contemporary terms
- The greatest of all was his manipulation by cut—he would sew a dress
to perfection without using a pattern

58. Manuel Conde (October 9, 1915 - August 11, 1985)

- Awarded on 2009
- National Artist for Film
- A Filipino Actor, Writer, Director and Producer
- He was taking up geological engineering and entering the movies was
farthest from his mind, it was a bit player, stuntman, laboratory a
ventriloquist (a puppet named Kiko)
- Through the more than forty films he created from 1940 to 1963,
Manuel Conde contributed in no small measure to the indigenization of
the cinema, specifically: by assigning it a history and culture of its own;
by revitalizing folk culture with urgent issues, fresh themes and new
techniques; by depicting and critiquing

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59. Lazaro Francisco (February 22, 1898 – June 17, 1980)
- Awarded on 2009
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino novelist, essayist and playwright
- Francisco gained prominence as a writer not only for his social
conscience but also for his “masterful handling of the Tagalog
language” and “supple prose style”
- His literary output in Tagalog, he contributed to the enrichment of the
Filipino language and literature for which he is a staunch advocate
- Francisco developed the social realist tradition in Philippine fiction

60. Federico Aguilar Alcuaz (June 6, 1932 – February 2, 2011)

- Awarded on 2009
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- Known for his Cubist-inspired paintings
- A Filipino artist known for his diverse body of work, with gestural
paintings, watercolor works, abstract sculpture and textile art.
- Some of Alcuaz's most celebrated paintings are his landscapes,
particularly those of the skylines of Manila for their color and
combinations of elements
- His abstract “Barcelona Series” is equally notable for its use of
geometric shapes, lines, colors, and mixture of mediums of canvas and
paper

61. Alice Reyes (October 14, 1942 -)

- Awarded on 2014
- National Artist for Dance

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 - A Filipina Dancer, Choreographer, Teacher, Director and Producer
- The visionary founder of Ballet Philippines
- At a very young age, Reyes took up lessons in classical ballet under
Rosalia Merino while studying at Maryknoll College where she
completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Foreign Services.
- She took post-graduate studies at Ateneo de Manila University
- Helped establish dance as a professional career path in the country

62. Francisco V. Coching (January 29, 1919 – September 1, 1998)

- Awarded on 2014
- National Artist for Visual Arts
- A Filipino Comic Books Illustrator and Writer
- A central figure in the development of komiks, or Filipino comics
- Widely known as the “Dean of Filipino Illustrators”
- He dedicated his life to his family and to the art of writing and illustrating
comics novels for four decades
- Coching started with pen-and-ink drawings and later graduated to
storytelling, via comics illustrations
- Gave Philippine comics its identity. Komiks—the colloquial term for
Filipino comics—were long regarded as a lower form of art, beneath
paintings and sculptures; and yet, it was the work of a singular artist
that helped shape the public consciousness in the mid-1900s

63. Cirilo F. Bautista (July 9, 1941 – May 6, 2018)

- Awarded on 2014
- National Artist for Literature
- A Filipino Poet, Critic and Writer of Nonfiction
- He spent many years teaching at De La Salle University (DLSU) where
he obtained his doctorate degree and helped establish the Bienvenido
Santos Creative Writing Center

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 - Bautista was the man behind the founding of the Philippine Literary Arts
Council in 1981, Iligan National Writers Workshop in 1993 and the
Baguio Writers Group
- He also cofounded the Iyas workshop held at the University of St. La
Salle in Bacolod

64. Francisco F. Feliciano (February 19, 1941 – September 19, 2014)

- Awarded on 2014
- National Artist for Music
- One of the Philippines' most important composers
- Graduated from the University of the Philippines with a Teacher's
diploma in Music (1967)
- Dr. Feliciano created more than 30 major works that include operas and
music dramas including La Loba Negra, Ashen Wings, Sikhay Sa
Kabila ng Paalam (Beyond the Farewell), and the life of wartime Filipino
hero, Jose Abad Santos

65. Ramon P. Santos (February 25, 1941 -)

- Awarded on 2014
- National Artist for Music
- A Filipino composer, ethnomusicologist, and educator
- He is the founder of the “Strings of Unity: International
Rondalla/Plucked String Music Festival” created in 2004, during his
term as Music Committee Head and Commissioner for the Arts of the
National Commission for Culture and the Arts in the Philippines
- One of those Filipino composers who propagated avant-garde music in
the Philippines

66. Jose Marie V. Vargoza (December 6, 1912 – November 26, 1994)

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 - Awarded on 2014
- National Artist for Architecture
- A Filipino architect
- Known for designing several edifices during the postwar era
- Took up BS Architecture at the University of Santo Tomas where he
graduated in 1936
- His works include the Meralco Building in Ortigas, Union Church of
Manila, and Sto. Domingo Church in Quezon City
- His works comprise a significant body of ecclesiastical architecture of
about 45 churches all over the country. Zaragoza treads similar paths
in the Philippine architectural landscape of churches and secular
building from the 1950s to the 1980s.

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