SELECTION PROCESS OF GAMABA AWARD
the practice of his/her art, thus
What is GAMABA Award?
 Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan
 Also called National Living Treasures
Award
 R.A. no 7355
 Formalized in April 1992
 Objective is to honor & support
traditional folk artists & to see to it
that their skills and crafts are
preserved.
NCCA (National Commission for the Culture
and Art)
 Oversees the implementation
 Search for the finest traditional
artist
CRITERIA
1. Engaged for a significant period of
time with atleast 50 yrs of existence
and documentation
2. Filipino citizen that has preserved
indigenous costume, rituals, believes
and traditions
3. Produced &performed over a
significant period of artistic,
distinctive & superior quality
4. Possess a mastery of tools &
materials that are needed by the art
5. Must have a reputation for being an
art master & craft maker
6. Passed to other members of the
community their skills by teaching
 Constantly displayed excellence in
contributed to the development of
tradition & craft
 Passed on to the other members of
the community in the folk art
 A master of his/her art (recognized)
SELECTION PROCESS
1. The Panel
- Ad hoc panel of experts
- Representative from each of the
committees of the sub
commission on Cultural
Communities and Traditional
Arts, such as the Office of the
Muslim Affairs (OMA), the
National Commission on
Indigenous People (NCIP) and
other appropriate institutions.
- Ad hoc panel of reviewers – 5
members of Gawad sa
Manlilikha ng Bayan Committee
& 4 individuals identified by the
Committee among scholars,
practitioners and experts.
2. The Nomination
- Can come from the members of
the ad hoc panel of experts, sub-
commissions on Cultural
Communities & Traditional Arts,
Government & Private
Institutions, and Universities &
Other Persons knowledgeable of
the art.
 3. The Screening
- Conduct searchers & document
the candidates art/craft
- Submit to NCCA
- The President of the Philippines
confers the awardees
GAMABA AWARDEES
WEAVING
1. Magdalena Gamayo (textile weaver)
- 2012
- Pinili, Ilocos Norte
- Binakol or woven cloth
- Inabel
2. Lang Dulay (textile weaver)
- 1998
- Lake Sebu, South Cotabato
- T’nakal (a fine abaca cloth)
3. Haja Amina Appi (pandan mat
weaver)
- 2004
- Ungos, Matata, Tandubas, Tawi-
Tawi
- Weaving Pandan Mats
4. Salinta Monon (textile weaver)
- 1998
- Bansalan, Davao del Sur
- Inabal (traditional Bagobo
textile)
- Pattern binuwaya (crocodile)
5. Darhata Sawabi (textile weaver)
- 2004
- Parang, Sulu
- Headpiece pis siyabit pis –
pattern derived from India’s
Mandala
- Siyabit – refers to the hook &
technique
LITERATURE AND PERFORMING ARTS
1. Samaon Sulaiman (musician)
- 1993
- Maguindanaon known for his
mastery of the indigineous
kutyapi instrument
2. Ginaw Bilog (poet)
- 1993
- Mangyan poetry tradition of
ambahan
3. Masino Intaray (poet, band
artist, musician)
- 1993
- Lyrical poems and playing
accompanying instruments, epic
chanting and storytelling
4. Alonzo Saclag (traditional dancer
& musician)
- Playing Kalinga Instrument,
dance patterns and movements
associated with rituals
5. Federico Caballero (oral
literature)
- 2000
- Chanting the Sugidanon Epic of
the Panay Bukidnon
- Documentation of the Oral
Literature
6. Uwang Ahadas (musician)
- 2000
- Playing Yakan Musical
Instruments
SCULPTURES AND POTTERY
1. Eduardo Mutuc (metalsmith & artist)
- 2004
- Apalit, Pampanga
- Pukpuk Silver Metalwork
2. Teofilo Garcia (Tabungaw Hat
Making)
- 2012
- San Quintin, Abra
- Kattukong

ISSUES OF GAMABA AWARDS

Kalinga Tattoo Artist

Whang – Od Oggay
- 2015
- Won the National Artist Award
but to some she deserves the
National Living Treasure Award
or Gamaba

Batok – tattoo ink, made of charcoal &

water, is tapped into the skin through a
thorn end.

- Butbut Kalinga Tribe

- Nominated in 2017 for GAMABA
AWARDEE but still not a
recipient
- Clothing line named “Tribes”
with a picture of Whang-Od as
its cover
NATIONAL ARTIST AWARD
The Order of the National Artists Award
(Orden ng Gawad Pambansang Alagad ng
Sining) is the highest national recognition
given to Filipino individuals who have made
significant contributions to the
development of Philippine arts; namely,
Music, Dance, Theater, Visual Arts,
Literature, Film and Broadcast Arts, and
Architecture and Allied Arts.
The order is jointly administered by the
National Commission for Culture and the
Arts (NCCA) and Cultural Center of the
Philippines (CCP) and conferred by the
President of the Philippines upon
recommendation by both institutions.
The Order of National Artists Award is one
of the Honors conferred by the Republic of
the Philippines that embodies the nation’s
highest ideals in the humanities and
aesthetic expression through the distinct
achievements of individual citizens. While
the Republic bestows due recognition to
these singular achievements, it in turn
honors its own cultural heritage, whose
enrichment these achievements have
significantly effected, enhanced, and given
direction.
Achievements are measured in terms of
their vision, unusual insight, creativity and
imagination, technical proficiency of the
highest order in expressing Filipino culture
and traditions, history, way of life, and
aspirations
CRITERIA
Filipino citizenship, the contribution of their
works to nation-building, impact of their
distinctive and pioneering works or styles
on succeeding generations of artists,
excellence in the practice of their art form
which enriches artistic expression or style,
and prestigious national and international
recognitions
National Artist Award secretariat (the NCCA
and CCP) announces the opening of
nominations through media releases and
letters to qualified organizations, such as
government and nongovernment cultural
organizations, educational institutions, and
private foundations and councils.
The National Artist Award Panel of Experts
and Jury of Experts, with the living national
artists as automatic members, screen and
deliberate on the nominees, after which a
final list of recommendees is sent to the
President for the issuance of proclamation
BENEFITS
1. A cash award of one hundred thousand
pesos (₱100,000.00) net of taxes, for living
awardees;
2. A cash award of seventy-five thousand
pesos (₱75,000.00) net of taxes, for
posthumous awardees, payable to legal
heir/s;
3. A monthly life pension, medical and
hospitalization benefits;
Life insurance coverage for Awardees who
are still insurable;
5. A state funeral and burial at the Libingan
ng mga Bayani.
6. A place of honor, in line with protocolar
precedence, at national state functions, and
recognition at cultural events.
CONTROVERSIES
- actress Nora Aunor from the final list of
honorees this year. She was originally
among those shortlisted for the honor,
but was disregarded in the end.
President Benigno Aquino III has not
issued a statement about why Aunor
was left out of the final list of honorees,
but netizens and fans are speculating
that her previous run-in with the law in
the US might have been a factor.
- 1999: Former president Joseph Estrada
named his good friend Ernani Cuenco
as National Artist for Music even before
the NCCA-CCP could submit to him the
list of awardees, which did not include
Cuenco. This resulted in the
proclamation for Cuenco bearing a date
earlier than the proclamations for the
other awardees
- 2003: Arroyo named writer Alejandro
Roces a National Artist for Literature in
2003 even though he was eliminated
from the first round of selection. Roces
was education secretary of the late
President Diosdado Macapagal, the
incumbent’s father. He was even fired
as chair of the Movie and Television
Review and Classification Board during
Arroyo's time, yet was given the
National Artist Award.
- 2006: Arroyo conferred the
award on the late Senator
Francisco “Soc” Rodrigo (for
writing poetry and translating
plays) and sculptor and painter
Abdulmari Asia Imao as a form of
"political accomodation."
Rodrigo was Macapagal’s
contemporary as an anti-Marcos
politician, and his daughter was
Arroyo's high school best friend
and correspondence secretary in
Malacañang. Imao, on the other
hand, was conferred the award
after Malacañang was flooded by
petitions and endorsements
mostly from Mindanao. Between
the two, only Imao was given the
award in the end.
CATEORIES
• Music - singing, composition,
direction, and/or performance;
• Dance - choreography, direction
and/or performance;
• Theater – direction, performance
and/or production design;
• Contemporary Arts – painting,
sculpture, printmaking,
photography, installation art, mixed
media works, illustration, graphic
arts, performance art and/or
imaging;
• Literature – poetry, fiction, essay,
playwriting, journalism and/or
literary criticism;
• Film and Broadcasting/Broadcast
Arts – direction, writing, production
 design, cinematography, editing,
camera work, and/or performance;
• Architecture, Design and Allied
Arts– architecture design, interior
design, industrial arts design,
landscape architecture and fashion
design.
The NCCA 'created' the category of National
Artist for Fashion Design when it nominated
Ramon Valera, but subsumed that category
under "Architecture and Allied Arts".
THEATRE
1. Lamberto Avellana
- 1976
- Direct film of Macario Sakay
- “Sakay”
- Replacing thetraditional level
camera angle
2. Honorata “Atang” Dela Rama
- 1987
- Dalagang Bukid (1919). Oriental
Blood (1930), Batong Buhay
(1950)
3. Wilfredo Maria Guerrero
- 1997
- Wrote 100 plays, 41 been
published
- Filipino playwright, director,
teacher, & theatre artist
4. Rolando Santos Tinio
- 1997
- Filipino poet, dramatist, director,
actor, critic, essayist, & educator
5. Daisy H. Avellana
- 1999
- Wife of Lamberto Avellana
- Co-founded Barangay Theater
Guild (BTG)
6. Severino Montano (2001)
- Titans of Philippine Theater
- Institutionalized “legitimate
theatre”
7. Salvador Bernal
- 2003
- Philippine Association of Theater
Designers and Technicians
(Patdat)
PAINTING
1. Fernando Amorsolo
- 1972
- Grand Old Man of the Philippine
Art
- Backlighting Technique
2. Carlos V. Francisco
- 1973
- Forgotten art of mural
- “The triumvirate” included
Victorio Edades & Galo Ocampo
3. Victorio Edades
- 1976
- Revolutionary 13 moderns
- Father of the Modern Painter
4. Vicente S. Manansala
- 1981
- Cubist painting & prints
- UNESCO fellowship
5. J. Elizalde Navarro
- 1999
- Fine Arts Major in Painting at
University of Santo Tomas
- Incision painting
LITERATURE
1. Amado Vera Hernandez
- 1973
- Makata ng Manggagawa
- Practice Committed Art
- Mga Ibong Mandaragit
2. Jose Garcia Villa
- 1973
- One of the finest Contemporary
poets
- Have Come, Am Here – received
critical recognition which is the
American Academy of Arts and
Letter Awards
3. Nick Joaquin
- 1976
- Joqquinesque
4. Carlos P. Romulo
- 1982
- Only Asian America’s coveted
Pulitzer Prize in Journalism
5. Francisco Arcellana
- 1990
- Lyrical prose
6. Rolando S. Tinio
- 1997
- Re-staging old theatre forms
7. N.V.M. Gonzales
- 1997
- UP’s International Writer in
Residence and a member of the
Board of Advisers of the UP
Creative Writing Center
8. Levi Celerio
- 1997
- Prolific lyricist & composer
- Guinness Book of World Record
as the only person able to make
music using leaf
9. Edith L. Tiempo
- 1999
- Fusion of style & substance
- Descriptive but unburdened by
scrupulous detailing
10. F. Sionil Jose
- 2001
- Generations of the Samson &
their struggle with society
- Founder of the Philippine
Chapter of the International
Organization PEN
11. Virgilio S. Almario
- 2003
- Lyrical to satirical to epic
- Aklat Adarna Series
12. Alejandro Roces
- 2003
- Public attention to the aesthetics
of the country’s fiestas
- Best writer of comic stories
13. Bienvenido Lumbera
- 2006
- Bagay poetry
14. Lazaro Francisco
- 2009
- Socio realist tradition
- Filipino ways of life
15. Chilo F. Bautista
- 2014
- Fine and profound artistry
- Foremost writer (his generation)
LANDSCAPES AND ARCHITECTURE
1. Juan F. Nakpil
- 1973
- Architect, teacher, and civil
leader, is a pioneer and
innovator in Philippine
Architecture
- architecture reflective of
Philippine traditions and culture
- designed the 1937 International
Eucharistic Congress altar and
rebuilt and enlarged the Quiapo
Church in 1930 adding a dome
and a second belfry to the
original design
- Geronimo de los Reyes
Building,Magsaysay Building,
Rizal Theater, Capitol Theater,
Captain Pepe Building, Manila
Jockey Club, Rufino Building,
Philippine Village Hotel,
University of the Philippines
Administration and University
Library, and the reconstructed
Rizal house in Calamba, Laguna
2. Pablo S. Antonio
- 1976
- pioneered modern Philippine
architecture
- basic design is grounded on
simplicity, no clutter
- maximum use of natural light
and cross ventilation
- “should be planned with
austerity in mind and its stability
forever as the aim of true
architecture, that buildings must
be progressive, simple in design
 but dignified, true to a purpose
without resorting to an applied
set of aesthetics and should
eternally recreate truth”
- major works include the
following: Far Eastern University
Administration and Science
buildings; Manila Polo Club; Ideal
Theater;Lyric Theater; Galaxy
Theater; Capitan Luis Gonzaga
Building; Boulevard-Alhambra
(now Bel-Air) apartments;
Ramon Roces Publications
Building (now Guzman Institute
of Electronics)
3. Leandro V. Locsin
- 1990
- reshaped the urban landscape
with a distinctive architecture
reflective of Philippine Art and
Culture
- true Philippine Architecture is
“the product of two great
streams of culture, the oriental
and the occidental… to produce
a new object of profound
harmony.”
- largest single work is the Istana
Nurul Iman, the palace of the
Sultan of Brunei, which has a
floor area of 2.2 million square
feet
- CCP Complex itself is a virtual
Locsin Complex with all five
buildings designed by him — the
Cultural Center of the
Philippines, Folk Arts Theater,
Philippine International
Convention Center, Philcite and
The Westin Hotel (now Sofitel
Philippine Plaza)
4. Ildefonso P. Santos, Jr
- 2006
- pioneering the practice of
landscape architecture–an allied
field of architecture
- Makati Commercial Center where
he introduced a new concept of
outdoor shopping with landscaped
walks, fountains and sculptures as
accents
- seminal public landscape in Paco
Park.
- Tagaytay Highland Resort, the Mt.
Malarayat Golf and Country Clubin
Lipa, Batangas, and the Orchard
Golf and Country Club in Imus,
Cavite.
5. Jose Maria V. Zaragosa
- 2014
- significant body of modern edifices
that address spiritual and secular
requirements
- 82nd architect of the Philippines
- International Institute of Liturgical
Art (IILA) in Rome in the late 1950s,
where he obtained a diploma in
liturgical art and architecture
- 45 churches and religious centers,
including the Santo Domingo
Church, Our Lady of Rosary in Tala,
Don Bosco Church, the Convent of
the Pink Sisters, the San Beda
Convent, Villa San Miguel, Pius XII
Center, the Union Church, and the
controversial restoration of the
Quiapo Church, among others
- pillar of modern architecture in
Philippines buttressed by a half-
 century career that produced
ecclesiastical edifices and structures
of modernity in the service of God
and humanity
6. Francisco T. Manosa
- Jose and Manuel, both B.S.
Architecture graduates from the
same school, they founded the
architectural firm, Mañosa Brothers
in 1954. Some of the group’s
significant works were the Sulô
Restaurant at the Makati
Commercial Center (1962), the
Hidden Valley Springs Resort, the
Makiling Conference Center, the
restoration of the Guadalupe Ruins,
Colegio San Agustin in Makati, the
Murray & Herminia Lopez Otstott
Residence in Forbes Park, Makati,
and the San Miguel Corporation
Corporate Headquarters in Ortigas
Center, Pasig City (1979).
- Philippine climate calls for tropical
architecture whose features include
accommodations to the wet and dry
seasons
- it’s about the use of indigenous
materials such as bamboo, rattan,
coconut shells and trunks, dried
anahaw leaves, capiz shells, and
volcanic rock.
- from his masterwork the Tahanang
Pilipino (1980), better known as the
Coconut Palace; the Mañosa House
(1983) in Ayala Alabang; the Lu Ym
House (2000) in Banilad, Cebu City;
the Amanpulo (1994) at Pamalican
Island, Palawan; the Pearl Farm
Resort (1994) in Samal Island,
Davao; the Mactan Shangri-la
Resort & Spa (1993) in Mactan
Island, Cebu; and the Eskaya Beach
Resort & Spa in Panglao, Bohol.
- known for his ecclesiastical works
such as the St. Joseph Parish Church
(1976), better known as the Las
Piñas Bamboo Organ Church, the
Mary Immaculate Parish (1988) in
Moonwalk Village, Las Pinas City,
and the Shrine of Mary Queen of
Peace (1989), better known as the
EDSA Shrine in Ortigas Center.
- his institutional works which stand
out are the Ateneo Professional
Schools (2000) in Rockwell Center,
the JMT Corporate Center (1992) in
ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, and
The Aquino Center (2001) in
Hacienda Luisita, Tarlac. He was
also involved in the restoration and
transformation of Corregidor Island
(1992) into a war memorial and
tourism zone and the masterplan
for the redevelopment of the
Quezon Memorial Circle (1980s).
- Among his other works were the
LRT Train Stations and the Elsie
Gaches Village (1998) in Alabang-
Zapote Road, Muntinlupa City
- His legacy lives on in Mañosa &
Company, a multi-disciplinary
design firm, and Mañosa
Properties, Inc., a real estate
development firm founded by his
children, Dino, Bambi, and Angelo,
which offers artisanal real estate
inspired by the bahay kubo
FASHION 5. Guillermo Tolentino
1. Ramón Valera - Filipino sculptor and professor of
- 2006 the University of the Philippines.
- The NCCA 'created' the category of - He was designated as a National
National Artist for Fashion Design Artist of the Philippines for
when it nominated Ramon Valera, Sculpture in 1973, three years
but subsumed that category under before his death
"Architecture and Allied Arts".
VISUAL ARTS
1. Larry Alcala
- 2018
- His most popular cartoon series was
"Slice of Life, which is a reflection of
the many unique aspects of
everyday life in the Philippines.
2. Francisco Coching
- 2014
- was a Filipino comic books
illustrator and writer and is
regarded as one of the “pillars of
the Philippine Komiks Industry
3. Abdulmari Asia Imao
- 2006
- Is known for using the okir,
sarimanok and the naga as motifs in
his artworks and is credited for
popularizing the motifs to the
Filipino national consciousness.
- He draws inspiration from Tausūg
and Maranao art
4. Federico Aguilar Alcuaz
- 2009
- In 1956 he became a member of
the La Punalada Group. In the same
year he began signing his paintings
with Aguilar Alcuaz to distinguish
himself from two other Aguilars
who are also members of the La
Punalada Group.