LESSON 5:

NATIONAL
ARTISTS OF
THE
PHILIPPINES
National Artist of the Philippines
The Order of National Artists of the Philippines (Filipino: Orden ng mga
Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas) is an order bestowed by the Philippines
on Filipinos who have made significant contributions to the development of
Philippine art. Members of the Order are known as National Artists. Originally
instituted as an award, it was elevated to the status of an order in 2003.
The Order is administered by the Cultural Center of the
Philippines by virtue of President Ferdinand Marcos's
Proclamation № 1001 of April 2, 1972 and the National
Commission for Culture and the Arts. The first award was
posthumously conferred on Filipino painter Fernando
Amorsolo.
 The order of the highest state honor is conferred on individuals deemed as having done much for
their artistic field. Deserving individuals must have been recommended by both the Cultural Center
and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts prior to receiving the award. Such people are
then titled, by virtue of a Presidential Proclamation, as National Artist (Filipino: Gawad Pambansang
Alagad ng Sining, "National Servant of the Arts Award"), and are inducted into the Order.
 Living artists who have been Filipino citizens for the last ten years prior to nomination as well as
1. those who have died after the establishment of the award in 1972 but were Filipino citizens at the
time of their death;

Criteria: 2.
Artists who have helped build a Filipino sense of nationhood through the content and form
of their works;

The National Artist

of the
Philippines are Artists who have distinguished themselves by pioneering in a mode of creative
based on a 3. expression or style, making an impact on succeeding generations of artists;
broad criteria,
as set forth by
the Cultural
Center of the Artists who have created a significant body of works and/or have consistently displayed
Philippines and 4. excellence in the practice of their art form, enriching artistic expression or style; and
the National
Commission on
Culture and the
Arts: Artists who enjoy broad acceptance through prestigious national and/or international recognition,
5. awards in prestigious national and/or international events, critical acclaim and/or reviews of their
works, and/or respect and esteem from peers within an artistic discipline.
 Nominations are then submitted to the National Artist
Secretariat that is created by the National Artist Award
Committee; experts from the different art fields then sit on a
First Deliberation to prepare the short list of nominees. A
Second Deliberation, which is a joint meeting of the
Commissioners of the NCCA and the Board of Trustees of the
CCP, decides on the final nominees. The list is then forwarded
to the President of the Philippines, who, by Presidential
Proclamation, proclaims the final nominees as members of the
Order of National Artists.
National Servant of the Arts Award
Categories: Music - singing, composition, direction, and/or performance;

Dance - choreography, direction and/or performance;

Theater – direction, performance and/or production design;

Contemporary Arts – painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, installation

art, mixed media works, illustration, graphic arts, performance art and/or imaging;
Literature – poetry, fiction, essay, playwriting, journalism and/or literary criticism;

Film and Broadcasting/Broadcast Arts – direction, writing, production

design, cinematography, editing, camera work, and/or performance; and
Architecture, Design and Allied Arts – architecture design, interior
design, industrial arts design, landscape architecture and fashion design.
What are some examples of works of National
Artists?

A. Works of National Artists

in Public Spaces: A Look at UP
Diliman
Oblacion by Guillermo Portrait by Fernando Sculpture by
Tolentino (1935) Amorsolo Abdulmari Asia Imao
Barter of Panay Spirit of Business Church of the Holy
by Jose Joya by Napoleon Abueva Sacrifice in UP Diliman
What are some examples of works of National
Artists?

B. Translations and
Collaborative Works of
National Artists
 Film or Theater
• By Manuel Conde and Carlos V.
Francisco.

• Told the epic adventure of a

Mongolian conqueror.

• The film was screened in many

film festivals abroad and
translated into 16 languages for
international distributions.
 Film or Theater
• Tales of Manuvu

• Recounting the origins of the

Manobo people

• Collaboration by different
National Artists like Bienvenido
Lumbera (literature), Alice Reyes
(dance), and Salvador Bernal
(theater)
 Literary Works

Comics
by Francisco B. Coching