Napoleon Abueva,

National Artist

Napoleon V. Abueva

In 1976, Napoleon V. Abueva, then 46, was the youngest Filipino to become a National Artist. Known as the Father of Modern Philippine Sculpture, he is a master in both academic representational style and modern abstract. His works have been executed using almost all kinds of materials, including hard wood like molave, acacia, langka wood, ipil, kamagong, palm wood and bamboo, adobe, metal, stainless steel, cement, marble, bronze, iron, alabaster, coral, and brass. He even combines different materials, like wood with metal and stone.

Under a Pura Villanueva-Kalaw Scholarship, Abueva graduated from the University of the Philippines School of Fine Arts in 1953 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture. He received much recognition as early as his college years, during which he was mentored by Guillermo Tolentino, the first National Artist for Sculpture and creator of the UP Oblation. For three years in a row (1951-1953), he won first prize and best entry awards in sculpture in the Art Association of the Philippines annual competition. One of his works from this period is the Kagampan or Kaganapan, which is considered most representative of his work. He also received recognition in the Institute of Contemporary Arts’ International Sculpture Competition in London, England for The Unknown Political Prisoner.

In 1955, he finished his Master of Fine Arts at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan as a Fulbright/Smith-Mundt Scholar. He later took graduate units in Ceramics at the University of Kansas and Art History at Harvard University.

Abueva then joined the UP as Assistant Instructor. It was in 1978 that he was appointed Dean of the College of Fine Arts, and he held the position until 1989. In 1993, he was given an honorary doctorate in humanities and was promoted to University Professor. Abueva retired in June 1995, and was given the status of Professor Emeritus in April 2003.

His achievements and honors are not limited only to the academe. In the period of the 1960’s to the 1980’s, he has also had the distinction of representing the Philippines in symposiums and being sent as delegate and special guest to various art exhibits and functions abroad.

Abueva’s major works include:

• 1955 – Kiss of Judas
• 1979 – The Transfiguration, at the Eternal Garden Memorial Park
• 1994 – Nine Muses, at the UP Faculty Center
• 1994 – Sunburst, at the Peninsula Manila hotel

Several of his public art can also be found at UP Diliman:

• 1957 – Crucifix with Two Corpora, at the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice
• 1962 – University Gateway (also UP Gates)
• 1967 – Tribute to Higher Education, at the entrance of University Avenue
• 1979 – The Spirit of Business, in front of the College of Business Administration
• 1992 – Diwata, at the Faculty Center
• 1996 – Alma Mater, at the lobby of Ang Bahay ng Alumni
• 1996 – Three Women Sewing the First Philippine Flag, also known as Tres Marias Plaza, at the UP Donors’ Garden, as part of the centennial celebration of the 1896 Philippine Revolution

Achievements:

• 1959 – Ten Outstanding Young Men in the Philippines (Sculpture)
• 1966 – Cultural Heritage Award
• 1976 – Gawad CCP para sa Sining
• 1987 – Asean Awards for the Visual Arts in Bangkok
• 1995 – Fourth Asean Achievement Award for Visual Arts in Singapore

Kulay-Diwa  is a venue for Philippines and Southeast Asian Contemporary Art. Inaugurated on February 7, 1987, Kulay-Diwa, is strategically located within a cluster of communities South of Manila.  It has five independent exhibition areas able to accommodate large-scale works and a garden ideal for programs, performances and sculpture installations.  The goals of the gallery are to discover and promote the works of young, talented but deserving Filipino Artists and to foster cultural interaction and exchanges with the local regions and other countries.

Kulay (Colour)

Diwa  (Spirit, Thought)

Please contact us if you are interested to see more of his works.

Napoleon Abueva, "Untitled", Stainless Steel and Resin

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