(Thumbs down)WHILE controversy always follows the proclamation of National Artists, last Wednesday’s announcement that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has included “massacre” movie director and komiks fictionist Carlo Caparas and her own adviser for culture and the arts, Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, in the Order of the National Artists has so stirred the hornet’s nest that many artists are proclaiming the death of the awards institution itself.
“Saddened to inform you of the death of the National Artist Awards,” went an SMS message that circulated among artists, writers and culture lovers last Friday.
Some artists and writers, ever on the lookout for irony and paradox, said the awards were “massacred” – in sly allusion to Caparas, who achieved notoriety in the late ’80s and early ’90s for his “massacre” movies, cinematic portrayals of true stories of heinous crimes that featured gratuitous violence.
Others made rhyming fun out of Alvarez, whose one claim to fame is having founded the Philippine Educational Theater Association, or Peta: “Founder ng Peta hindi marunong mag-dyeta, (she doesn’t know how to diet),” perhaps referring to Alvarez’s alleged lobby to be proclaimed National Artist at the risk of conflict of interest. “She should have removed herself from the race and not taken advantage of her Cabinet position,” one writer said.
Artists and culture workers said they feel a sense of betrayal by Alvarez for not advising the President against dropping composer Ramon Santos from the list in favor of Caparas and Alvarez. Santos had been endorsed for the award by the joint board of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and the Cultural Center of the Philippines, which elect the National Artists after a rigorous screening by the arts and culture sectors. Alvarez herself is executive director of NCCA.
Except for Santos, those elected by the NCCA-CCP were proclaimed by the President: Federico Aguilar Alcuaz for the visual arts, the late Lazaro Francisco for literature and the late Manuel Conde for film.
But artists said that Conde may now be turning in his grave because of Caparas. Conde’s movie, “Genghis Khan,” was the first Filipino feature film to be shown in a major international film festival (in Venice in 1952). His “Juan Tamad” series were political satires that became the pop-culture phenomenon of their time. How could Caparas’ “massacre” movies measure to Conde’s oeuvre – and to those of the other National Artists for film, such as Gerry de Leon and Lino Brocka?
Caparas seems to have put one over the other National Artists because he is National Artist for both film and visual arts. And he’s not even a respected komiks illustrator! Would Alcuaz want to sit beside Caparas during the proclamation ceremonies? Would Bencab want to shake his hands?
Although they were nominated, Caparas and Alvarez did not pass muster during the rigorous selection process. But Malacañang seemed not to care. And Alvarez, who was supposed to uphold the selection process because she is, after all, an NCCA official, seemed to share the Palace’s smugness.
“The issue is not the President’s exercise of her executive powers, nor the qualifications of those concerned, conferred the honors not by their peers,” said Ramon Villegas. “The issue is lack of delicadeza, the brazen misuse of position for selfish gain.”
If Malacañang feels the controversy will blow over, it could be wrong. The CCP will hold a board meeting tomorrow to define its position. And artist-groups are planning protest activities in the run-up to the proclamation ceremonies. Expect the protests to be creative and worthy of a National Artist award.
Truly holy day
(Thumbs up) If there was one thing that made the recent birthday of fashion designer Bobby Novenario truly memorable, it was how the Franciscan community at Santuario de San Antonio in Forbes Park, Makati, all turned out for the Mass celebrated by parish priest, Father Joel Sulse. Novenario has been active in the parish’s religious activities.
