CONTEMPORARY PHILIPPINES ARTS FROM THE REGIONS

National Artists of the Philippines in Visual Arts

DATE OF
ARTIST CATEGORY CONTRIBUTIONS
AWARD
Fernando Amorsolo

 He is known as the “Grand Old Man of

the Philippine Art”.
 His trademark was the backlighting
1972 Painting technique.
 Some of his paintings are Planting Rice,
Dalagang Bukid, The Mestiza, and
Maiden in a Stream

Hernando Ocampo

 One of the “Thirteen Moderns” of the

Philippine arts.
 His pieces show the kind of society
1991 Visual Arts
there was after World War II.
 Some of his works are Genesis, Ina ng
Balon, and Isda at Mangga

Benedicto Cabrera

 He is popularly known as BenCab.

 He was tagged as a master of the
Philippine Contemporary Art.
2006 Visual Arts  The most popular subject of his
painting was “Sabel”.
 Some of his works are Sabel in Blue,
Yellow Confetti, and Tres Marias
Carlos “Botong” Francisco
 He was a muralist from Angono, Rizal.
 One of “The Triumvirate” along with
Galo Ocampo and Victorio Edades.
 He painted murals showing the
1973 Painting
historical past of the Philippines.
 Some of his works are Bayanihan sa
Bukid, The Martyrdom of Rizal, and
Katipunan

Cesar Legaspi

 One of the “Thirteen Moderns” of the

Philippine Arts.
 He indigenized cubism and produced
1990 Visual Arts
artworks showing local temperaments.
 Some of his works are Idols of the Third
Eye, Ovary, and Gadgets I

Abdulmari Asia Imao

 A visual artist from Sulu who
articulated the Muslim culture and art
in country.
 He preserved and promoted the
Philippine indigenous art through the
2006 Visual Arts
use of ethnic themes like the ukkil,
sarimanok, and naga.
 Some of his works are Industry Brass
Mural of the Philippine National Bank
and Sarimanok

Guillermo Tolentino  He was the master sculptor who

introduced classical sculpture in the
country.
 He was known for creating monuments
and bust figures of Philippine National
1973 Sculpture
Heroes.
 Some of his works are UP Oblation,
Bonifacio Monument, President
Question at Quezon Memorial, and Life
Size of Jose Rizal in UP
 Arturo Luz
 He is an abstractionist known for his
minimalist paintings and sculptures.
 He had his first art lesson under the
1997 Visual Arts tutelage of Pablo Amorsolo.
 Some of his works are Candle Vendors,
Bagong Taon, Night Glows, and Grand
Finale

Frederico Aguilar Alcuaz

 He is known for his gestural abstract

expressionist paintings using a variety
of mediums like acrylic and oil.
2009 Visual Arts
 Some of his works are Reveries of Love,
Still Life with Landscape, and
Panaromic View of Manila

Napoleon Abueva
 He is the Father of Modern Philippine
Sculpture.
 He was the sculptor who started the
1976 Sculpture trend in mixing different materials.
 Some of his works are Nine Muses,
Kaganapan, The Transfiguration, and
Sunburst

Jeremias Elizalde Navarro

 He is popularly known as J. Elizalde
Navarro.
 The prominent elements in his abstract
works were its geometric forms and
1999 Painting spontaneous strokes.
 Some of his works are Grand Prix:
Homage to Dodgie Laurel, I’m Sorry
Jesus I Can’t Attend the Mass, and
Target
Francisco Coching

 He is tagged as “Dean of Filipino

Illustrators”.
 He is popular for his komiks drawings.
2014 Visual Arts  Fantasy, love and adventure were the
usual themes of his works.
 Some of his works are El Vibora,
Dimasalang, Marabini, and Lapu Lapu

Victorio Edades  He is the “Father of Modern Philippine

Painting”.
 He was one of the “Triumvirate” who
introduced modernism in Philippine
visual arts.
1976 Painting  Depicted in his works were the
hardships in the life of the laborers and
the lower class in the society.
 Some of his works are The Sketch, The
Builders, Interaction, and
Fontainebleau, August 1937
Ang Kiukok

 He was known for his highly

expressionistic works containing
powerful meanings.
 Angst, anguish, and anger are the
2001 Visual Arts glaring emotions contained in his
cubistic works.
 Some of his works are Angry Figure,
Thinking Man, Fishermen, and Man on
Fire

Jose Joya
 He is an abstractionist known for his
“gestural paintings”.
 The prominent elements of his
artworks is the color harmony.
Visual Arts
2003  He promoted visual arts to the younger
(Painting)
generation by conducting regional
workshops.
 Some of his works are Hills of Nikko,
Dimension of Fear, Naiad, and Torogan
Vicente Manansala

 He contributed in the modernism of

Philippine visual arts by his style of
transparent cubism.
 He worked as an illustrator of the
1981 Painting
Philippine Herald.
 Some of his works are Madonna of the
Slums, Candle Vendors, The Bird Seller,
and Luksong Tinik

Lauro “Larry” Alcala

 He was a well-known editorial
cartoonist and illustrator in the
Philippines.
 He created over 500 characters and 20
2018 Visual Arts
comic strips in widely circulated
publications.
 Some of his works are Siopawman,
Slice of Life, and Baryo Pogspak
WORKSHEET
Visual Art National Artist: An Appreciation
NAME: SCORE:
GRADE AND SECTION: DATE:

Instructions: Choose a National Artist of the Philippines in Visual Arts among the national artists presented
above. Afterwards, choose a work (painting, sculpture, or any visual art) of your chosen National Artist.
Then, answer the question based on the work of the National Artist.

NAME OF THE NATIONAL ARTIST:

DATE OF AWARD: CATEGORY:
SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS:

CHOSEN WORK OF THE NATIONAL ARTIST (attach an image of the chosen work on the box below):

QUESTION:
How does the work of the National Artist show the cultural heritage of the Philippines and promote
creative expression as significant to the development of the national cultural identity?
 CONTEMPORARY PHILIPPINES ARTS FROM THE REGIONS
National Artists of the Philippines in Dance

DATE OF
ARTIST SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS
AWARD
Francisca Reyes Aquino

 She vigorously researched on the different folk

dances of the Philippines which made her the
“Folk Dance Pioneer” of the country.
 Her research entitled “Philippine Dances and
Games” contains the country’s unrecorded
celebration, folk dances, rituals and games.
1973
 She served as the supervisor of physical
education to the Bureau of Education in 1940’s.
 Due to her valuable contribution in the
development of Filipino culture, former
President Ramon Magsaysay awarded her the
Republic Award of Merit.

Ramon Obusan
 He promoted the Philippine ethnic dances and
performed them with respect and authenticity.
 His presentations attempt to demonstrate the
ethnic dances’ original routine and music.
2006
 His Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group, through
their performances, outreach works and tours,
inspired many Filipinos to embrace the Filipino
culture.

Alice Reyes

 Her major and most significant contribution in

the Philippine dance is the development of
unique Filipino modern idiom.
2014
 She creatively interweaved Philippine ethnic
dance, modern dance, and ballet producing a
one of a kind contemporary dance routine.
Leonor Orosa Goquingco

 She is known as “Trailblazer”, “Mother of

Philippine Theater Dance”, and “Dean of Filipino
Performing Arts Critics”.
1976  She significantly contributed to the progress of
the Philippine dance by developing distinct
productions using balletic folkloric and Asian
styles.

Lucrecia Reyes-Urtula

 She studied the country’s folk and ethnic dances

for four decades and developed ethnic
1988 choreographies applying her findings.
 She was the dance director of Bayanihan
Philippine Dance Company for three decades.
WORKSHEET
National Artist of the Philippines in Dance: An
Appreciation
NAME: SCORE:
GRADE AND SECTION: DATE:

Instructions: Search the major dances of the following National Artists of the Philippines in Dance and
indicate those in the table below.

Francisca Reyes Aquino Major Works (Dances)

Technique/Style in Dance

Ramon Ubusan Major Works (Dances)

Technique/Style in Dance

Major Works (Dances)

Alice Reyes
Technique/Style in Dance
 Leonor Orosa Goquingco Major Works (Dances)

Technique/Style in Dance

Lucrecia Reyes-Urtula Major Works (Dances)

Technique/Style in Dance

QUESTION:
1) How ethnic or contemporary dances in the Philippines promote or reflects cultural heritage of the
country and promote creative expression as significant to the development of the national cultural
identity?