Carlos Arguelles

Carlos D. Arguelles (1917 to 2008) was a leading proponent of the International Style in the Philippines during the postwar decades. The son of prewar architect Tomas Arguelles, he studied at the University of Santo Tomas and earned bachelor's and master's degrees in architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Returning to Manila after the war, he became known for clean, functional modern buildings. His best known work is the Philamlife Building in Ermita, completed in 1962 and admired for its refined proportions and acoustically engineered auditorium. He also designed the Manila Hilton, the ABS-CBN Broadcasting Center in Quezon City, and served as chief architect of Philamlife Homes, described as the country's first gated community.

Arguelles served as dean of the UST College of Architecture and received the Gold Medal of Merit from the Philippine Institute of Architects, cementing his standing as a defining figure of Philippine modernism.