Notable Filipino Artists

in the field of Literature

Group 2- CPAR 12 STEM
Amado Vera Hernandez
• National Artist of the Philippines for Literature 1973
• Born on September 13, 1903, in Hagonoy, Bulacan,
Philippines
• Passed away on March 24, 1970, in Manila

• a prominent Filipino writer, poet, and activist known for

his criticism of social injustices in the Philippines and
was later imprisoned for his involvement in the
communist movement. He was the central figure in a
landmark legal case that took thirteen years to settle.
Masterpieces:
• "Isang Dipang Langit“ ( A stretch of Heaven)
- won a Republic Cultural Heritage award
- the poem solely describes vividly the pain of a life devoid
of physical freedom, and the audacity of the spirit
regaining freedom. The poem points to the singular power
of the human will—only the physical body can be
incarcerated.
• Ang Bayang Malaya ( Free Nation)
- won a Balagtas Award
- a long narrative piece about a peasant leader. Oppression and
fighting for human rights are the main themes of the said piece

• Mga Ibong mandaranggit (The Birds of Prey)

- -a story of the valiant fight for justice and social change
during and after the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in
World War II

• Luha ng Buwaya (Crocodile's Tears)

-The story is about poor farmers uniting against the greedy
desires of the prominent family of the Grandes
Jose Garcia Villa
Jose Garcia Villa
• National Artist of the Philippines title for literature in 1973
• Filipino literary critic, poet, painter, and short story writer
• August 5, 1908, in Manila – February 7, 1997, in New York City
• Used the pen name “Doveglion,” which was a combination of the words
“dove,” “eagle,” and “lion” and was what he believed was his true
persona.
• Villa also added to the world of poetic style, introducing a new rhyme
scheme called “reversed consonance.” As Villa explained, “The last
sounded consonants of the last syllable, or the last principal consonant
of a word, are reversed for the corresponding rhyme.
- Thus, a rhyme for near would be run; or rain, green, reign. For light —
tell, tall, tale, steal, etc.
• He was often referred to as the "Pope of Greenwich
Village" due to his association with the literary scene in
New York City. His poems were published in prestigious
literary magazines, and he received praise from
prominent American poets and writers like e.e. cummings
and Marianne Moore.
Masterpieces:

• The Anchored Angel ( 1990)

-The Anchored Angel features poetry
selections from each stage of Villa's
career
- The theme of the poem can be fate
and freewill, or wisdom of experience.
• The Emperor's New Sonnet
- The story is about an attack on snobbery and pretension ,and
makes fun of people who do not have their own say on what is
beautiful and tend to rely on other people's judgments before
making their own.

• Footnote to Youth (1993)

-This book is about how a boy and a girl experienced what real
life is at an early age because of their naiveness and
stubbornness.
- The theme of the story means that people will always go with
their feelings without hesitations they will do anything to get what
they want specially the youth and then regretting it at the end.
•"Have Come, Am Here" (1942)
•"Selected Poems and New" (1958)
• "Volume Two" (1979)
Awards:
• Guggenheim Fellowship (1942)
• Bollingen Foundation Fellowship (1951-52)
• Shelley Memorial Award (1958)
• Philippines Pro Patria Award (1961)
• Philippines Cultural Heritage Award (1962)
• Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship (1963).
Nicomedes Joaquín y Márquez(Nick Joaquin)
• Born on May 4, 1917, in Paco, Manila
Died on April 29, 2004, in San Juan
A Filipino writer and journalist best known for his short stories and
novels in the English language. He also wrote using the pen name
Quijano de Manila.
He was named National Artist for Philippines Literature in 1976.
Joaquin was awarded a scholarship to the Dominican monastery in
Hong Kong after publication of his essay “La Naval de Manila” (1943)
Masterpieces:
• Three Generations (1940)
Three Generations” by Nick Joaquin follows Celo Monzon and his
terrible childhood. He reflects on the unhappiness he experienced as
a child after his own son decides to enter the priesthood
• May day eve (1947)
May Day Eve utilized the theme of “magic realism” long before the
genre was made a trend in Latin American novels.
• A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino (1966) a celebrated play, attempts
to reconcile historical events with dynamic change.
Masterpieces:
• The Aquinos of Tarlac: An Essay on History as Three Generations
(1983)
presents a biography of Benigno Aquino, the assassinated presidential
candidate.
• Other Works:
Prose and Poems(1952)
After the Picnic
The Legend of the Dying Wanton
The Legend of the Virgin Jewel
It Was Later than we Thought
Awards:
• José Garcia Villa’s Honor Roll (1940)
Philippines Free Press Short Story Contest (1949)
Ten Most Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines (TOYM), Awardee
for Literature (1955)
Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Literary Awards (1957–1958; 1965; 1976)
• Harper Publishing Company (New York, U.S.) writing fellowship
Stonehill Award for the Novel (1960)
Republic Cultural Heritage Award (1961)
Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinangan Award from the City of Manila (1964)
National Artist Award (1976).
S.E.A. Write Award (1980)
Awards:
• Ramon Magsaysay Award for Literature (1996)
Tanglaw ng Lahi Award from the Ateneo de Manila University (1997)
Several ESSO Journalism awards, including the highly
covetedJournalist of the Year Award.
His work “Three Generations” was awarded Best Short Story
published in the Philippine Review (March 1943-November 1944)
Journalist of the Year in the 11th National Press Club-Esso Journalism
Awards (1966)
Won the Seato Literary Award Contest for his collection of short
stories and poems (June 1, 1973)
Awards:
• Won the nation’s most prestigious awards carrying material
emoluments besides honor and privileges (March 27, 1976)
National Artist for Literature by President and Mrs. Marcos cited
having “opened a new vision of Filipino Life” (1976)

• Joaquin’s later works are mostly nonfiction, including Manila, My

Manila: A History for the Young (1990), The D.M. Guevara Story
(1993), and Mr. F.E.U., the Culture Hero That Was Nicanor Reyes
(1995).
Carlos P. Romulo
• was born in Camiling, Tarlac on January 14, 1899.
was died in Manila, on December 15, 1985
• He was proclaimed a National Artist for Literature of the Philippines
in 1982
Romulo became a professor of English at the University of the
Philippines in 1923
• He was a newspaper editor, army general, university president,
ambassador, foreign minister, national artist, president of the United
Nations General Assembly.
Masterpieces:
• Romulo, in all, wrote and published 22 books, including :
The United (1951)
I Walked with Heroes(1961)
I Saw the Fall of the Philippines(1943)
• Mother America(1943)
I See the Philippines Rise(1946)
Awards:
• The only asian to win Pulitzer Prize for
journalism for series of articles predicting the
outbreak of World War ll.
Virgilio S. Almario

• Born on March 9, 1944 in Bulacan, Philippines

• In 2003, Virgilio S. Almario was proclaimed as a National Artist of the
Philippines for Literature.
• He is a prolific writer, poet, critic, translator, editor, teacher, and
cultural manager.He began writing poetry in the early 1960s and was
one of the pioneers of the second modernist movement in Filipino
poetry.
• He is also the founder and workshop director of the Linangan sa
Imahen, Retorika, at Anyo (LIRA), an organization of poets who write
in Filipino.Almario's contributions to Filipino literature and culture are
immeasurable.
Masterpieces:
• He has published numerous collections of poetry, including:
"Mga Retrato at Rekwerdo" (1984),
"Katon Para sa Limang Pandama" (1987)
"Memo Mulang Gimokudan" (2005)

• He is also the author of several books on the Filipino language,

including :
"Ang Wikang Pambansa sa Panahon ng Globalisasyon” (2004)
"Filipino: Kasaysayan at Pag-unlad" (2017).
Awards:
• National Artist of the Philippines for Literature (2003)
• Centennial Award for Literature by the Cultural Center of
the Philippines (1998)
• Southeast Asia Write Award in Bangkok (1989)
• Palanca Memorial Awards for poetry and essay (1970,
1979, 1984, 1990)
• CCP Literary Awards for poetry and essay (1975, 1979,
1984)
• Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) for literature (1980)
Bienvenido Lumbera
• was born on 11 April 1932 in Lipa City, Batangas, Philippines
• was died on September 28, 2021, at the age of 89
• He began writing poetry in the early 1950s and was one of the
pioneers of the "Bagay" movement in Filipino poetry, which
emphasized the importance of everyday experiences and the Filipino
language.
Masterpieces:
• Lumbera has published numerous collections of poetry, including:
"Likhang Dila, Likhang Diwa" (1993)
"Balaybay, Mga Tulang Lunot at Manibalang" (2002)
"Sa Sariling Bayan, Apat na Dulang May Musika" (2004).

• He has also written several plays, including :

"Florante at Laura" (1975)
"Rama Hari" (1980).