The Cultural Center of the Philippines paid tribute to the newly named eight National Artists at the Main Theater last June 29, 5p.m.
Outgoing President Duterte conferred them the Order of National Artist in dance, theater, film and broadcast arts, literature, music, and fashion design, in a ceremony held June 16 at the Rizal Hall of Malacanang. They were declared the new National Artists under Presidential Proclamation no. 1390 signed on June 10.
They are Agnes Locsin (Dance), the late Salvacion Lim-Higgins (Fashion Design), the late Marilou Diaz-Abaya (Film), Ricardo ‘Ricky’ Lee (Film), Nora Cabaltera Villamayor aka Nora Aunor (Film), Gemino Abad (Literature), Fides Cuyugan-Asensio (Music), and Antonio Mabesa (Theater).
Tribute to National Artist for Dance, choreographer Agnes Locsin. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Agnes Locsin is a choreographer, director, and teacher. She is considered as one of the “most progressive contemporary choreographers in the Philippines,” for she distinctively utilizes Filipino beliefs, rituals, and ethnic traditions in her choreographies, concepts, and direction, which she was able to beautifully merge with her knowledge in Western dance techniques and called it “neo-ethnic.”
Among her successful works are Babaylan, which won second place in the Tokyo International Choreography Competition in 1993; Taong Talangka (Man-Crab); Salome, which won second place for dancer Camille Ordinario in the 1994 Concours International de la Danse in Paris; and narrative works like one on the life of the mythical hero Labaw Dungon in the epic Hinilawod from the island of Panay.
Tribute to the late National Artist for Fashion Design, Salvacion Lim-Higgins. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Salvacion Lim-Higgins, known to the fashion world as “Slim’s”, is credited for innovating and transforming the look of terno into a world-class silhouette by combining the elements of Philippine costume with European couture details and construction. She was known for her exquisite drapery, constant and evocative use of indigenous materials such as piña and jusi, referencing ethnic motifs in her modern dresses, and forward-looking and cutting-edge approach to fashion. Lim-Higgins introduced draping in traditional costumes and developed “convertible ternos.” Filipiniana took a more nuanced look through the eye-catching costumes she created for the Bayanihan Dance Company.
Tribute to the late National Artist for Film, director Marilou Diaz-Abaya. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Marilou Diaz-Abaya was a film and TV director and screenwriter. She began her career in the 1980s and was part of the generation that defined what is today remembered as the “Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema.” Her notable works are Brutal (1980), which marked Diaz-Abaya’s clear directorial style and unique feminist voice, as a bold experimenter of storytelling structure and a fierce creative protester against the harrowing plight of women in a male-dominated society; Moral (1982), which offered a nuanced commentary on the burdens imposed on women against which they explore their desires and navigate society; Karnal (1983), where the perverse entanglement of paternalism, desire, and drive for control results in a violent tragedy; Milagros (1997), where she moved away from direct advocacies and delved instead on an enigmatic exploration of feminine desire and innocence; Sa Pusod ng Dagat (1998), which explored the complex meaning of womanhood; Jose Rizal (1998), the biopic of the national hero; Muro-Ami (1999), which portrayed the lives of exploited children in the illegal practice of reef hunting; Bagong Buwan (2001), which endeavored to tell a fair and informed story about war-torn Muslim Mindanao; and Noon at Ngayon: Pagsasamang Kay Ganda (2003), which tells the story of four middle-aged women who have weathered life’s storms and reconciled with their pasts.
Tribute to National Artist for Film, Ricardo Lee. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Ricardo Lee, known as Ricky Lee, is a screenwriter for film and television, journalist, playwright, and a multi-awarded fictionist who published several novels, plays, essays, and short story collections along his screenplays and screenwriting manuals. He has demonstrated his mastery of writing historical films, literary and true-to-life adaptations, political, courtroom, and dramas, the stories of “outsiders” and marginalized figures such as laborers, prostitutes, rebels, migrant workers, and gay people, and his consistent elevation of all manner of genre fare, from horror to tearjerkers to comedies. Lee emerged in screenwriting in the late 1970s as part of the generation of filmmakers who ushered the “Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema.”
National Artist for Film, singer-actress Nora Aunor. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Tribute to National Artist for Film, Nora Cabaltera Villamayor. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Nora Cabaltera Villamayor, also known as Nora Aunor, has been in different fields for more than four decades—film, television, music, and stage. Her journey to fame started when she joined and won a local amateur singing contest in the radio program Darigold Jamboree. She came to be known as the girl with the “golden voice.” It was Tower Productions that gave her the biggest break: the title role in D’ Musical Teenage Idols, opposite Tirso Cruz III. Sampaguita Pictures’ 34th-anniversary presentation was also a Nora-Tirso starrer, Fiesta Extravaganza, when people began calling her “Superstar”. Succeeding years saw her in a wide variety of movie projects, proving her versatility in comedies, melodramas, and musicals. Her extensive filmography, with 170 films, yields many awards and citations from local and international organizations.
Tribute to National Artist for Literature, Dr. Gemino Abad. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Dr. Gémino H. Abad is a writer, critic, scholar, literary historian, and anthologist with numerous books and literary awards including 10 poetry volumes, nine volumes of literary criticism, two volumes on his own poetics, two short story collections, a five-volume historical anthology of Philippine poetry in English, and a six-volume anthology of Philippine short stories in English, from 1956 (the year where the late Leopoldo Yabes’ anthology left off) to 2009. Several of these books have received national literary awards such as the Gawad Dangal ng Lahi given by the Carlos Palanca Memorial Foundation; the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for his poetry; the CCP Award for Poetry; the Ani ng Dangal Award of the NCCA; the UMPIL’s Gawad Alagad ni Balagtas for lifetime achievement in poetry and literary criticism; the Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinangan sa Larangan ng Panitikan from the City of Maynila; the Manila Critics’ Circle National Book Award for poetry, for anthology, for personal anthology; and the Philippines Free Press Literary Awards for the short story, essay, and poetry.
Tribute to National Artist for Music, Fides Cuyugan-Asensio. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Professor Emeritus Fides Cuyugan-Asensio’s more than six decades of involvement in opera prove her dedication and passion to bring the otherwise inaccessible Western dramatic idiom to Philippine theaters for the Filipino opera enthusiasts to experience. Her life-long commitment to opera and musical theater enriched Philippine arts. By performing, teaching, producing, and directing opera and theater productions, she contributed to a renaissance of classical musical theater in the country. Her iconic performance of Sisa in Felipe de Leon’s Noli Me Tangere became a hallmark in the country’s musical theater history.
National Artist for Theater Antonio Mabesa represented by niece Elizabeth Mabesa Oca (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Tribute to the late National Artist for Theater Antonio Mabesa. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Antonio “Tony” Mabesa, known as the Lion of the Theater, was a director, actor, and teacher who greatly contributed to the growth and diversity of Philippine theater. His theater teaching, formalism as aesthetics, and methods of production have made an impact on generations of theater students. He was a professor, artist and mentor remembered for his lessons on discipline, commitment and respect for theater.
The Order of National Artists (Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining) is the highest national recognition given Filipinos who have made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts—Music, Dance, Theater, Visual Arts, Literature, Film, Broadcast Arts, and Architecture and Allied Arts. The order is jointly administered by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and conferred by the President of the Philippines upon the recommendation by both institutions.
The Order of National Artists was established by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 1001 dated April 27, 1972 to give appropriate recognition and prestige to Filipinos who have distinguished themselves and made outstanding contributions to Philippine arts and letters.
The National Artist Award is given every three years in June by the President. To date, there is a total of 81 National Artists.
Banners of the 8 new National Artists are on display at the CCP Main Theater Lobby. (Photo by Kiko Cabuena)
Read more:
