MANILA, Philippines ? President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has named seven National Artists for this year, including one of her advisers and pioneers in fashion design and local comic books, Malacañang said.

This years Order of National Artists roster, according to Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, include: National Commission on Culture and the Arts executive director Cecille Guidote Alvarez for theater; Manuel Urbano, also known as Manuel Conde, for film and broadcast arts (posthumous); Lazaro Francisco, literature (posthumous); Federico Aguilar Alcuaz, visual arts, painting, sculpture and mixed media; Magno Jose Carlo Caparas, visual arts and film; Francisco ?Bobby? Mañoza, architecture; and Jose ?Pitoy? Moreno, fashion design.