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Malacañang fetes 9 new National Artists
President Benigno Aquino III on Thursday led the conferment of the national artists title to nine individuals in a ceremony in Malacañan Palace..
Conferred with the prestigious title of the Order of the National Artist were Manuel Conde (film and broadcast arts, posthumous), Lazaro Francisco (literature, posthumous) and Federico Aguilar Alcuaz (visual arts, posthumous), who were proclaimed in 2009.
Joining them were members of the 2014 batch composed of Alicia Garcia Reyes (dance), Cirilo Bautista (literature), Francisco Coching (visual arts, posthumous), Francisco Feliciano (music, posthumous), Dr. Ramon Santos (music) and Jose Maria Zaragoza (architecture, design and allied arts, posthumous).
Reyes, Bautista and Santos personally received the recognition while those who passed on were represented by their families.
In his speech, Aquino thanked the awardees for their contributions to national development.
"Naabot man ninyo ang tuktok ng inyong propesyon, hindi kayo basta lang nakuntento, sa halip, patuloy ninyong pinagyaman ang inyong mga kaalaman at kakayahan. Kaya naman, buong-karangalan po akong humaharap sa inyo ngayon, at taos-pusong tumatanaw sa inyong dakilang kontribusyon: Sa inyong lahat, maraming-maraming salamat po," he said.
Aquino said the national artists' works and talents have inspired many young Filipinos.
"Sa pagbubukas-palad at pag-aalay ninyo ng sarili, napapanatili at lalo nating napapayabong ang ating kultura at pagkakilanlan," he said.
Taking the artists' example as cue, Aquino added public service must be directed towards the people, and not towards oneself.
"Nakatutok tayo, hindi sa pansariling interes, kundi sa kapakanan ng mas nakakarami. Sa bawat pagkakataon, ibinubuhos natin ang ating buong lakas upang isulong ang minamahal nating bansa," the President said.
Conde or Manuel Urbano in real life was a film director, writer, actor and producer used film to transmit to a younger generation of Filipinos the stories in ancient and oral narratives like Ibong Adarna, Siete Infantes de Lara and Prinsipe Teñoso.
He introduced Filipino cinema to the world when his epic Genghis Khan competed in the prestigious Venice Film Festival in 1952.
Francisco wrote 11 novels focused on the plight of the common man, most especially the oppressed peasantry.
In the 1950s, his literary art was a distinctive feature of the incipient nationalist awakening of the Filipino youth movement.
Alcuaz was a painter and a lawyer, best known for his still lifes that are considered unmatched in the history of Philippine art.
Bautista, a poet and educator, has produced novels, essays, translations, criticism and theory.
He imparted his knowledge to budding writers by conducting writing workshops nationwide to encourage the flourishing of literary arts.
Feliciano combined Filipino culture and the Western musical idiom in his operas, ballets, orchestral works and hymns.
Santos' scholarly work as composer, conductor, musicologist and academic has contributed to a deeper understanding of Filipino culture and heritage.
His compositions that combine his avant-garde musical orientation with his interest in Southeast Asian musical traditions continue to influence today's young Filipino composers.
As a choreographer, artistic director and dance educator, Reyes helped create the foundation of modern dance in the Philippines and spearheaded the development and promotion of a distinctly Filipino modern dance form.
Coching was a Filipino comics illustrator. Among the characters he created were Bing Bigotilyo, Marabini, Hagibis, and Sabas ang Barbaro.
Zaragoza was a leading figure in the Philippine architectural scene of the 1950s.
He was for having designed the Sto. Domingo Church in Quezon City and the Lopez Building in Ortigas Center in Pasig City, which now houses the head office of the Manila Electric Company, the country's largest power distributor.
Created by then President Ferdinand Marcos in 1972, the National Artist Award is the highest recognition given to Filipino individuals who have made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts.
The award is given every three years by the President of the Philippines.
This time frame, however, was not followed in recent years due to controversies.
In 2009, the Supreme Court stopped President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from conferring the title of national artist on seven individuals including comics illustrator and film director Carlo J. Caparas and Philippine Educational Theater Association founder Cecile Guidote-Alvarez while it was deliberating on a petition to void the Palace proclamation.
Four years later, the high court removed Alvarez (theater), Caparas (visual arts and film), Francisco Mañosa (architecture), and Jose "Pitoy" Moreno (fashion design) from the list as it ruled that Arroyo gave preferential treatment to these individuals.
Meanwhile, Aquino's decision to exclude veteran and multi-awarded actress Nora Aunor from the prestigious honor in 2014 due to past issues caused outrage among individuals and personalities in the arts and culture communities. — APG, GMA News
