Arturo Rogerio Dimayuga Luz (November 26, 1926 – May 26, 2021) was a Filipino visual artist. He was also a known printmaker,

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

designer A designer is a person who plans the form or structure of something before it is made, by preparing drawings or plans. In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, products, processes, laws, games, graphics, services, or exp ...

and art administrator. A founding member of the modern Neo-realist school in Philippine art, he received the

Philippine National Artist The Order of National Artists of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the Philippines on Filipinos who have made significant contributions to the development of Philipp ...

Award, the country's highest accolade in the arts, in 1997.

Education

Luz attended the School of Fine Arts at the

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (also known as UST and officially as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila) is a private, Catholic research university in Manila, Philippines. Founded on April 28, 1611, by Spanish friar Migue ...

in Manila. He also went abroad to study at the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland from 1947 to 1949, the

Brooklyn Museum Art School The Brooklyn Museum Art School was a non-degree-granting professional school that opened at the Brooklyn Museum in Brooklyn, New York in the summer of 1941. The Brooklyn Museum Art School provided instruction for amateur artists as well until Janua ...

in New York from 1949 to 1950, and the Académie de la Grande Chaumiere in Paris from 1950 to 1951.

Early career

While Luz was pursuing college, he began exhibiting his works. At the 1962 International Art Salon in Saigon, South Vietnam, Luz won first prize for his work. He also garnered an award from the California Art Association, and was a recipient of the Republic Cultural Heritage Award for Painting of the Philippine Republic in 1966. He was also recognized as the Outstanding Young Man In Art by

The Manila Times ''The Manila Times'' is the oldest extant English-language newspaper in the Philippines. It is published daily by The Manila Times Publishing Corp. (formerly La Vanguardia Publishing Corporation) with editorial and administrative offices at 2/F ...

Later career

Luz produced art pieces through a disciplined economy of means. His early drawings were described as "playful linear works" influenced by

Paul Klee Paul Klee (; 18 December 1879 – 29 June 1940) was a Swiss-born German artist. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. Klee was a natural draftsman who experimented ...

. His best masterpieces were minimalist, geometric abstracts, alluding to the modernist "virtues" of competence, order and elegance; and had been further described as evoking universal reality and mirrors an aspiration for an acme of true Asian modernity.Endaya, Imelda Cajipe (artist and independent curator) and Cecilia B. Rebong (Philippine Consul-General). ''"Pamana: Modernong Sining"'' (A Heritage of Modern Art), An Art Exhibit from the Collection of the Philippine Center in New York, Printed Catalogue, The Consulate General of the Philippines, Philippine Center Management Board, and PCGNY.net, June 11, 2007, 12 pages. From 1976 to 1986, Luz served as the first director of the

Metropolitan Museum of Manila The Metropolitan Museum of Manila (nicknamed the Met) is one of the major museums in the city located within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Complex along Roxas Boulevard in the Malate district of Manila, the Philippines. It bills itself ...

and is a frequent participant of exhibits held at the museum. He owned the Luz Gallery, which according to the

National Commission for Culture and the Arts The National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines ( fil, Pambansang Komisyon para sa Kultura at mga Sining, ceb, Nasodnong Komisyon alang sa Budaya ug mga Arte) is the official government agency for culture in the Philippines. ...

"professionalized the art gallery as an institution".

Personal life

Arturo was married to Teresita Ojeda (February 16, 1930 – April 28, 2019), with whom he had 4 daughters, including the late singer Paola Luz, (February 11, 1964, – August 26, 1991) at age 27, and former actress and model Angela Luz. He has a granddaughter named Paulina Sotto, the daughter of Angela Luz.

Death

He died on May 26, 2021, at the age of 94.

References

External links

Samito.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luz, Arturo 1926 births 2021 deaths Place of birth missing Filipino designers Filipino painters Filipino printmakers Filipino sculptors National Artists of the Philippines University of Santo Tomas alumni Brooklyn Museum Art School alumni