Lesson 1: NATIONAL ARTISTS FOR VISUAL ARTS, ARCHITECTURE,

AND FASHION DESIGN

Jeremias “Jerry” Elizalde Navarro

Jeremias “Jerry” Elizalde Navarro was born on May 22, 1924 in

Antique. He is a versatile artist, both sculptor and painter. He finished
his degree of Bachelor Degree of Fine Arts major in Painting at
University of Santo Tomas. He was known for his hardwood mask
reflecting the human and the animal, abstract paintings in oil,
watercolor and assemblages — an artistic from or medium usually
created on a defined substrate that consists of three-dimensional
elements projecting out of or from a substrate. It is also similar to
collage, two-dimensional medium. His first solo exhibit at the
Philippine Art Gallery in 1954 consists of woodcuts and construction
pieces of mixed media using metal, wood, and other found objects. In 1957, he was invited by
the Japanese Chapter of the Youth Association of Asia to visit Japan which exposed him to
traditional Japanese art. In the late 1970’s, he chose to work as a fulltime painter and sculptor
and then in 1989, he became the first Filipino artist to be represented at the Yayasan Dharma
Seni Museum Neka in Bali, Indonesia. In 1995, he held his retrospective exhibition at the
Metropolitan Museum in Manila. He died on June 10, 1999 and he was given the National
Artist Award for Visual Arts.

Ang Kiukok

Ang Kiukok was a Filipino painter known for his expressive, Cubist-
like works. He was born on March 1, 1931 in Davao City. He was
the only son among a brood of daughters of Chinese immigrants
Vicente Ang and Chin Lim. He was named Kiukok because it means
“Saving the Country”. He was a Philippine National Artist and a
Master of Filipino painter who attained prominence for his distinct
fusion of cubist, surrealist, expressionist concepts and undoubtedly
one of the most dynamic figures in Contemporary Philippine Arts.
He was known for his paintings expressing Nationalism and
Sociological agenda during the 60’s vivid cubistic figures. He was
trained in Chinese Arts with particular focus on brush and ink. In
1982, he entered the University of Santo Tomas in Manila and studied Fine Arts. In 1954, he
was awarded as an Outstanding Overseas Chinese in Art. He was also conferred Outstanding
Citizen by the City of Manila in 1976. He won the Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinangan Award in
1976 and was also given Outstanding Alumnus Award by the University of Santo Tomas in the
same year. He was also awarded when one of his works became a finalist in Mobil Art Awards
in 1980. In 1990, he was feature in an art exhibit called Three Figurative Expressionists held at
the Cultural Center of the Philippines. He became the best-selling Filipino artist in auctions
locally and internationally at Sotheby and Christie. He died because of Prostate Cancer at the
age of 74 in Quezon City on May 9, 2005.

Benedicto Cabrera

Benedicto Cabrera known as “Ben Cab” is a Filipino painter and was

awarded as a National Artist of the Philippines for Visual Arts in
2006. He was born on April 10, 1942 in Malabon and grown up in Sta.
Cruz, Manila. He was the youngest among the nine children of
Democrito Cabrera and Isabel Reyes. He has been noted as “the best-
selling painter of his generation”. He is also well known for his sketch
of a scavenger named “Sabel — a symbol of dislocation, despair and
isolation”. In 1949, he started painting on the pavement and on walls
at the age of seven and has been influenced by his older brother,
Salvador. In 1959, he went on to study at the University of the Philippines where he explored
different art visual forms like photography, print-making and draftsman ship. He received his
degree in Fine Arts in the year 1963. In 1968, he met Caroline Kennedy — a British Journalist
and married her in the year 1969 in London and had three children. In 1985, however, Ben
Cab’s marriage with Caroline Kennedy ended in divorce and eventually decided to come home
to Philippines. In 2006, the Philippine Government conferred upon him the Order of National
Artist for Visual Arts and in 2009, the University of the Philippines conferred upon him an
honorary Doctor of Humanities degree.

Abdulmari Asia Imao

Abdulmari Asia Imao was born on January 14, 1936 in Siasi, Sulu.
His family came from a generation of tokang or boat makers’ way
back to the pre-colonial era. He began showing interests for arts at
the age of nine. He was a Filipino sculptor, painter, photographer,
ceramist, cultural researcher, documentary film maker, writer and a
patron of Philippine Art and Culture. He is the first Moro to receive
the recognition.