Nick Joaquin

Biography

Joaquín was born in Paco, Manila. He dropped out of high school and did odd jobs on Manila's waterfront and elsewhere. He taught himself by reading widely at the National Library of the Philippines and the library of his father, Leocadio Joaquín, who had been a lawyer and a colonel in the Philippine Revolution. This developed further his interest in writing. His mother was named Salome Marquez Joaquin. Joaquín was first published in the literary section of the Pre-World War II Tribune under writer and editor Serafín Lanot.

After winning a Dominican Order-sponsored nationwide essay competition for La Naval de Manila, the University of Santo Tomas University of Santo Tomás awarded Joaquín an honorary Associate in Arts (A.A.) and a scholarship to St. Albert's College, the Dominican monastery in Hong Kong. However, he dropped out after only a year. Upon his return to the Philippines, he joined the Philippines Free Press, starting as a proofreader. Soon this two-time dropout was noticed for his poems, stories and plays, as well as his journalism under the pen name Quijano de Manila. His journalism was markedly both intellectual and provocative, an unknown genre in the Philippines at that time, raising the level of reportage in the country.

Joaquín deeply admired José Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines. Joaquín paid tribute to Rizal by way of books such as The Storyteller's New Medium - Rizal in Saga, The Complete Poems and Plays of Jose Rizal, and A Question of Heroes: Essays in Criticism on Ten Key Figures of Philippine History. He also translated the hero's valedictory poem, "Land That I Love, Farewell!"

Joaquín served as a member of the Philippine Board of Censors for Motion Pictures under President Diosdado Macapagal and President Ferdinand E. Marcos. According to writer Marra PL. Lanot, Joaquín was untouched by Marcos' iron fist. Joaqun's first move as National Artist was to secure the release of imprisoned writer José F. Lacaba. Later, at a ceremony on Mount Makiling attended by First Lady Imelda Marcos, Joaquín delivered an invocation to Mariang Makiling, the mountain's mythical maiden. Joaquín touched on the importance of freedom and the artist. As a result, for the remainder of the Marcos regime, Joaquín no longer received invitations to address important cultural events.

Joaquín died of cardiac arrest in the early morning of April 29, 2004. He died in his home in San Juan, Metro Manila. At the time of his death, he was editor of Philippine Graphic magazine and publisher of its sister publication, Mirror Weekly, a women’s magazine. He also wrote columns (“Small Beer”) for the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Isyu, an opinion tabloid.

Works

* Prose and Poems (1952)
* The Woman Who had Two Navels (1961)
* La Naval de Manila and Other Essays (1964)
* A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino(1966)
* Tropical Gothic (1972)
* A Question of Heroes (1977)
* Nora Aunor & Other Profiles (1977)
* Ronnie Poe & Other Silhouettes (1977)
* Reportage on Lovers (1977)
* Reportage on Crime (1977)
* Amalia Fuentes & Other Etchings (1977)
* Gloria Diaz & Other Delineations (1977)
* Doveglion & Other Cameos (1977)
* Language of the Streets and Other Essays (1977)
* Manila: Sin City and Other Chronicles (1977)
* Tropical Baroque (1979),
* Stories for Groovy Kids (1979)
* Language of the Street and Other Essays (1980)
* The Ballad of the Five Battles (1981)
* The Aquinos of Tarlac: An Essay on History as Three Generations (1983)
* Almanac for Manileños
* Cave and Shadows (1983)
* The Quartet of the Tiger Moon: Scenes from the People Power Apocalypse (1986)
* Collected Verse (1987)
* Culture and History: Occasional Notes on the Process of Philippine Becoming (1988)
* Manila, My Manila: A History for the Young (1990),
* The D.M. Guevara Story (1993),
* Mr. F.E.U., the Culture Hero That Was Nicanor Reyes (1995).
* Rizal in Saga (1996)

Awards

* José García 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.A.) writing fellowship
* Stonehill Award for the Novel (1960)
* Republic Cultural Heritage Award (1961)
* 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)
* 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.
* Several National Book Awards from the Manila Critics' Circle for The Aquinos of Tarlac: An Essay in History as Three Generations; The Quartet of the Tiger Moon: Scenes from the People Power Apocalypse; Culture and History: Occasional Notes on the Process of Philippine Becoming; The World of Damian Domingo: 19th Century Manila (co-authored with Luciano P.R. Santiago); and Jaime Ongpin: The Enigma: The Profile of a Filipino as Manager.

Eddie Romero

His career spans three generations of filmmakers. His 1976 film "Ganito Kami Noon…Paano Kayo Ngayon?," set at the turn of the century during the revolution against the Spaniards and, later, the American colonizers, follows a naïve peasant through his leap of faith to become a member of an imagined community.

"Agila" situates a family’s story against the backdrop of the country’s history.

"Kamakalawa" explores the folklore of prehistoric Philippines.

"Banta ng Kahapon," his 'small' political film, is set against the turmoil of the late 1960s, tracing the connection of the underworld to the corrupt halls of politics.

His 13-part series of "Noli Me Tangere" brings Philippine national hero Jose Rizal’s novel to a new generation of viewers.

Romero's films, the National Artist citation states, "are delivered in an utterly simple style – minimalist, but never empty, always calculated, precise and functional, but never predictable."

Fernando Poe Jr.

Personal Life

Ronald Allan K. Poe was born on August 20, 1939 in Manila, Philippines, of Spanish, Filipino, and Irish-American extraction, the son of actor-producer-director Fernando Poe, Sr. of San Carlos City, Pangasinan (1916-1951) and Elizabeth Gatbonton Kelley (1918-1999) of Candaba, Pampanga. Poe Jr.'s parents were not legally married yet when he was born in 1939, which Poe, Jr.'s Filipino citizenship would much later in life be called into question as he was the illegitimate son of a non-Filipino mother, according to his political opponents who sought to disqualify him from running in a political race. Although, his parents later married in 1940. He was the second of six siblings, born after Elizabeth and before Fernando II (Andy), Genevieve (Jenny), Fredrick (Freddieboy), and Evangeline. His name at birth was Ronald Allan Kelley Poe; it was his brother Andy who was also given the name Fernando Poe.

Filipino actor Conrad Poe was his half-brother, the illegitimate son of the late Fernando Poe, Sr. by actress Patricia Mijares. The original family surname was spelled Pou from his grandfather, playwright Lorenzo Pou, a Catalan migrant from Majorca, Spain, who ventured into mining and business in the Philippines.

As his father was a famous actor, Poe had small parts in several movies of the 1940s. However, Fernando Poe, Sr. died in 1951 after rabis puppies licked his wounds. His mother, Bessie Kelley, was an American and sometimes called Elizabeth Kelley in some sources especially in Philippine press. His mother's parents, Arthur Kelley (WWI Army Corp of Engineer from Iowa, USA) was an Irish American who settled in the Philippines and Martha Gatbonton, a Filipina of mixed Kapampangan and Spanish heritage.

Poe finished primary education in 1953 at San Beda College. For high school, he went to San Sebastian College, Mapua Institute of Technology, and University of the East. After the death of his father, he dropped out of the University of the East in his sophomore year in order to work to support his family. He then adopted the screen name Fernando Poe, Jr.

He married actress Susan Roces in a civil ceremony in December 1968. They were later married in a church and among their primary sponsors were then President Ferdinand Marcos and First Lady Imelda Marcos. Mary Grace was their only child, an adopted one.

Although a well-known public figure, Poe had been very reclusive about his personal life. However, in February 2004, during the presidential campaign, Poe admitted to having sired a child out of wedlock. Ronian, or Ron Allan, was Poe's son by former actress Anna Marin. It was revealed that he also sired a daughter through former model Rowena Moran, Lovi who is now making a name for herself in the Philippine showbiz scene as a singer and actress.

Acting Career

Poe dropped out of high school to work in the Filipino film industry as a messenger boy, and was given acting roles in subsequent years. Starting as a stuntman for Everlasting Pictures, he was given a break and landed his first starring role in the movie Anak ni Palaris (Son of Palaris) at the age of 14. The movie was not a big hit. In 1957, the movie Lo Waist Gang made him popular, and the film was such a big hit that low-waist pants became a fad.

Known also as FPJ from his initials, Poe acted in a number of movies which depicted him as the champion of the poor and downtrodden. He also directed nine movies, under the pseudonym Ronwaldo Reyes. Reyes originated from the surname of his paternal grandmother, Martha.

He established FPJ productions in 1961 and later organized other film companies such as D'Lanor, JAFERE, and Rosas Productions. In 1963, he and Joseph Estrada testified against criminal gangs, known as the Big Four, who extorted money from the film industry. In 1965, he shared the lead in The Ravagers, a film depicting the United States and the Philippines working together against Japanese war time occupation. The film is considered one of the most influential Filipino films, and it helped establish Fernando Poe, Jr.'s status as a movie icon.

Poe became an award-winning actor and garnered the most best actor awards at the FAMAS. Among the movies that received awards were Mga Alabok ng Lupa (1967), Asedillo (1971), Durugin si Totoy Bato, Umpisahan Mo, Tatapusin Ko (1983), and Muslim Magnum .357 (1987).

Poe was dubbed as the "Da King" of Philippine movies because of his box office hits. He made over 200 films in his lifetime and ran a successful movie production firm. Among his famous movies include the Ang Panday series, Kahit Konting Pagtingin, Dito sa Pitong Gatang and Aguila. His last movie was Pakners which also stars 9-ball billiards champion Efren "Bata" Reyes.

Presidential Bid

Fernando Poe Jr., was the Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP)'s candidate for the 2004 presidential election. A public figure in his movie career and known for his charitable but unpublicized endeavours, he targeted his candidacy at the same poor whom he championed in his movies.

Poe accepted the nomination in December 2003 and was to be the standard opposition bearer for the Philippines' 2004 presidential election. Some accounts portray him as a reluctant candidate who was only prevailed upon to accept the nomination by his best friend, deposed former President Joseph Estrada. But other accounts say he was convinced to cast his bid for the presidency because of the overwhelming crowd that gathered for the first rally of the FPJ for President Movement at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

Death

Poe was admitted to Saint Luke's Medical Center in Quezon City on the evening of December 11, 2004 after complaining of dizziness at a gathering in his production studio premise. He suffered from a stroke and slipped into a coma while being treated for a brain clot. Doctors described his condition as a cerebral thrombosis with multiple organ failure. He died at the age of 65 on December 14 at 12:01 am, without regaining consciousness. Friends and allies from the movie and political worlds were at his bedside. He left behind his wife actress Susan Roces and daughter, Mary Grace, and also his illegitimate son, Ronian, and daughter, Lovi.

The 9 day wake was attended by hundreds of thousands, with organizers claiming numbers as high as two million. The funeral procession drew tens of thousands who crowded the streets of Quezon City. He was buried in his family plot along with his father and mother in North Cemetery, Manila, Philippines.

Ismael Bernal

Biography

Born in Manila on 30 September 1938, Bernal is the son of Elena Bernal and Pacifico Ledesma. He studied at Burgos Elementary School, Mapa High School and at the University of the Philippines where he finished his Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1962. After graduation he worked with Lamberto Avellana's documentary outfit before proceeding to France where he earned his Licentiate in French Literature and Philosophy at the University of Aix-en-Provence. He got his Diplomate in Film Directing in 1970 at the Film Insititue of India in Poona under the Colombo plan scholarhip. An active pariticipant in the struggle for artist's rights and welfare, Bernal was also a board member of the Concerned Artists of the Philippines and the Directors Guild of the Philippines, Inc. Until his demise, he remained part of DGPI, an organization that studies the role of film as an instrument of entertainment, education and development.

Artist

Ishmael Bernal is one person who truly loved the arts. He nurtured his passion for literature and theater by actively participating in the U.P. Dramatic Club while finishing a college degree. He is also an avid fan of classical music and the operas. During the 1960s, Bernal put up When It's A Grey November In Your Soul, in Malate which became one of the favorite watering holes of Manila's artists and intellectuals. Unfazed by its short live-success, Bernal put up Kasalo in Quezon City three decades later, which became the hang-out of students, journalists, poets, bands, theater and film artists.

Film Director

Bernal directed and wrote his first film, Pagdating Sa Dulo (At The Top), in 1971. In this film we catch a glimpse into what Ishmael Bernal's ouvre would prefigure for the industry: it is a scene showing an aspiring actress (played by the late Rita Gomez) pondering on dreams blooming in deserts of desolation and dying out in a mirage that painfully conjures images of squatter colonies and sordid lives. The bold star stares out into the landscape and scans it, with the camera acting as her surrogate, but finally framing her against the embarrassingly majestic Cultural Center of the Philippines. The scene captures it all: the decadence of the Martial Law regime, along with its perverse aspirations to art, has doomed the destinies of Filipinos. From that time on, Bernal has established himself as an innovative and intelligent filmmaker who would not be content with conventional formulas of local film making. Under his name is a broad range of film genres and themes: historical dramas like El Vibora (The Viper), and the Bonifacio episode in the unreleased Lahing Pilipino (The Filipino Race); sophisticated comedies like Tisoy (Mestizo), Pabling (Playboy), Working Girls I and Working Girls II; experimental films like Nunal Sa Tubig (Speck In The Water) and Himala (Miracle); and contemporary dramas exploring human psyches and social relationships, such as Ligaw Na Bulaklak (Wildflower), Mister Mo, Lover Boy Ko (Your Husband, My Lover), Ikaw Ay Akin (You Are Mine), Relasyon (The Affair), Aliw (Pleasure) and the film classic Manila By Night (or City After Dark). His sturdy filmography is mainly clustered around the themes and problems that inevitably encrust the "social" as the core of personal malaise.

Bernal considers himself a feminist director and admits that it is part of his interest to tackle issues affecting women. A large chunk of his work are stories about women and for women: Relasyon, Hinugot Sa Langit (1985), Working Girls, to name a few. Before Bernal died in Quezon City on 2 June 1996, he was scheduled to direct a film about the life story of Lola Rosa Henson, the comfort woman during the Japanese invasion of the Philippines.

Philippine Television

Aside from film, Bernal also directed television shows like the long-time drama series Ang Makulay Na Daigdig Ni Nora (The Colorful World of Nora) for which he was named Outstanding Director in a Drama Series by the Patas Awards in 1979; Metro Magazine, Isip Pinoy, Dear Teacher and episodes for PETABISYON and Lorna. As an actor, he played lead roles in stage plays like Kamatayan Sa Isang Anyo Ng Rosas (Death in the Form of a Rose) in 1991 and Bacchae in 1992.

Bernal is a tireless and committed educator. He taught film direction to film students of the University of the Philippines and Polytechnic University of the Philippines. He has conducted film and theater workshops and directed plays for school-based theater groups. He has also collaborated with artists from different regions through BUGKOS, the national coordinating center for people's art and literature. A real art crusader, he supported and co-facilitated workshops and critic sessions for aspiring writers until his last days.

Achievements

He won the Urian for best director four times for Dalawang Pugad, Isang Ibon (Two Nests, One Bird), 1977; Broken Marriage, 1983; Hinugot Sa Langit (Wrenched From Heaven), 1985; and Pahiram Ng Isang Umaga (Lend Me One Morning), 1989; and the best screenplay for City After Dark, 1980. His film Pagdating Sa Dulo, won for him the FAMAS for best screenplay award while Himala (Miracle), 1982, garnered nine major awards in the Metro Manila Film Festival. In that same year, Bernal was chosen by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino as the Most Outstanding Filmmaker of the Decade 1971-1980. Among the 10 best films chosen by the critics, five were his. These include Pagdating Sa Dulo, Nunal Sa Tubig, Manila By Night, Himala and Hinugot Sa Langit. He was also hailed as Director of the Decade by the Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA).

Bernal also won the CMMA Best Director Award (1983), the Bronze Hugo Award in the Chicago International Film Festival (1983) for the movie Himala. The Cultural Center of the Philippines presented him the Gawad CCP Para sa Sining for film in 1990. In 1993, he received the ASEAN Cultural Award in Communication Arts in Brunei Darrussalam.

Bernal, the daring artist, bohemian, and activist, undermined the established canons of the Philippine popular movies from within, created a void, and then filled it with cinematic excess, a hysteria tha was illuminating and iridescent.

Lino Brocka

Brocka was born in Pilar, Sorsogon. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago.

In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka ngunit Kulang, which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).

The following year he directed Maynila: Sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag (Manila: in the Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm [1]. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso (which is Tagalog for "Joyful Paradise"). The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography by Mike de Leon, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.

In 1976 Maynila: Sa mga kuko ng liwanag won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.

Insiang (1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum area, Tondo. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.

The film Jaguar (1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 1980 Cannes Festival. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.

In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.

In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr..

The following year, Bayan ko: Kapit sa Patalim (Bayan Ko: My Own Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Festival, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.

Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer (1988), Orapronobis (1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).

In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival.

On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City, Metro Manila. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film.

Leandro Locsin

Culutural Center of the Philippines designed by Leandro Locsin

Life and Career

Leandro V. Locsin was born on Aug 15, 1928 in Silay City, Negros Occidental, a grandson of the first governor of the province. He later studied at the De La Salle Brothers in 1935 before returning to Negros due to the Second World War. He returned to Manila to study Pre-Law, before shifting to pursue a Bachelor's Degree in Music at the University of Santo Tomas. Although he was a talented pianist, he later shifted again to Architecture, just a year before graduating. He was married to Cecilia Yulo, to which he had two children, one of whom is also an architect.

An art lover, he frequented the Philippine Art Gallery, where he met the curator, Fernando Zobel de Ayala, who recommended Locsin to the Ossorio family, who was planning to build a chapel in Negros. Unfortunately, when Frederic Ossorio left for the United States, the plans for the chapel were canceled. However, in 1955, then University of the Philippines, Diliman Catholic Chaplain, Fr. John Delaney, S.J. commissioned Locsin to design a chapel that is open and can easily accommodate 1,000 people. The Church of the Holy Sacrifice is the first round chapel in the Philippines with the altar in the middle, and the first to have a thin shell concrete dome. The floor of the church was designed by Arturo Luz, the stations of the cross by Vicente Manansala and Ang Kiukok, and the cross by Napoleon Abueva, all of whom are now National Artists. Alfredo L. Juinio served as the building's structural engineer. Today, the church is recognized as a National Historical Landmark and a Cultural Treasure by the National Historical Institute and the National Museum respectively.

In his visit to the United States, he met some of his influences, Paul Rudolph and Eero Saarinen. It was then he realized to use concrete, which was relatively cheap in the Philippines and easy to form, for his buildings. In 1969, he completed what is to be his most recognizable work, the Theater of Performing Arts (Now the Tanghalang Pambansa) of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The marble façade of the building is cantilevered 12 meters from the terrace by huge arching columns at the sides of the building, giving it the impression of floating. A large lagoon in front of the theatre mirrors the building during daylight, while fountains are illuminated by underwater lights by nighttime. The building houses four theaters, a museum of ethnographic and other temporary exhibits, galleries, and a library on Philippine art and culture. In 1974, Locsin designed the Folk Arts Theater, which is one of the largest single span buildings in the Philippines with a span of 60 meters. It was completed in only seventy-seven days, in time for the Miss Universe Pageant. Locsin was also commissioned to build the Philippine International Convention Center, the country's premiere international conference building and the seat of the Vice Presidency.

In 1974, he was commissioned to design the Ayala Museum, which housed the Ayala's art collection. It was known for the juxtaposition of huge blocks to facilitate the interior of the exhibition. Locsin was a close friend of the Ayalas. Before taking the board examination, he took his apprenticeship at Ayala and Company (Now the Ayala Corporation) and was even asked to design the first building in Ayala Avenue, and several of their residences. When the collection of the Ayala Museum was moved to its current location, the original was demolished, with Locsin's permission. The current building was dedicated in 2004, and was designed by the L. V. Locsin and Partners, led by Leandro Y. Locsin, Jr. Most of Locsin's work has been inside the country, but in 1970, he designed the Philippine Pavilion of the World Expo in Osaka, Japan. His largest single work is the Istana Nurul Iman, the official residence of the Sultan of Brunei. Locsin also designed some of the buildings at the UP Los Baños campus. The Dioscoro Umali Hall, the main auditorium, is clearly an example of his distinct architecture, with its large canopy that make it resemble the main theatre of the CCP. Most of his work is concentrated on the the Freedom Park, with the Student Union Building, once damaged by a fire, the Carillon, the Continuing Education Center and the auditorium. He also designed UPLB's Main Library, SEARCA Residences, and several structures at the National Arts Center (housing the Philippine High School for the Arts) situated at Mt. Makiling, Los Baños, Laguna. In 1992, he received the Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize from Fukuoka City.

Locsin's last work, ironically, was also a church in Malaybalay, Bukidnon. Leandro V. Locsin died on Nov 15, 1994 in Makati City. The campus of De La Salle-Canlubang, built in 2003 on a land donated by his family, was named after him.

Works

* Ayala Museum
* Complex of Social Welfare Agencies
- Population Center
- Nutrition Center of the Philippines
- Asian Center for Training and Research for Social Welfare
* Cultural Center of the Philippines - Folk Arts Theater
* Cultural Center of the Philippines - National Arts Center, Mt. Makiling, Los Baños, Laguna
* Cultural Center of the Philippines - Philippine Center for International Trade and Exhibitions
* Cultural Center of the Philippines - Philippine International Convention Center
* Cultural Center of the Philippines - Theatre of Performing Arts
* Expo '70 - Philippine Pavilion
* First National City Bank of New York Makati
* Hyatt Regency Hotel
* Istana Nurul Iman, Brunei Darussalam
* Mandarin Oriental Makati
* Manila Hotel (New Building)
* Makati Stock Exchange Building
* Ninoy Aquino International Airport - Terminal 1
* Philippine Plaza Hotel
* University of the Philippines Diliman - UP Film Institute
* University of the Philippines Diliman - Church of the Holy Sacrifice
* University of the Philippines Los Baños - Rizal Memorial Centenary Carillon
* University of the Philippines Los Baños - Continuing Education Center
* University of the Philippines Los Baños - Dioscoro L. Umali Hall
* University of the Philippines Los Baños - Main Library
* University of the Philippines Los Baños - SEARCA Dormitory and Hotel
* University of the Philippines Los Baños - Student Union Building

Pablo Antonio

FEU bulidings designed by Pablo Antonio

Early Life

Antonio was born in Binondo, Manila in 1902. He was orphaned by the age of 12, and had to work in the daytime in order to finish his high school education at night. He studied architecture at the Mapúa Institute of Technology but dropped out of school in order to assist in the design and construction of the Legislative Building (now, the National Museum of the Philippines).

Ramon Arevalo, the engineer in charge of the Legislative Building project, funded Antonio's education at the University of London. He completed a five-year architecture course in three years, graduating in 1927.

Works

Antonio first came into prominence in 1933 with the construction of the Ideal Theater along Avenida Rizal in Manila. His work caught the eye of the founder of the Far Eastern University in Manila, Nicanor Reyes, Sr., who was looking to build a school campus that was modern in style. Between 1938 to 1950, he designed several buildings on the university campus in the Art Deco style. The FEU campus is considered as the largest ensemble of surviving Art Deco architecture in Manila, and in 2005, it received an Honorable Mention citation from the UNESCO for the body's 2005 Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation.

Antonio also designed the White Cross Sanitarium (1938) along Santolan Road in San Juan City, and the Manila Polo Club (1950) in Makati City. He likewise designed the Ramon Roces Publications Building (now Guzman Institute of Electronics) in Soler Street in Manila, the the Capitan Luis Gonzaga Building, and the Boulevard-Alhambra (Bel-Air) apartments in Makati City.

Apart from the Ideal Theater, Antonio also designed several other theaters in Manila, including the Life Theater, the Scala Theater, the Lyric Theater, and the Galaxy Theater. As of 2008, only the Galaxy Theater remains standing, though it is threatened with demolition.

Appreciation

Antonio's architecture and its adoption of Art Deco techniques was radical for its day, neoclassicism being the dominant motif of Philippine architecture when he began his career. His style noted for its simplicity and clean structural design. He was cited taking taking Philippine architecture into a new direction, with "clean lines, plain surfaces, and bold rectangular masses. "Antonio strived to make each building unique, avoiding obvious trademarks.

Antonio was also conscious of adapting his buildings to the tropical climate of the Philippines. In order to highlight natural light and also avoid rain seepage, he utilized sunscreens, slanted windows and other devices.

Antonio himself has been quoted as stating that "buildings 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" .

When he was named National Artist of the Philippines in 1976, he was only the second architect so honored, after his contemporary, Juan Nakpil.