FOR HER works that present the unique and distinctive Ilocano cultural and literary traditions. Her poetry, essays, stories and novels not only delight and entertain but revive and reaffirm values that are slowly being erased by the intrusion of foreign influence and false consciousness. In masterful and exuberant Ilocano, her works proclaim with art and humor a dignified native world-view while keenly criticizing negative social forces in order to promote and re-strengthen regional culture. She has also championed the cause of literature in various fields, including theater, thus earning her the epithet of a “compleat artist” and a true inspiration in Ilocano writing as well as the national literature.
RUPERTA VR. ASUNCIÓN won three major awards for her body of works as an Ilokana writer in 2008 alone, namely: 1. Special Award of Distinction as a Creative Writer in Iluko literature (the first in UPLB); 2. Leona Florentino Award in Iluko literature (the first awardee in the UP System); and 3. the Outstanding Award in Culture and the Arts, awarded by the University of the Philippines Alumni Association.