( M a y 4, 1917 – A pr il 2 9 , 2 0 0 4 )

Joaquin was born on May 4, 1917, in Paco, Manila.

He wrote using the pen name Quijano de

Manila.

Joaquin was the fifth out of the ten children of Don Leocadio Joaquin,a
colonel under General Emelio Aguinaldo in the 1896 revolution. And
Salomé Marquez, a techer of engish and spanish.
Joaquin was conferred the rank and title of National Artist of
the Philippines for Literature. He has been considered one of
the most important Filipino writers, along with José Rizal and
Claro M. Recto.
" " A P o r t r a i t of the A r t i s t as Filipino""

The play is set in Manila before World War II and

tells the story of two sisters who live in an old house
that is about to be demolished. The sisters are
daughters of a famous painter who has become a
recluse and has stopped painting. The play explores
themes such as art, family, identity, and cultural
heritage.
"The W o m a n W h o H a d T w o Navels"
It is considered a classic in Philippine literature. It tells
the story of an elite Filipina who is hallucinating, and is
preoccupied with the notion that she has two navels or
belly buttons in order to be treated as an extraordinary
person.

Connie Escobar, the female protagonist, was described

by literary critic Epifanio San Juan as a sufferer of her
mother’s estrangement from a world where unconfident
males take advantage of women by either violating or
venerating them.