Press Release
December 15, 2007

ANGARA CALLS ON U.P. ARTISTS TO SHOWCASE TALENT,
DONATES P7M SEED FUND FOR THE ARTS

Senator Edgardo J. Angara today tasked the deans of seven U.P. "arts group" colleges to utilize UP's wealth of talents in order to raise money for the 2008 Centennial.

Angara, chairman of the UP Centennial Commission, met with the deans of the College of Fine Arts, College of Music, College of Architecture, College of Arts and Letters and College of Mass Communication and tasked them to mount shows, performances and exhibits that will showcase both the UP alumni and students' talent in the performing arts, visual arts, literature, film and design.

To start the ball rolling, he donated P1 million each to these five colleges, plus another P1 million each for the College of Human Kinetics and the UP Office of Initiatives for Culture and the Arts (OICA) as seed funding for performances, traveling shows and exhibits.

"Our artists are recognized around the globe for their talent and creativity. UP has produced some of the best artists in the country - sculptors, painters, architects, singers, musicians, poets, writers, filmmakers, theater actors, comedic geniuses. They are one of our best assets," he said. "We must provide avenues for them to showcase their talent, especially now that we are nearing our Centennial. Apart from their great artistic significance, they can create noise around the celebration and rally support for the University."

The arts group hopes to raise money for their respective colleges, which will be used for Centennial projects including the renovation of the dance studio at the College of Music, upgrading of facilities at the electronic newsroom of the College of Mass Communication, and improvement of the environmental architecture laboratory at the College of Architecture.

Angara, former President of UP, now heads the UP Centennial Commission which is raising P5 billion for the University. The Centennial celebration will start with a grand kickoff on January 8, 2008, and will last throughout the year.

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