Gawad sa Manlilikha

ng Bayan
(National Living Treasures Award)
Goals for today’s class:
1. I should be able to familiarize myself with the criteria and
procedure in the selection for the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng
Bayan Award.
2. I should be able to explain the effects and contributions of art
and the artist on the development of one’s culture and
community.
3. I should develop an appreciation of the different contemporary
artists not only in my region but from other parts of the
Philippines as well.
 “By knowing the arts and
culture of our forefathers,
we in turn learn more about
ourselves and each other.”
History of the National Living Treasure
Award
In April 1992, the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan or the National
Living Treasures Award was institutionalized through Republic Act
No. 7355.

First awarded in 1993 to three outstanding artists in music and poetry,

the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan has its roots in the 1988 National
Folk Artists Award organized by the Rotary Club of Makati-Ayala.

In 2014, the Senate of the Philippines adopted Senate Resolution No.

(SRN) 765 aimed at recognizing the accomplishment of the country’s
living treasures.
History of the National Living Treasure
Award
The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) is
tasked with administration and implementation of the award.

The NCCA, through the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan

Committee and an Ad Hoc Panel of Experts, conducts the
search for the finest traditional artists of the land, adopts a
program that will ensure the transfer of their skills to others and
undertakes measures to promote a genuine appreciation of and
instill pride among our people about the genius of the Manlilikha
ng Bayan.
Objectives of the GAMABA
➢ To honor and support traditional folk artists and to see to it that
their skills and crafts are preserved;
➢ To ensure the transfer of their skills to their next generation
and the promotion of the craft both locally and internationally.
GAMABA Emblem
Criteria for selection of awardees
1. Should be a Filipino citizen or group of citizens belonging to an
indigenous or traditional cultural community anywhere in the
Philippines, engaged in Filipino traditional art in the following
categories: folk architecture, maritime transport, weaving, carving,
performing arts, literature, graphic and plastic arts, ornament,
textile or fiber art, pottery and other artistic expressions of
traditional culture
2. Should have been engaged in the tradition and craft for a significant
period of time with at least fifty years of existence and documentation
3. Should have produced and performed of artistic, distinctive and
superior quality
4. Should possess mastery of the tools and materials that are needed for
the art and must have a reputation for being an art master and craft
maker in the community where he/she belongs
Criteria for selection of awardees
5. Should have passed on/ and or will pass on the traditional crafts
and skills to other members of the community by virtue of teaching

In case when a Manlilikha ng Bayan candidate is incapable of

teaching further his/her craft and skill due to age or infirmity:
a. He/she should have created a significant body of work and has
contributed to the development of the tradition and craft.
b. He/she should have played a role in the preservation and
revitalization of the artistic tradition in the community.
c. He/she has been recognized as a master of his/her craft and
admired for his/her character and integrity in his or her
community.
Selection Process
a. The Panel
GAMABA is administered by a committee, which is assisted by
an ad hoc panel of experts. The panel is composed of a
representative from each of the committees of the
Subcommission on Cultural Communities and Traditional Arts,
such as the Office of the Muslim Affairs (OMA), the National
Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and other appropriate
institutions.

The ad hoc panel of reviewers is composed of 5 members of the

GAMABA Committee and 4 individuals identified by the Committee
among scholars, practitioners and experts in the traditional art.
Selection Process
b. The Nominations
Nominations can come from the members of the ad hoc panel
of experts, the subcommission on cultural communities and
traditional arts, government and private institutions, universities and
other persons knowledgeable of any of the categories.
Selection Process
c. The Screening
The ad hoc search committee are deployed to various priority
areas in the country to conduct searches and document the
candidates’ art or craft.

The ad hoc panel of reviewers reevaluates the qualifications of

the candidates and submit their recommendation to the NCCA Board
of Commissioners.

Once selected, the President of the Philippines confers the

awards in a public ceremony at Malacañan Palace.
Awards and Incentives
The awardees receives a specially designed medallion or plaque
with a duplicate set that should be donated to and displayed in a
provincial museum or the largest cultural center in the
awardee’s community.

The awardee is given an initial grant of Php 100,000 and Php 14,
000 lifetime stipend per month.

The awardee is also granted a maximum cumulative amount of

Php 750,000 medical and hospitalization benefits as well as
funeral assistance similar as those received by the National Artists.
GAMABA Awardees
(1993- up to present)
Ginaw Bilog
Ginaw Bilog
Birth: January 3, 1953
Birthplace: Panaytayan, Oriental Mindoro
Death: June 3, 2003
Category: Artist and Poet (Ambahan)

Ginaw Bilog was a promoter of the ambahan which was an oral tradition of poetic
verses of the Mangyan. The ambahan is composed of seven-syllable lines that use
metaphors to send a point or message. The poems, often recited with music at social
gatherings and used to convey messages among the Hanunuo Mangyan, had topics like
advising the young, bidding a friend goodbye, and asking for a place to stay.

The Mangyan script is one of the four remaining syllabic scripts in the country, and Ginaw
Bilog’s work has been crucial to its preservation. Based in Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro, the
poet was known for writing ambahan (a metaphoric poem comprising seven-syllable lines),
first in a notebook, then on traditionally used bamboo tubes.
Masino Intaray
Masino Intaray two-stringed lute and bamboo zither, and
the bagit, an instrumental piece about
Birth: April 10, 1943 nature.
Birthplace: Brooke’s Point, Palawan
His memory and determination guided him in
Death: November 30, 2013 chanting through many successive nights,
Category: Musician (basal or gong) and reciting epics, stories, myths of origin, and the
epic chanter (kulilal and bagit) teachings of ancestors.

A member of the Pala’wan tribe, musician The basal ensemble is composed of the
and epic chanter Masino Intaray was a following instruments: the gimbal which is a
master of the basal, a gong music tubular drum that provides the basic rhythm, the
ensemble played during rice cooking sanang which is a pair of undersized gongs
(tambilaw) and sharing (tinapay) rituals, with boss and narrow rims and agungs usually
which gather the community as they serve numbered from one to threes which are gongs
offerings to Pala’wan rice god Ampo’t that have wide turned in rims and a prominent
Paray. bass. Added to the ensemble are the stamping
of the feet of the tribe’s young women on the
Intaray also performed the kulilal, a lyrical bamboo floor, creating a percussion dance
poem expressing love, accompanied by called tarak.
Samaon Sulaiman
Samaon Sulaiman
Birth: March 3, 1953
Birthplace: Mamasapano, Maguindanao
Death: May 21, 2011
Category: Musician (Kudyapi)

Samaon Sulaiman was the acclaimed master and teacher of the kudyapi.

Kudyapi is a popular solo instrument of the Maguindanaon, one of the largest Islamin groups in
the Philippines.

It is a two-stringed plucked lute that comes in variety of shapes and forms and has different
names depending on which cultural tribe you belong to.

The Maguindanaon kudyapi is said to be one of the most difficult traditional Filipino instruments
to master.
Lang Dulay
 Lang Dulay
Birth: August 3, 1924
Birthplace: Lake Sebu, South Cotabato
Death: April 30, 2015
Category: Textile weaver (T’nalak)

Dulay, who grew up in Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, was taught to weave by her mother when she was
12.

She is said to have single-handedly saved the t’nalak tradition from extinction. T’nalak weaving is a
complicated process. As demand grew for new designs, she persisted and kept working with
traditional patterns, even though they were harder to complete — she knew around a hundred,
including bulinglangit (clouds), kabangi (butterfly), crocodiles, and flowers. She valued purity, so much
so that she never washed her t’nalak with soap.

She had then used the grant and monthly allowance she received from her National Living Treasure
Award to put up a school for the women of her tribe to master their craft. Unfortunately, since she has
died, the funding from the government has stopped and has put the school’s existence in danger.
Salinta Moon
Salinta Moon
Birth: December 12, 1920
Birthplace: Bansalan, Davao del Sur
Death: June 4, 2009
Category: Weaver (abaca ikat or inabel)

Salinta Monon was 12 when she began learning to weave the inabel, a traditional Bagobo
textile. In her home in Bansalan, Davao del Sur, Monon would isolate herself from family to be
able to concentrate on creating her cloths and skirts, which took three to four months and a
month to finish, respectively.

Her favorite pattern, despite or because of its difficulty, was the binuwaya (crocodile), and she
continued weaving until her death in 2009. For her, not only was it a source of income, it was a
source of pride as well. She and her younger sister were the only Bagobo weavers left in their
community, and she dreamt of having a structure built for teaching new would-be weavers.
Alonzo Saclag
 Alonzo Saclag
Birth: August 4, 1942
Birthplace: Lubugan, Kalinga Province
Death: ---
Category: Musician, dancer and preservationist

It was through observation, time, and experience — rather than education or training or any kind — that
Alonzo Saclag of Lubuagan, Kalinga mastered local musical instruments, along with dance patterns
associated with rituals. Some of these are rarely performed, but done so with special purposes, whether it’s
preparing for retaliation, a victorious vindication for the community, or forging successful peace pacts.

Some of his preservation efforts include the revival of the gangsa or the Kalinga gong which was on the
brink of disappearing. He successfully petitioned that the capitol building turned into a museum where their
cultural artifacts can be exhibited and preserved, hence the creation of the Lubugan branch of the National
Museum.

He has also established the Kalinga Budong Dance Troupe which showcases the rich performing arts of the
region.
Federico Caballero
 Federico Caballero
Birth: December 25, 1938
Birthplace: Calinog, Iloilo
Death: ---
Category: Epic chanter (Sugidanon)

Epic chanter Federico Caballero of Calinog, Iloilo was best known for his expertise in the Sugidanon, a
Central Panay epic traditionally chanted while lying on a hammock, and his work in the preservation of oral
literature, documenting 10 Panay-Bukidnon epics in an extinct language with close ties to Kinaray-a.

His love of folklore began when he was young, hearing tales of grand adventures as bedtime stories, and
his mother taught him to recite epics in lieu of doing household chores. In his spare time, he also works with
the Department of Education’s Bureau of Non-Formal Education, teaching elders to read and write.

He has since then collaborated with researchers and scholars in documenting the epics known as the
Humadapnon and Labaw Donggon.
Uwang Ahadas
 Uwang Ahadas
Birth: February 15, 1945
Birthplace: Lamitan, Basilan
Death: ---
Category: Musician (Yakan especially
kulintang, kwitangan kayu, gabbang,
agung and tuntungan)

Uwang Ahadas became blind when he was about 5 years old. With the sense of hearing becoming a
primary sense, music became an integral part of his life.

Ahadas is a Yakan, an ethnic community that has a rich musical heritage. Music for the Yakans is part and
parcel of their community life.

Through his determination and skill, he was able to master a number of musical instruments such as
gabbang (a bamboo xylophone) and agung (a traditionally male musical instrument). He was also
able to break tradition by learning a traditionally female instrument, the kwintangan.

His brother has shared his passion, documenting Uwang’s method of instruction and creating a notation
system to make instructions easier.
Darhata Sawabi
 Darhata Sawabi
Birth: ---
Birthplace: Parag, Sulu
Death: March 12, 2005
Category: Weaver (pis syabit)

Pis syabit is a woven traditional headgear of the Tausug in Jolo. It’s traditionally made by the
women of the community which is passed on from generation to generation.

Darhata Sawabi’s mission was to lead young women towards making a living out of her craft.
The Parang, Sulu-based textile weaver’s primary creation was the headpiece pis siyabit — pis
stands for the pattern, which is said to be derived from India’s mandala, depicting spirituality
through geometric forms, and siyabit refers to the hook and technique. She gained
recognition for the precision of her work and her passion for preserving traditional designs, as
well as teaching the youth and was awarded in 2004.
Eduardo Mutuc
 Eduardo Mutuc
Birth: October 12, 1949
Birthplace: Apalit, Pampanga
Death: ---
Category: Metalsmith or metal sculptor (bronze
and silver)

Having finished up to elementary school, Eduardo Mutuc, a farmer at the time, became an
apprentice to furniture carvers to earn additional income. He had no prior knowledge of the work
he was getting into, but this didn’t stop him from expanding his experience and becoming one of
the most respected creators of religious and secular art today.

One of his early works was a tabernacle commissioned by Monsignor Fidelis Limcauco. He uses
wood, silver, and bronze to create exquisitely detailed and lifelike pieces of varying sizes: altars,
mirrors, retablos, and even carosas.
Haja Amina Api
 Haja Amina Appi
Birth: June 25, 1925
Birthplace: Tandubas, Tawi-tawi
Death: April 2, 2013
Category: Weaver (mat)

In the ethnic community of Sama of Ungos Matata, Tandubas, Tawi-tawi, the mat weaving
tradition is passed from mother to daughter. One of the masters of this craft is Haja Amina Appi.
Her creations are noted for their complex and precise geometric motifs that showcase her
inherent eye for color, design, proportion and symmetry. Each of her creations require patience
and stamina since a single mat can take as long as three months to make.

Weaving pandan mats is a long and difficult process that is handed down from woman to woman
across generations: Pandan leaves are harvested and made into narrow, long strips, sun-dried,
pressed, and dyed before finally becoming suitable for weaving. The resulting mats are used for
sleeping and saying prayers, or given as gifts to newlyweds.
Teofilo Garcia
 Teofilo Garcia
Birth: March 27, 1941
Birthplace: San Quintin, Abra
Death: ---
Category: Casque maker (tabungaw)

In San Quintin, Abra, Teofilo Garcia would often walk around town wearing his gourd casques.
Through word of mouth and his participation in the annual local harvest festival, Garcia was able
to introduce the tabungaw plant as a good and sturdy material for functional, elegant, and
protective hats. He produces everything he needs — planting and harvesting the gourds, splitting
and refining rattan for the lining, and weaving nito and bamboo for accents himself — and usually
takes seven days to finish a hat. Awarded in 2012, he continues to experiment and work on new
designs.

Unfortunately, he is the only one who has mastered this craft as there has been little interest from
other artisans to create the headgear, and as of writing, none of his students have mastered the
crafts with the same level of skill as him.
Magdalena Gamayo
 Magdalena Gamayo
Birth: August 13, 1924
Birthplace: Pinili, Ilocos Norte
Death: ---
Category: Master weaver (inabel)

Based in Pinili, Ilocos Norte, Magdalena Gamayo took up weaving when she was 16, guided by
her aunt’s patterns. She received her first loom from her father three years later, which she would
end up using for 30 years. She is one of the stalwarts of abel (blanket) weaving tradition in
Ilocos Norte.

She taught herself traditional patterns, such as kusikus (whirlwind), marurup (Milky Way), and
sinan paddak ti pusa (cat’s pawprint), building on the more common inuritan (geometric
design) and sinan-sabong (flowers).

Since she does not have samples, she recreates her designs from memory. These designs she
has taught and passed on to her many students throughout the years.
Sources:
https://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-
profile/gamaba/national-living-treasures

https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/briefer-gawad-sa-manlilikha-ng-bayan/

http://nine.cnnphilippines.com/life/culture/2017/10/10/indigenous-artists-
national-living-treasures.html

Textbook reference guide: TWE Journey: Contemporary Arts of the

Philippines, published by Phoenix Publishing House