The UP Board of Regents, in its 908th Meeting on 7 December 1978, approved the proposal for the establishment of the U.P. Creative Writing Center (UP CWC). It was officially established on 1 June 1979. In July 2002, the Board of Regents approved to change its name to Likhaan: The UP Creative Writing Center to UP Institute of Creative Writing (ICW) to reflect the growth and goals of the office.
It is UP Likhaan’s mission to stimulate writers from all parts of the Philippines to create and contribute to national cultural development; and to assert the leadership of the UP in creative writing and in the formation of policies and programs related to the development of Philippine culture and literature.
NVM Gonzalez was a fictionist, essayist, poet, and teacher who articulated the Filipino spirit in urban and rural landscapes. His many recognitions include winning the First Commonwealth Literary Contest in 1940, the Republic Cultural Heritage Award in 1960, and the Gawad CCP Para sa Sining in 1990. He became UP’s International-Writer-In-Residence and a member of the Board of Advisers of the then UP Creative Writing Center.
Francisco Arcellana was the first director of the UP Creative Writing Center (now known as the UP Institute of Creative Writing). He was a writer, poet, essayist, critic, journalist, and teacher. He is one of the most important progenitors of the modern Filipino short story in English. Arcellana kept alive the experimental tradition in fiction and has been daring in exploring literary forms to express the sensibility of the Filipino people.
Virgilio S. Almario, also known as Rio Alma, is a poet, literary historian, and critic, who revived and reinvented traditional Filipino poetic forms while championing modernist poetics. In his works of poetry, his voice soared from the lyrical to the satirical to the epic, from the dramatic to the incantatory, in his often-severe examination of the self and the society. He has also redefined how Filipino poetry is viewed and has paved the way for its discussion in his books of literary criticism.
Known as The Grand Dame of Southeast Asian Children’s Theater, Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio started receiving awards and editorships for her writing in high school and college. In 1977 she founded the Teatrong Mulat Ng Pilipinas, an official UP children’s theater and puppetry troupe.
With its current roster of associates, fellows, and advisers, Likhaan: the UP Institute of Creative Writing continues its legacy of promoting literature and creative writing for nation-building and public service.
The UP National Writers Workshop is one of the UP Institute of Creative Writing’s flagship projects. It has developed a workshop style that is both critical and nurturing for beginning and advanced writers alike. This workshop method has become a tradition of the institute, fostering a collegial environment where writers can convene and talk about their craft.
As of 2018, all of the UP Institute of Creative Writing’s projects have been clustered under the name Literature for Social Development (LSD). From the initial flagship projects, the institute extended its programs to publications, fora, and seminars designed to provide free and accessible materials and training for literature scholars, practitioners, and enthusiasts.
Likhaan: the UP Institute of Creative Writing
Room 3200, Pavilion 3, Palma Hall
Roxas Street, UP Diliman, Quezon City 1101
It is UP Likhaan’s mission to stimulate writers from all parts of the Philippines to create and contribute to national cultural development; and to assert the leadership of the UP in creative writing and in the formation of policies and programs related to the development of Philippine culture and literature.
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It is UP Likhaan’s mission to stimulate writers from all parts of the Philippines to create and contribute to national cultural development; and to assert the leadership of the UP in creative writing and in the formation of policies and programs related to the development of Philippine culture and literature.
Likhaan: the UP Institute of Creative Writing
Room 3200, Pavilion 3, Palma Hall
Roxas Street, UP Diliman, Quezon City 1101