THE

AMAZING 16
NATIONAL ARTISTS
OF THE PHILIPPINES
FOR
LITERATURE

CONTEMPORARY PHILIPPINE ARTS

Objectives of the Study:

01 Identify the awardees for

National Artist for Literature

Explain the contributions of

02 each artist in the field of
Literary Arts
INTRODUCTION
 Philippine Literature
Contemporary Arts Today
Introduction of English Language

Arrival of Spaniards during 16th Century

Collection of Fables, Legends, And Myths

Arrival of Western Influences

 AN
OVERVIEW
National Artists for Literature
 The National Artist Award

The National Artist Award is the highest distinction besto

wed upon Filipino Artists whose body of work is recogni
zed by their peers and more importantly by their country
men as sublime expression of Philippine music, dance, th
eatre, visual arts, literature, film and media, arts, architec
ture and design.
The National Artist Award is the highest distinction bestowed upon Filipino Artists whose b
ody of work is recognized by their peers and more importantly by their countrymen as subl
ime expression of Philippine music, dance, theatre, visual arts, literature, film and media, a
rts, architecture and design.
 The National Artist Award

President Ferdinand E. Marcos through proclamation no.

1001 dated April 2 1972, confers the award to deserving
individuals as recommended by the Cultural Center of th
e Philippines (CCP) and the National Commission for C
ulture and the Arts (NCCA).

Criteria
• Living artists who have been Filipino citizens for the last ten years prior to nomination
as well as those who have died after the establishment of the award in 1972 but were Fil
ipino citizens at the time of their death;
• Artists who have helped build a Filipino sense of nationhood through the content and
form of their works;
 The National Artist Award

• Artists who have distinguished themselves by pioneer

ing in a mode of creative expression or style, making
an impact on succeeding generations of artists;
• Artists who have created a significant body of works
and/or have consistently displayed excellence in the p
ractice of their art form, enriching artistic expression
or style; and
• Artists who enjoy broad acceptance through prestigious national and/or international re
cognition, awards in prestigious national and/or international events, critical acclaim an
d/or reviews of their works, and/or respect and esteem from peers within an artistic disc
ipline.
 1. Amado V. Hernandez
(September 13, 1903 – May 24, 1970)
Year of Conferment: 1973

Amado V. Hernandez, poet, playwright, and novelist, is

among the Filipino writers who practiced ―committed art
‖. In his view, the function of the writer is to act as the co
nscience of society and to affirm the greatness of the hu
man spirit in the face of inequity and oppression.

Hernandez‘s contribution to the development of Tagalog prose is considerable — he strippe

d Tagalog of its ornate character and wrote in prose closer to the colloquial than the ―officia
l‖ style permitted. His novel Mga Ibong Mandaragit, first written by Hernandez while in
prison, is the first Filipino socio-political novel that exposes the ills of the society as eviden
t in the agrarian problems of the 50s.
 Amado V. Hernandez

• Hernandez‘s other works include Bayang Malaya, Is

ang Dipang Langit, Luha ng Buwaya, Amado V. H
ernandez: Tudla at Tudling: Katipunan ng mga Na
lathalang Tula 1921-1970, Langaw sa Isang Basong
Gatas at Iba Pang Kuwento ni Amado V. Hernande
z, Magkabilang Mukha ng Isang Bagol at Iba Pang
Akda ni Amado V. Hernandez.
 2. Jose Garcia Villa
(August 5, 1908 – July 7, 1997)
Year of Conferment: 1973

“Art is a miraculous flirtation with Nothing!

Aiming for nothing, and landing on the Sun.”
― Doveglion: Collected Poems

Jose Garcia Villa is considered as one of the finest contemporary poets regardless of race
or language. Villa, who lived in Singalong, Manila, introduced the reversed consonance ri
me scheme, including the comma poems that made full use of the punctuation mark in an i
nnovative, poetic way.
 Jose Garcia Villa
• The first of his poems ―Have Come, Am Here‖ received crit
ical recognition when it appeared in New York in 1942 that,
soon enough, honors and fellowships were heaped on him:
Guggenheim, Bollingen, the American Academy of Arts and
Letters Awards. He used Doveglion (Dove, Eagle, Lion) as
penname, the very characters he attributed to himself, and th
e same ones explored by e.e. cummings in the poem he wrot
e for Villa (Doveglion, Adventures in Value). Villa is also kn
own for the tartness of his tongue.
 Jose Garcia Villa

Villa‘s works have been collected into the following books: F

ootnote to Youth,Many Voices, Poems by Doveglion,Poems
55, Poems in Praise of Love: The Best Love Poems of Jose
Garcia Villa as Chosen By Himself,Selected Stories,The Po
rtable Villa, The Essential Villa, Mir-i-nisa, Storymasters 3
: Selected Stories from Footnote to Youth, 55 Poems: Selec
ted and Translated into Tagalog by Hilario S. Francia.
 3. Nick Joaquin
(May 4, 1917 – April 29, 2004)
Year of Conferment: 1976

―Before 1521 we could have been anything and everythi

ng not Filipino; after 1565 we can be nothing but Filipin
o.‖ ―Culture and History, 1988

Nick Joaquin, is regarded by many as the most distinguished Filipino writer in English wri
ting so variedly and so well about so many aspects of the Filipino. Nick Joaquin has also en
riched the English language with critics coining ―Joaquinesque‖ to describe his baroque Sp
anish-flavored English or his reinventions of English based on Filipinisms.
 Nick Joaquin
Aside from his handling of language, Bienvenido Lumbera
writes that Nick Joaquin‘s significance in Philippine literature
involves his exploration of the Philippine colonial past under
Spain and his probing into the psychology of social changes
as seen by the young, as exemplified in stories such as Doña
Jeronima, Candido’s Apocalypse and The Order of Melchi
zedek. Nick Joaquin has written plays, novels, poems, short
stories and essays including reportage and journalism.
 Nick Joaquin
As a journalist, Nick Joaquin uses the nome de guerre \
Quijano de Manila but whether he is writing literature or jour
nalism, fellow National Artist Francisco Arcellana opines that
―it is always of the highest skill and quality‖.

Among his voluminous works are The Woman Who Had

Two Navels, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino, Manila,
My Manila: A History for the Young, The Ballad of the
Five Battles, Rizal in Saga, Almanac for Manileños, Cave
and Shadows.
 4. Carlos P. Romulo
(January 14, 1899 – December 15, 1985)
Year of Conferment: 1982

Carlos P. Romulo‗s multifaceted career spanned 50

years of public service as educator, soldier, university
president, journalist and diplomat. It is common
knowledge that he was the first Asian president of the
United Nations General Assembly, then Philippine Amba
ssador to Washington, D.C., and later minister of foreign
affairs.
Essentially though, Romulo was very much into writing: he was a reporter at 16, a newspa
per editor by the age of 20, and a publisher at 32. He was the only Asian to win America‘s c
oveted Pulitzer Prize in Journalism for a series of articles predicting the outbreak of World
War II. Romulo, in all, wrote and published 18 books,
 Carlos P. Romulo
a range of literary works which included The United (novel)
, I Walked with Heroes (autobiography), I Saw the Fall of
the Philippines, Mother America, I See the Philippines
Rise (war-time memoirs).

His other books include his memoirs of his many years‘

affiliations with United Nations (UN), Forty Years: A Third
World Soldier at the UN, and The Philippine Presidents,
his oral history of his experiences serving all the Philippine
presidents.
 5. Francisco Arcellana
(September 6, 1916 – August 1, 2002)
Year of Conferment: 1990
“The names which were with infinite slowness revealed, seemed
strange and stranger still; the colors not bright but deathly dull
; the separate letters spelling out the names of the dead among
them, did not seem to glow or shine with a festive sheen as did
the other living names.”
(from ―The Mats‖, Philippine Contemporary Literature, 1963)

Francisco Arcellana, writer, poet, essayist, critic, journalist and teacher, is one of the most
important progenitors of the modern Filipino short story in English. He pioneered the
development of the short story as a lyrical prose-poetic form. For Arcellana, the pride of fic
tion is ―that it is able to render truth, that is able to present reality‖.
 Francisco Arcellana
Arcellana kept alive the experimental tradition in fiction, and
had been most daring in exploring new literary forms to expre
ss the sensibility of the Filipino people. A brilliant craftsman,
his works are now an indispensable part of a tertiary-level-syll
abi all over the country. Arcellana‘s published books are Selec
ted Stories (1962), Poetry and Politics: The State of Origin
al Writing in English in the Philippines Today (1977), The
Francisco Arcellana Sampler(1990).
 Francisco Arcellana

Some of his short stories are Frankie, The Man Who Would
Be Poe, Death in a Factory, Lina, A Clown Remembers, Di
vided by Two, The Mats, and his poems being The Other W
oman, This Being the Third Poem This Poem is for Mathil
da, To Touch You and I Touched Her, among others.
 6. N.V.M. Gonzalez
(September 8, 1915 – November 28, 1999)
Year of Conferment: 1997

Nestor Vicente Madali Gonzalez, better known as N.V.

M. Gonzalez, fictionist, essayist, poet, and teacher, articu
lated the Filipino spirit in rural, urban landscapes. Amon
g the many recognitions, he won the First Commonwealt
h Literary Contest in 1940, received the Republic Cultur
al Heritage Award in 1960 and the Gawad CCP Para
sa Sining in 1990. The awards attest to his triumph in appropriating the English language to
express, reflect and shape Philippine culture and Philippine sensibility. He became U.P.‘s In
ternational-Writer-In-Residence and a member of the Board of Advisers of the U.P. Creativ
e Writing Center. In 1987, U.P. conferred on him the Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris ca
usa, its highest academic recognition.
 N.V.M. Gonzalez

Major works of N.V.M Gonzalez include the following: The

Winds of April, Seven Hills Away, Children of the Ash-Cov
ered Loam and Other Stories, The Bamboo Dancers, Look
Stranger, on this Island Now, Mindoro and Beyond: Twent
y -One Stories, The Bread of Salt and Other Stories, Work
on the Mountain, The Novel of Justice: Selected Essays 19
68-1994, A Grammar of Dreams and Other Stories.
 7. Carlos Quirino
(January 14, 1910 – May 20, 1999)
Year of Conferment: 1999
Carlos Quirino, biographer, has the distinction
of having written one of the earliest biographies
of Jose Rizal titled The Great Malayan. Quirino‘
s books and articles span the whole gamut of Ph
ilippine history and culture–from Bonifacio‘s tri
al to Aguinaldo‘s biography,

from Philippine cartography to culinary arts, from cash crops to tycoons and president‘s liv
es, among so many subjects. In 1997, Pres. Fidel Ramos created historical literature as a ne
w category in the National Artist Awards and Quirino was its first recipient. He made a rec
ord earlier on when he became the very first Filipino correspondent for the United Press In
stitute.
 Carlos Quirino

His book Maps and Views of Old Manila is considered as th

e best book on the subject. His other books includeQuezon,
Man of Destiny, Magsaysay of the Philippines, Lives of the
Philippine Presidents, Philippine Cartography, The Histor
y of Philippine Sugar Industry, Filipino Heritage: The Ma
king of a Nation, Filipinos at War: The Fight for Freedom
from Mactan to EDSA.
 8. Edith L. Tiempo
(April 22, 1919 – August 21, 2011)
Year of Conferment: 1999

Edith L. Tiempo, poet, fictionist, teacher and literary cri

tic is one of the finest Filipino writers in English whose
works are characterized by a remarkable fusion of style a
nd substance, of craftsmanship and insight. Born on Apri
l 22, 1919 in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya, her poems are
intricate verbal transfigurations of significant experiences as revealed, ―The Little Marmos
et‖ and ―Bonsai‖. As fictionist, Tiempo is as morally profound. Her language has been mar
ked as ―descriptive but unburdened by scrupulous detailing.‖
 Edith L. Tiempo

She is an influential tradition in Philippine literature in Englis

h. Together with her late husband, Edilberto K. Tiempo, she f
ounded and directed the Silliman National Writers Workshop i
n Dumaguete City, which has produced some of the country‘s
best writers.
 9. F. Sionil Jose
(born 3 December 1924) 96
Year of Conferment: 2001

F. Sionil Jose‘s writings since the late 60s, when taken c

ollectively can best be described as epic. Its sheer volum
e puts him on the forefront of Philippine writing in Engli
sh. But ultimately, it is the consistent espousal of the aspi
rations of the Filipino–for national sovereignty and
social justice–that guarantees the value of his oeuvre. In the five-novel masterpiece, the Ro
sales saga, consisting of The Pretenders, Tree, My Brother, My Executioner, Mass, an
d Po-on, he captures the sweep of Philippine history while simultaneously narrating the liv
es of generations of the Samsons whose personal lives intertwine with the social struggles
 F. Sionil Jose
of the nation. Because of their international appeal, his works,
including his many short stories, have been published and tran
slated into various languages.
F. Sionil Jose is also a publisher, lecturer on cultural issues, an
d the founder of the Philippine chapter of the international org
anization PEN. He was bestowed the CCP Centennial Honors
for the Arts in 1999; the Outstanding Fulbrighters Award for L
iterature in 1988; and the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journ
alism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts in 1980.
 10. Virgilio S. Almario
(born March 9, 1944) 76
Year of Conferment: 2003

Virgilio S. Almario, also known as Rio Alma, is a poet, l

iterary historian and critic, who has revived and reinvent
ed traditional Filipino poetic forms, even as he champion
ed modernist poetics. In 34 years, he has published 12 bo
oks of poetry, which include the seminal Makinasyon
and Peregrinasyon, and the landmark trilogy Doktrinang Anakpawis, Mga Retrato at R
ekwerdo and Muli, Sa Kandungan ng Lupa. In these works, his poetic voice soared from
the lyrical to the satirical to the epic, from the dramatic to the incantatory, in his often sever
e examination of the self, and the society.
 Virgilio S. Almario
He has also redefined how the Filipino poetry is viewed and p
aved the way for the discussion of the same in his 10 books of
criticisms and anthologies, among which are Ang Makata sa
Panahon ng Makina, Balagtasismo versus Modernismo,W
along Dekada ng Makabagong Tula Pilipino, Mutyang Dili
m and Barlaan at Josaphat.
Many Filipino writers have come under his wing in the literar
y workshops he founded –the Galian sa Arte at Tula (GAT) an
d the Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika at Anyo (LIRA).
 Virgilio S. Almario
He has also long been involved with children‘s literature throu
gh the Aklat Adarna series, published by his Children‘s Comm
unication Center. He has been a constant presence as well in n
ational writing workshops and galvanizes member writers as c
hairman emeritus of the Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipina
s (UMPIL). He headed the National Commission for Culture a
nd the Arts as Executive Director, (from 1998 to 2001) ably st
eering the Commission towards its goals.
 Virgilio S. Almario

But more than anything else, what Almario accomplished was

that he put a face to the Filipino writer in the country, one stro
ng face determinedly wielding a pen into untruths, hypocrisy,
injustice, among others.
 11. Alejandro Roces
(July 13, 1924 – May 23, 2011)
Year of Conferment: 2003

“You cannot be a great writer; first, you have to be

a good person”

Alejandro Roces, is a short story writer and essayist, and considered as the country‘s best
writer of comic short stories. He is known for his widely anthologized ―My Brother‘s Pecul
iar Chicken.‖ In his innumerable newspaper columns, he has always focused on the neglect
ed aspects of the Filipino cultural heritage.
 Alejandro Roces

His works have been published in various international magaz

ines and has received national and international awards.
Ever the champion of Filipino cultures, Roces brought to publ
ic attention the aesthetics of the country‘s fiestas. He was instr
umental in popularizing several local fiestas, notably, Morione
s and Ati-atihan.
 Alejandro Roces

He personally led the campaign to change the country‘s Indep

endence Day from July 4 to June 12, and caused the change of
language from English to Filipino in the country‘s stamps, cur
rency and passports, and recovered Jose Rizal‘s manuscripts
when they were stolen from the National Archives.
 Alejandro Roces

His unflinching love of country led him to become a guerilla

during the Second World War, to defy martial law and to foun
d the major opposition party under the dictatorship. His works
have been published in various international magazines and re
ceived numerous national and international awards, including
several decorations from various governments.
 12. Bienvenido Lumbera
(born 11 April 1932) 88
Year of Conferment: 2006

Bienvenido Lumbera, is a poet, librettist, and scholar.

*As a poet, he introduced to Tagalog literature what is no
w known as Bagay poetry, a landmark aesthetic tendency
that has helped to change the vernacular poetic tradition.
He is the author of the following works: Likhang Dila,
Likhang Diwa (poems in Filipino and English), 1993; Balaybay, Mga Tulang Lunot at
Manibalang, 2002; Sa Sariling Bayan, Apat na Dulang May Musika, 2004; ―Agunyas s
a Hacienda Luisita,‖ Pakikiramay, 2004.
 Bienvenido Lumbera

As a librettist for the Tales of the Manuvu and Rama Hari,

he pioneered the creative fusion of fine arts and popular imagi
nation. As a scholar, his major books include the following: T
agalog Poetry, 1570-1898: Tradition and Influences in its
Development; Philippine Literature: A History and Anthol
ogy, Revaluation: Essays on Philippine Literature, Writing
the Nation/Pag-akda ng Bansa.
 13. Lazaro F. Francisco
(February 22, 1898 – June 17, 1980)
Year of Conferment: 2009

Prize-winning writer Lazaro A. Francisco developed th

e social realist tradition in Philippine fiction. His eleven
novels, now acknowledged classics of Philippine literatu
re, embodies the author‘s commitment to nationalism. A
madis Ma. Guerrero wrote, ―Francisco championed the
cause of the common man, specifically the oppressed peasants. His novels exposed the evil
s of the tenancy system, the exploitation of farmers by unscrupulous landlords, and foreign
domination.‖ Teodoro Valencia also observed, ―His pen dignifies the Filipino and accents a
ll the positives about the Filipino way of life. His writings have contributed much to the for
mation of a Filipino nationalism.‖
 Lazaro A. Francisco

Literary historian and critic Bienvenido Lumbera also wrote,

―When the history of the Filipino novel is written, Francisco i
s likely to occupy an eminent place in it. Already in Tagalog li
terature, he ranks among the finest novelists since the beginni
ng of the 20th century. In addition to a deft hand at characteriz
ation, Francisco has a supple prose style responsive to the sub
tlest nuances of ideas and the sternest stuff of passions.‖
 Lazaro A. Francisco
Francisco gained prominence as a writer not only for his socia
l conscience but also for his ―masterful handling of the Tagalo
g language‖ and ―supple prose style‖. With his literary output
in Tagalog, he contributed to the enrichment of the Filipino la
nguage and literature for which he is a staunch advocate. He p
ut up an arm to his advocacy of Tagalog as a national languag
e by establishing the Kapatiran ng mga Alagad ng Wikang Pili
pino (KAWIKA) in 1958.
 Lazaro A. Francisco
His reputation as the ―Master of the Tagalog Novel‖ is backed
up by numerous awards he received for his meritorious novels
in particular, and for his contribution to Philippine literature a
nd culture in general. His masterpiece novels—Ama, Bayang
Nagpatiwakal, Maganda Pa Ang Daigdig and Daluyong—af
firm his eminent place in Philippine literature. In 1997, he wa
s honored by the University of the Philippines with a special c
onvocation, where he was cited as the ―foremost Filipino nove
list of his generation‖ and ―champion of the Filipino writer‘s s
truggle for national identity.‖
 14. Cirilo F. Bautista
(born July 9, 1941)
Year of Conferment: 2014

Cirilo F. Bautista is a poet, fictionist and essayist with e

xceptional achievements and significant contributions to
the development of the country‘s literary arts. He is ackn
owledged by peers and critics, and the nation at large as t
he foremost writer of his generation.
Throughout his career that spans more than four decades, he has established a reputation fo
r fine and profound artistry; his books, lectures, poetry readings and creative writing works
hops continue to influence his peers and generations of young writers.
 Cirilo F. Bautista

As a way of bringing poetry and fiction closer to the people w

ho otherwise would not have the opportunity to develop their
creative talent, Bautista has been holding regular funded and u
nfunded workshops throughout the country. In his campus lect
ure circuits, Bautista has updated students and student-writers
on literary developments and techniques.
 Cirilo F. Bautista

As a teacher of literature, Bautista has realized that the classro

om is an important training ground for Filipino writers. In De
La Salle University, he was instrumental in the formation of th
e Bienvenido Santos Creative Writing Center. He was also the
moving spirit behind the founding of the Philippine Literary A
rts Council in 1981, the Iligan National Writers Workshop in 1
993, and the Baguio Writers Group.
 Cirilo F. Bautista
Thus, Bautista continues to contribute to the development of P
hilippine literature: as a writer, through his significant body of
works; as a teacher, through his discovery and encouragement
of young writers in workshops and lectures; and as a critic, thr
ough his essays that provide insights into the craft of writing a
nd correctives to misconceptions about art.
Major works: Summer Suns (1963), Words and Battlefield
s (1998), The Trilogy of Saint Lazarus (2001), Galaw ng As
oge (2003).
 15. Ramon Muzones
(March 20, 1913- August 17, 1992)
Year of Conferment: 2018

From the town of Miag-ao, Iloilo

Founder, Sumakwelan (The Knights of Suma
kwel)

Editor, Hiligaynon/Yuhum, two leading Ilonggo magazines

Prolific writer of 61 Ilonggo novels
Cultural Artist of the Philippines
Gawad Bonifacion Centennial Artist
National Artist of the Philippines
 Ramon L. Muzones
Notable Works:
• Shri-Bisaya (1969)
• Malala nga Gutom (Malignant Hunger, 1965)
• Babae Batuk sa Kalibutan (Woman Against the World,
1959)
• Ang Gugma sang Gugma Bayaran (Love with Love Be
Paid, 1955)
• Si Tamblot (1948)
• Margosatubig (1946)
 16. Resil B. Mojares
(born September 4, 1943 )
Year of Conferment: 2018
A teacher and scholar, essayist and fictionist, and
cultural and literary historian, Resil Mojares is ac
knowledge as a leading figure in the promotion o
f the regional literature and history. As founding
director of the Cebuano Studies Center- an impor
tant research and documentation map- he pioneer
ed Cebuano and national identity formation.

As a leading figure in cultural and literary history, he networked actively in many organiza
tions. For over 50 years, Mojares has published in diverse forms (fiction, essay, journalism,
scholarly articles, and books) across a wide range of discipline ( literature, history, biograp
hy, cultural studies, and others.)
 Resil B. Mojares
Notable Works:
• Origins and Rise of the Filipino Novel: A Generic Study of the No
vel Unit Until 1940 (Quezon City, UP Press, 1983:
second ed. 1998)
• The Man Who Would Be President: Serging Osmeña and Philippi
ne Politics (Cebu: Maria Cacao, 1986)
• Waiting for Mariang Makilibg: Essays on Philippine Cultural Hist
ory (Quezon City, Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2002)
• House of Memory: Essays (Metro Manila: Anvil Publishing,
1997)
 Modified and Prepared by:

21st Century Literature from the Philippines

and the World Subject Teachers AY 2020-2021