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BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
The Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan or the National Living Treasures Award was institutionalized through Republic Act No. 7355 in April 1992. Tasked with the administration and implementation of the Award is the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the highest policy-making and coordinating body for culture and the arts of the State.
The NCCA, through the Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan Executive Council, conducts the search for the finest traditional artists of the land, adopts a program that will ensure the transfer of their skills to others, and undertakes measures to promote a genuine appreciation of and instill pride among our people about the genius of the Manlilikha ng Bayan.
Garcia, who is from Sabulod, San Quintin, Abra, was hailed as a National Living Treasure or GAMABA in 2012 for his efforts in keeping the traditional tabungaw-making alive. Each time Teofilo Garcia leaves his farm in San Quintin, Abra, he makes it a point to wear a tabungaw.
People in the nearby towns of the province, in neighboring Sta. Maria and Vigan in Ilocos Sur, and as far as Laoag in Ilocos Norte sit up and take notice of his unique, functional and elegant headpiece that shields him from the rain and the sun.
A closer look would reveal that it is made of the native gourd, hollowed out, polished, and varnished to a bright orange sheen to improve its weather resistance. The inside is lined with finely woven rattan matting, and the brim sports a subtle bamboo weave for accent.