LOLITA VALDERAMA SAVAGE
FILIPINO AMERICAN ARTIST
Born in Manila, Philippines, Lolita received her degree in Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas, the oldest Catholic university in Asia founded in 1611. In 1973, she was granted a scholarship by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to study at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence where she received her Licenza in Pittura. Lolita’s first international group art exhibit was presented at the Palazzo Strozzi in 1975, followed by many one-woman and group art shows in Italy and Sweden where she lived until her move to USA in 1980. She now lives and paints in New York City, Stamford, CT, and Florence Italy, actively continuing to exhibit in Europe and Asia. Lolita attributes her artistic learning and discipline to Professor Silvio Loffredo of the Accademia and her former Swedish mentor, the late Staffan Hallstrom.
Lolita’s commitment to art is combined with her passion for languages, diverse cultures, and a dedication to humanitarian causes. She worked at the United Nations and is actively involved in local and international organizations. As a member of the Board of Directors of Stamford Art Association, she chaired the First Scholarship Benefit Art Auction in l987 and again in 1989 to provide scholarships to young talented artists in Stamford and neighboring community schools in Fairfield County. Lolita also chaired the First International Cultural Festival for the Westover Magnet School in Stamford in 1991, a week long celebration of cultural heritages which aim was to stimulate awareness, sensitivity, better understanding and tolerance of all cultures present in our community. She served as judge for Black History Celebration’s Stamford Schools’ Art Competition at the Stamford Center for the Arts and supported other community organizations like The Forum for World Afffairs, Stamford Historical Society, Alliance Francaise YWCA of Greenwich, The Urban League of Southwestern Connecticut, and served on the boards of The Friends of the Ferguson Library and the Stamford Cultural Development Corporation.
Presently, Lolita serves as Honorary Chairperson for The Foundation for Filipino Artists, Inc, and as board member for the MA-YI Theater Company, two non-profit organizations which promote asian-american art and artists in New York City. In Connecticut, she serves on the board of Namaskaar Foundation, promoting Indian and international dance and music and The ThumbelinaFund for Children of the Fairfield County Community Foundation. Lolita is a member of the American International League, L’Associazione Culturale Giovanni Papini di Firenze, and the Societa delle Belle Arti, Circolo degli Artisti at Casa di Dante in Florence, Italy.
In 1987, Lolita was selected as an outstanding woman of America in recognition of her outstanding ability, accomplishments and service to the community. In 1997, her art exhibition at the Stamford Center for the Arts was held to benefit the needy children of Connecticut. In 1999, she was awarded an official citation from the State of Connecticut for her work in the arts and community affairs for creating awareness of high level of culture and education in Fairfield County. Lolita was presented among the 125 Significant Women of Influence in Stamford by the Historical Society in that same year. In 2012, she received the Totus Tuus Award and the The Outstanding Thomasian Alumni Award in Visual Arts from her alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas in Manila.
Lolita was one of the chosen international artists invited to exhibit at the prestigious World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in 1999. Later, she was presented in a month long solo exhibition at the CASA DI DANTE ALIGHIERI in the historic center of Florence sponsored by the Comune di Firenze and the Philippine Embassy in Rome, Italy. In 2006, after an exhibit in Paris, France, she participated in the “Art for Peace” auction at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, for the benefit of students at Atlantic College in Wales. In her own words: “creating art has taken me up to a new level because it has enabled me to help children, promote education, and bring people together to forge friendship and cultural cooperation”.
In 2011, after 38 years, Lolita went back to Manila to exhibit in her native country’s two major art museums, the AYALA Museum and the University of Santo Tomas Museum of Science and Art. Her recent major exhibition was in December 2013 at the PALAZZO MEDICI Museum, the former residence of the Medici Family, the great patron of Renaissance Arts. She was featured in a solo exhibition at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center
in September 2016 in a joint cultural cooperation between the City of Stamford, CT, City of Florence, Italy, the State of Connecticut, and the Region of Tuscany. Lolita was awarded the Pamana ng Pilipino by Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III in December 2014 in Manila, and the prestigious Lorenzo il Magnifico European Award at the Palazzo Vecchio Salone di Cinquecento in Florence, Italy last June 2017.
Lolita paints and resides both in Connecticut and Tuscany. She is multi-lingual, apart from her native tongue Tagalog, she was formally trained to speak English, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, French and German. She is married to Frank Savage, and a mother to Fredrik Antoine, Grace Erlinda, and Frank Alexander.
