PhilArts: National Artists
scenery and costumes, sculpted, acted,
PAINTING:
1. Fernando Amorsolo (1972)
- was one of the most important artists in the
history of painting in the Philippines.
- Amorsolo was a portraitist and painter of
rural Philippine landscapes.
- He is popularly known for his craftsmanship
and mastery in the use of light.
2. Carlos V. Francisco (1973)
- Carlos Modesto "Botong" Villaluz Francisco
was a muralist from Angono, Rizal.
3. Victorio C. Edades (1976)
- was a Filipino painter. He led the
revolutionary Thirteen Moderns, who
engaged their classical compatriots in
heated debate over the nature and function
of art.
4. Vicente S. Manansala (1981)
- was a Filipino cubist painter and illustrator.
5. J. Elizalde Navarro (1999)
- was a Philippine artist.
- He studied in the University of the
Philippines, Manila as a Ramon Roces
Publication Scholar in 1947.
- The following year he transferred to the
University of Santo Tomas, he studied fine
arts with a major in painting. He graduated
with a Bachelor of Arts in 1951.
DANCE:
1. Francisca R. Aquino (1973)
- was a Filipino folk dancer and academic
noted for her research on Philippine folk
dance.
- She is a recipient of the Republic Award of
Merit and the Ramon Magsaysay Award and
is a designated National Artist of the
Philippines for Dance.
2. Leonor O. Goquingco (1976)
- was a Filipino national artist in creative
dance.
- She played the piano, drew art, designed
directed, danced and choreographed.
3. Lucrecia R. Urtula (1988)
- was a Filipino choreographer, theater
director, teacher, author and researcher on
ethnic dance.
- She was the founding director of the
Bayanihan Philippine National Folk Dance
Company.
4. Ramon Obusan (2006)
- was a Filipino dancer, choreographer, stage
designer and artistic director.
- Obusan is credited for his work in promoting
Philippine traditional dance and cultural
work.
- He is also an acclaimed archivist,
researcher and documentary filmmaker who
focused on Philippine culture.
5. Alice Reyes (2014)
- is a Filipina dancer, choreographer, teacher,
director and producer. The organizer of
Ballet Philippines, she received last June 20,
2014 from President Aquino the highest
award in the Arts, National Artist of the
Philippines.
LITERATURE:
1. Amado V. Hernandez (1973)
- was a Filipino writer and labor leader who
was known for his criticism of social
injustices in the Philippines and was later
imprisoned for his involvement in the
communist movement.
2. Jose Garcia Villa (1973)
- was a Filipino poet, literary critic, short story
writer, and painter.
3. Nick Joaquin (1976)
- was a Filipino writer and journalist best
known for his short stories and novels in the
English language.
- He also wrote using the pen name Quijano
de Manila. Joaquín was conferred the rank.
4. Carlos P. Romulo (1982)
 - was a Filipino diplomat, statesman, soldier,
journalist and author.
- He was a reporter at 16, a newspaper editor
by the age of 20, and a publisher at 32.
5. Francisco Arcellana (1990)
- was a Filipino writer, poet, essayist, critic,
journalist and teacher.
- Arcellana already had ambitions of
becoming a writer early in his childhood.
6. N.V.M Gonzales (1997)
- was a Filipino novelist, short story writer,
essayist and poet.
7. Edith L. Tiempo (1999)
- poet, fiction writer, teacher and literary critic
was a Filipino writer in the English language.
- Her poems are intricate verbal
transfigurations of significant experiences as
revealed, in two of her much anthologized
pieces, "Halaman" and "Bonsai."
8. F. Sionil Jose (2001)
- is one of the most widely read Filipino
writers in the English language. His novels
and short stories depict the social
underpinnings of class struggles and
colonialism in Filipino society.
9. Virgilio S. Almario (2003)
- better known by his pen name Rio Alma, is a
Filipino artist, poet, critic, translator, editor,
teacher, and cultural manager.
10. Alejandro R. Roces (2003)
- was a Filipino author, essayist, dramatist
and a National Artist of the Philippines for
literature.
- He served as Secretary of Education from
1961 to 1965, during the term of Philippine
President Diosdado Macapagal.
11. Dr. Bienvenido Lumbera (2006)
- is a Filipino poet, critic and dramatist.
- He is a National Artist of the Philippines and
a recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award
for Journalism, Literature and Creative
Communications.
12. Lázaro Francísco (2009)
- was a Filipino novelist, essayist and
playwright.
13. Cirilo F. Bautista (2014)
- was a Filipino poet, critic and writer of
nonfiction.
THEATER & LITERATURE:
1. Rolando S. Tinio (1997)
- was a Filipino poet, dramatist, director,
actor, critic, essayist and educator.
MUSIC & LITERATURE:
1. Levi Celerio (1997)
- was a Filipino composer and lyricist who is
credited to writing not less than 4,000 songs.
HISTORICAL LITERATURE:
1. Carlos Quirino (1997)
- was a Philippine biographer and historian.
MUSIC:
1. Antonio J. Molina (1973)
- was a Filipino composer, conductor and
music administrator.
- He was also known as the Claude Debussy
of the Philippines due to his use of
impressionist themes in his music.
2. Jovita Fuentes (1976)
- was a Filipina soprano singer.
- was also the first Filipino international star in
the world of opera.
3. Antonino R. Buenaventura (1988)
- was a Filipino composer, conductor, and
teacher.
- vigorously pursued a musical career that
spanned seven decades of unwavering
commitment to advancing the frontiers of
Philippine music
4. Lucrecia R. Kasilag (1989)
- was a Filipino composer and pianist.
 - She is particularly known for incorporating
indigenous Filipino instruments into
orchestral productions.
5. Lucio D. San Pedro (1991)
- was a Filipino composer and teacher.
- he studied the banjo which inspired him to
become a serious
musician.
6. Felipe P. de Leon (1997)
- was a Filipino classical music composer,
conductor, and scholar.
- Filipinized western music forms, a feat
aspired for by Filipino composers who
preceded him.
7. Jose M. Maceda (1997)
- was a Filipino composer and
ethnomusicologist.
- Philippine composer of interdisciplinary
works that have been performed throughout
the world
8. Prof. Andrea Veneracion (1999)
- was a Filipina choral conductor.
- She founded the Philippine Madrigal Singers
in 1963.
9. Ernani J. Cuenco (1999)
- was a Filipino composer, film scorer,
musical director and music teacher.
- his works embody a Filipino sense of
musicality that contain the classical sound of
the kundiman.
10. Francisco F. Feliciano (2014)
- was a Filipino composer and conductor.
- 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.
11. Ramon P. Santos (2014)
- is a Filipino composer, musicologist and
ethnomusicologist.
- University Professor Emeritus of the
composition and theory department the
College of Music of the University of the
Philippines Diliman.
ARCHITECTURE:
1. Juan F. Nakpil (1973)
- was a Filipino architect, teacher and a
community leader.
- He was regarded as the Dean of Filipino
Architects.
2. Pablo S. Antonio (1976)
- A pioneer of modern Philippine architecture,
he was recognized in some quarters as the
foremost Filipino modernist architect of his
time.
3. Leandro V. Locsin (1990)
- was a Filipino architect, artist, and interior
designer known for his use of concrete,
floating volume and simplistic design in his
various projects.
4. Jose Maria V. Zaragoza (2014)
- His place in Philippine architecture history is
defined by a significant body of modern
edifices that address spiritual and secular
requirements.
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE:
1. Archt. Ildelfonso P. Santos, Jr. (2006)
- was a Filipino architect who was known
for being the "Father of Philippine
Landscape Architecture."
- made his first mark with the Makati
Commercial Center where he introduced a
new concept of outdoor shopping with
landscaped walks, fountains and sculptures
as accents.
SCULPTURE:
1. Guillermo E. Tolentino (1973)
- was a Filipino sculptor and professor of the
University of the Philippines.
2. Napoleon V. Abueva (1976)
 - was known as the "Father of Modern
Philippine Sculpture" Through Proclamation
No. 1539.
- He was proclaimed National Artist for
Sculpture in 1976 when he was 46, making
him the youngest recipient of the award to
date.
THEATER AND FILM:
1. Lamberto V. Avellana (1976)
- was a prominent Filipino film and stage
director.
- Despite considerable budgetary limitations
that hampered the post-war Filipino film
industry, Avellana's films such as Anak
Dalita and Badjao attained international
acclaim.
THEATER AND MUSIC:
1. Honorata “Atang” dela Rama (1987)
- was a singer and bodabil performer who
became the first Filipina film actress.
VISUAL ARTS:
1. Cesar F. Legaspi (1990)
- was a Filipino National Artist in painting. He
was also an art director prior to going full-
time in his visual art practice in the 1960s.
- His early works, alongside those of peer,
Hernando Ocampo are described as
depictions of anguish and dehumanization of
beggars and laborers in the city.
2. Hernando R. Ocampo (1991)
- was a Filipino National Artist in the visual
arts.
- He is also fictionist, a playwright and editor.
3. Arturo R. Luz (1997)
- He is also a known printmaker, sculptor,
designer and art administrator.
- A founding member of the modern Neo-
realist school in Philippine art, he received
the National Artist Award, the country's
highest accolade in the arts, in 1997.
4. Ang Kiukok (2001)
- was a Filipino painter of Chinese descent.
5. Jose T. Joya (Painting) (2003)
- was a Filipino abstract artist.
- Joya was a printmaker, painter, mixed
media artist, and a former dean of the
University of the Philippines' College of Fine
Arts.
- He pioneered abstract expressionism in the
Philippines.
6. Benedicto R. Cabrera (2006)
- better known as "BenCab", is a Filipino
painter.
- He has been noted as "arguably the best-
selling painter of his generation of Filipino
artists."
7. Abdulmari Asia Imao (2006)
- was a Filipino painter and sculptor.
- A Tausūg, Imao is the first Moro to receive
the recognition.
8. Federico Aguilar Alcuaz (2009)
- was a Filipino painter who exhibited
extensively Internationally and whose work
earned him recognition both in the
Philippines and abroad.
- National Artist for Visual Arts, Painting,
Sculpture and Mixed Media in 2009.
9. Francisco V. Coching (2014)
- was a Filipino comic books illustrator and
writer and is regarded as one of the “pillars
of the Philippine Komiks Industry”.
- He served as both illustrator and writer for
his comic book stories, Coching is referred
to as the "King of Komiks", and as the "Dean
of Philippine Comics".
CINEMA:
1. Gerardo de Leon (1982)
- was a Filipino actor-turned-film director.
- De Leon’s biggest pre-war hit was “Ang
Maestra” which starred Rogelio de la Rosa
and Rosa del Rosario with the still unknown
Eddie Romero as writer.
2. Lino Brocka (1997)
 - was a Filipino film director. He is widely
regarded as one of the most influential and
significant Filipino filmmakers in the history
of Philippine cinema.
3. Ishmael Bernal (2001)
- was a Filipino film, stage and television
director, actor and screenwriter.
- Noted for his melodramas, particularly with
feminist and moral issues, he directed many
landmark Filipino films such as Nunal sa
Tubig, City After Dark, Relasyon, Himala,
and Hinugot sa Langit.
4. Fernando Poe Jr. (2006)
- was a Filipino actor, director and politician.
- His long career as an action film star earned
him the nickname "King of Philippine
Movies".
FILM:
1. Manuel Conde (2009)
- was a Filipino actor, director and producer.
- As an actor, he also used the screen name
Juan Urbano during the 1930s aside from
his more popular screen name.
THEATER:
1. Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero (1997)
- was a Filipino playwright, director, teacher
and theater artist.
- Guerrero wrote well over 100 plays, 41 of
which have been published.
- His unpublished plays have either been
broadcast over the radio or staged in
various parts of the Philippines.
2. Daisy H. Avellana (1999)
- was a Filipino stage actress and theater
director.
3. Severino Montano (2001)
- is considered as one of the Titans of
Philippine Theater.
- He was a playwright, director, actor and
theater organizer with an output of one
novel, 150 poems and 50 plays in his 65-
year lifetime.
THEATER DESIGN:
1. Salvador F. Bernal (2003)
- was an artist from the Philippines. Bernal's
career began in 1969. His output included
over 300 productions in art, film and music.
FASHION DESIGN:
1. Ramon O. Valera (2006)
- lies in the tradition of excellence of his
works, and his commitment to his
profession, performing his magical seminal
innovations on the Philippine terno.
CINEMA & BROADCAST:
1. Eddie S. Romero (2003)
- was a Filipino film director, film producer
and screenwriter.
2018 National Artists Awardees
1. Ramon Muzones (Literature)
- The sheer volume of 61 novels in the
Ilonggo dialect pulled him through the tough
and meticulous vetting by the committee on
the selection of National Artists of the
Philippines.
2. Kidlat Tahimik (Film)
- is a film director, writer and actor whose
films are commonly associated with the
Third Cinema movement through their
critiques of neocolonialism.
3. Amelia Lapeña Bonifacio (Theatre)
- is a Filipino playwright, puppeteer, and
educator known as the "Grande Dame of
Southeast Asian Children’s Theatre."
4. Francisco Mañosa (Architecture)
- was a Filipino architect considered one of
the most influential Filipino architects of the
20th century, for having pioneered the art of
Philippine neovernacular architecture.
5. Resil Mojares (Literature)
 - is a Filipino historian and critic of Philippine
literature best known for his books on
Philippine history.
- He is acclaimed by various writers and
critics as the Visayan Titan of Letters, due to
his immense contribution to Visayan
literature.
6. Larry Alcala (Visual Arts)
- was a well-known editorial cartoonist and
illustrator in the Philippines.
7. Ryan Cayabyab (Music)
- also known as Mr. C, is a Filipino musician,
composer and conductor.
- He was Executive and Artistic Director for
several years of the defunct San Miguel
Foundation for the Performing Arts.
FERNANDO AMORSOLO – planting rice
CARLOS V. FRANCISCO – bayanihan
VICTORIO C. EDADES – the builders
VICENTE S. MANANSALA – Madonna of the slums
J. ELIZALDE NAVARRO – kijang dance
FRANCISCA R. AQUINO - Philippine National Dances
(book)
LEONOR O. GOQUINGCO – circling the globe (choreo)
LUCRECIA R. URTULA -
RAMON OBUSAN - Vamos a Belen!
ALICE REYES
AMADO V. HERNANDEZ – luha ng buwaya
JOSE GARCIA VILLA – the anchored angel
NICK JOAQUIN – cave and shadows
CARLOS P. ROMULO – I walked with heroes
FRANCISCO ARCELLANA – the mats
N.V.M GONZALES – the bamboo dancers
EDITH L. TIEMPO – the alien corn: a novel
F. SIONIL JOSE – po-on
VIRGILIO S. ALMARIO – the love of lam-ang
ALEJANDRO R. ROCES – of cocks and kites
DR. BIENVENIDO LUMBERA – abot-tanaw
LÁZARO FRANCISCO - sugat ng alaala
CIRILO F. BAUTISTA – kirot ng kataga
ROLANDO S. TINIO – a matter of language
LEVI CELERIO
CARLOS QUIRINO – biography of pres manuel quezon
ANTONIO J. MOLINA - hatinggabi
JOVITA FUENTES -
ANTONINO R. BUENAVENTURA – Mindanao sketches
LUCRECIA R. KASILAG - dandansoy
LUCIO D. SAN PEDRO – simbang gabi
FELIPE P. DE LEON -
JOSE M. MACEDA - ugnayan
PROF. ANDREA VENERACION -
ERNANI J. CUENCO -
FRANCISCO F. FELICIANO – la loba negra
RAMON P. SANTOS -
JUAN F. NAKPIL - Quiapo Church (rebuilt)
PABLO S. ANTONIO – white cross
LEANDRO V. LOCSIN - Manila Memorial Park Chapel
JOSE MARIA V. ZARAGOZA - National Library
ARCHT. IIDELFONSO P. SANTOS, JR. - Nayong
Pilipino
 EDDIE S. ROMERO - Ganito Kami Noon…Paano Kayo
Ngayon?,
GUILLERMO E. TOLENTINO - The Oblation

NAPOLEON V. ABUEVA - Kaganapan

RAMON MUZONES - Shri-bishaya: A Novel

KIDLAT TAHIMIK - Turumba

LAMBERTO V. AVELLANA -
AMELIA LAPEÑA BONIFACIO - Sepang Loca & Others

FRANCISCO MAÑOSA - Coconut Palace,

HONORATA “ATANG” DELA RAMA -
RESIL MOJARES – waiting for mariang makiling

LARRY ALCALA – the best of mang ambo

CESAR F. LEGASPI – tree planting
RYAN CAYBYAB – kay ganda ng ating musika
HERNANDO R. OCAMPO – man and carabao

ARTURO R. LUZ – bagong taon

ANG KIUKOK – the last supper

JOSE T. JOYA - hills of nikko

BENEDICTO R. CABRERA – sabel in blue

ALDULMARI ASIA IMAO - sarimanok

FEDERICO AGUILAR ALCUAZ – reveries of love

FRANCISCO V. COCHING - komiks

GERARDO DE LEON -

LINO BROCKA -

ISHMAEL BERNAL -

FERNANDO POE JR. -

MANUEL CONDE - Ibong Adarna

WILFRIDO MA. GUERRERO – my favorite 11 plays

DAISY H. AVELLANA - The Drama of it: A Life on Film

and Theater

SEVERINO MONTANO -

SALVADOR F. BERNAL -

RAMON O. VALERA – must-see exhibit: millennials

meet ramon valera