The Gawad CCP Para Sa Sining honors the late Zenaida "Nedy" Tantoco, a beloved figure in the arts, with a special award the Tanging Parangal. The shoes that the late Zenaida "Nedy" Tantoco wore were too big to fill, especially with her contributions and support to Philippine arts and culture. Her support had profoundly impacted the growth and support of the arts and cultural activities in the country, which the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) recognized by her selection to receive this year’s Gawad CCP Para Sa Sining Tanging Parangal.
A visionary and prominent figure in the nation’s premium retail industry, Nedy was a member of the CCP Board of Trustees (BOT) and served in the leading culture and arts institution for almost two decades, from 2002 to 2021. Her unwavering passion for the culture and arts was evident throughout her tenure. In an interview, Anton Huang, Nedy’s eldest son, looked back at the life lessons from his late mother.
“I believe an important aspect and lesson that I’ve learned from her was cultural awareness, something that my mother was incredibly passionate about, as could be seen in the many projects that she organized and developed over the years,” Huang recalled with a smile. Huang believed that his mother’s understanding of “cultural awareness” was deeply evolved and influenced her role as a business leader. “Cultural awareness is a part and parcel of not only one’s personal growth, but also creating meaning for the bus.