F. Sionil Jose clarifies the letter ‘circulating without my prior knowledge’

National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose on Tuesday issued a clarification about a letter he wrote to “the great patron of the National Museum Ramon del Rosario,’ which is currently circulating online “without my prior knowledge.”

His sharp opinion, objecting to a few things on display in the National Museum raised a few eyebrows, and on Facebook he made his opinions public.

After a short preamble on how the National Museum has become an institution to be proud of and flock to, and that it belongs to us and is supported by us, F. Sionil Jose dove right in: “It should under no condition exhibit anything but the best that our artists have created.

“I object to the presence of a work by Andres Cristobal Cruz and most of all a room dedicated to Emilio Aguilar Cruz. Both have not produced any significant body of work, either paintings or books, of great artistry.”

The room he is referring to is the Emilio Aguilar Cruz Hall, which was inaugurated in 2015 and is now part of the museum's permanent collection, according to the Inquirer. It has more than 70 artworks by Cruz, donated by the family — the largest single donation the museum has seen since 1987.

Sionil Jose emphasized the necessity of appraising the museum’s collections and exhibits “by a committee or jury of expert curators, scholars, and acknowledged leaders in art and culture, and that this process is transparent.”

He stressed the National Museum is a public entity and its administrators and curators, government officials.

“My opinion is just an opinion, but I’d like to consider it a learned opinion. I’ve spent a lifetime writing about our art and culture. I also personally knew and have had many conversations with our great artists, among them our contemporary artists.”

GMA News Online has reached out to the National Museum and the Cruz family for their reactions. — LA, GMA News