National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) enjoin the whole nation in remembering the life and works of National Artist for Literature Cirilo F. Bautista – poet, fictionist and essayist, critic, and literary giant.

NCCA and CCP shall lead the necrological services for Bautista on Thursday, 10 May 2018, 9 AM, at the Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theatre). The necrological service will be followed by the State Funeral Rites at the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Fort Bonifacio.

Family and friends, contemporaries, and mentees remember Bautista as he continues to inspire established and emerging Filipino literati. His poetry reverberates as he joins the ranks of immortalized Filipino writers.

Among Bautista’s notable works include Summer Suns (1963), Words and Battlefields (1998), The Trilogy of Saint Lazarus (2001), Galaw ng Asoge (2003). The masterful Trilogy of Saint Lazarus (2001), a reinvention of the epic and a retelling of Philippine history, won him the Makata ng Taon award from the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino. Bautista was a moving force behind the establishment of several literary groups like the Philippine Literary Arts Council in 1981, the Iligan National Writers Workshop in 1993, and the Baguio Writers Group. Bautista was also a member of the acclaimed Manila Critic’s Circle and has won prestigious awards and recognition in the literary scene including the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. As an educator, Bautista inspired young writers through memorable lectures on literary trends and developments and his body of critical essays on literature. 

Bautista was awarded the National Artist Award for Literature in 2014.

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The necrological service is open to the public. For more info, call the Order of the National Artists Awards Secretariat (NCCA) through numbers (02) 527-2192 loc 507 or the Cultural Center of the Philippines at (02) 832-1125 loc 1125 / 1115.