Born on June 6, 1932 in Manila, Federico Aguilar Alcuaz was a Philippine painter known for his modern abstract works, visual arts, painting, sculpture and mixed media. In his 55-year art career, Alcuaz was one of the most awarded and acclaimed artists internationally, foremost of which are the decoration of Arts, Letters and Sciences award from the French government in 1964 and the Order of French Genius in 1964. In 2007, he received the Presidential Medal of Merit award from the Philippine government for his outstanding accomplishments in visual arts. In 2009, he was given the honor of National Artist by the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). Alcuaz’s works are included in the collection of some 20 museums and major cultural institutions in the world today including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Madrid, the Gulvenkian Foundation Museum of London, the Museum of Modern Art of Warsaw, the Musem of Modern Art of Krakow, and the Philips Cultural Museum of the Netherlands. During his career Federico Aguilar Alcuaz has exhibited in leading galleries in Spain, the Philippines, Portugal, Poland, the United States and Germany.