Vicente Alvarez Dizon (1905 - 1947)
He was born on April 5, 1905 in Malate, Manila. His parents were Jose Sampedro Dizon, a native of Bacolor, and Rosa Carlos Alvarez, of Concepcion, Tarlac. His father (University of Santo Tomas 1897) was a landscape artist, and botanist-agronomist for the Bureau of Agriculture. As an agronomist and agricultural inspector, Mr. Jose S. Dizon was assigned to several towns like Capas, Tarlac, Magalang, Pampanga, San Isidro, Nueva Ecija. Vicente had his early schooling at Malate Primary School; then continued his intermediate studies in the towns where his father was assigned.
In Cabanatuan, he joined the town’s musical band where he played the piccolo. When he was in high school, he stayed with his godparents at their residence in Malate, Manila. He graduated in high school from the National University High School. At sixteen, he was already illustrating like a professional artist even without any previous art schooling.
He illustrated for pre-war Liwayway Publications especially the stories of “Lola Basyang”, Graphic Herald, TVT papers and the Women’s Home Journal, while he was still in high school.
His father wanted him to study Medicine and he obeyed. He attended the National University College of Medicine (1921-23). He later transferred to the University of the Philippines School of Fine Arts and took a 5-year course and graduated with an Art Diploma (with high honors) in 1928. After graduation, he became the first artist-lecturer of the Philippines. He also distinguished himself as one of the first Filipinos to win important scholarships abroad, such as those awarded him by the Federal Schools of Art, Minneapolis, Minnesota. On his own, he applied for a scholarship and was accepted at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, U. S. A. (1934)
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