Get to know the Philippines’ 10 new national artists

MANILA, Philippines – Every three years, a new set of Filipino individuals receive the country’s highest honors for their contributions to Philippine arts and all its forms. These pioneers are chosen and vetted by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), and later conferred by the president of the Philippines. The last set of national artists were named in 2022 and included screenwriter and novelist Ricky Lee, dancer Agnes Locsin, stage director and theater actor Antonio “Tony” Mabesa, cartoonist Lauro “Larry” Alcala, poet Gemino Abad, fashion designer Salvacion Lim-Higgins, soprano Fides Cuyugan-Asensio, actress Nora Aunor, and director Marilou Diaz-Abaya. This time, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. named 10 new national artists under Proclamation No.

1414 across the fields of literature, film and broadcast arts, visual arts, architecture, music, fashion design, and dance. Get to know them and their legacies here. Gregorio Brillantes (Literature, posthumous) Born and raised in Camiling, Tarlac, Gregorio Brillantes was a decorated author who was dubbed the “master of the Filipino short story” and “the godfather of Philippine speculative fiction. ” Brillantes stood as one of the most defining voices in Philippine fiction in English as we know it today. He published a vast array of influential works that cut across generations, such as The Distance to Andromeda and Other Stories; Faith, Love, Time, and Dr. Lazaro; and The Apollo Centennial. He also wrote and edited for the publications Sunburst, The Manila Review, Focus, Asia-Philippines Leader, and the Philippines Free Press. Must Read Pareng Greg: Remembering the great Gregorio Brillantes Brillantes received his BLitt degree, major in journalism, from Ateneo…