IE Arts & Humanities Week 2023: A celebration of Art, Humanities and Technology
Every year, IE Foundation supports and celebrates the Arts & Humanities Week. This year's event, delved into exciting topics such as the interaction between art, humanities, and technology, discovering their potential to converge and offer new perspectives and approaches in our ever-changing world.
IE Foundation is fully committed to promoting diversity, inclusivity, and creativity within its community. It strongly believes in the critical role that humanities play in fostering values such as critical thinking and innovation. One of the ways in which IE Foundation promotes these values is by supporting the IE Arts & Humanities Week, an annual event that celebrates and brings together students, faculty, and the broader community to engage with a variety of humanities-related topics, including art, literature, philosophy, and history.
The 2023 Arts & Humanities Week organized and co-hosted by Campus Life, IE Foundation, and the IE Arts & Humanities Division, had the theme “Arts, Humanities & Technology,” reflecting the ongoing impact of technology on our world and the need to engage with these changes critically and creatively. Throughout the various events of the week, attendees had the opportunity to explore the ways in which art and humanities can help navigate the rapid technological advancements and think about the world in new and innovative ways.
The opening event on April 24th marked the launch of IE Tower as an official institution of the MMMAD Urban Digital Art Festival. The ceremony included a panel discussion on digital and generative art, with renowned panelists Feileacan McCormick of Entangled Others and New Media Artist Enrique Agudo, alongside IE University Provost Manuel Muñiz and IE Foundation Executive Vice President Gonzalo Garland. Attendees were treated to a captivating exhibition of two emerging art media pieces, followed by an invigorating discussion on how technology can be utilized to create innovative and accessible forms of artistic expression, with a specific focus on generative art.
Alongside the opening event, the IE Arts & Humanities Division and IE Foundation jointly hosted the “Ingenuity and Creativity seen through the Prado Museum: A masterclass with the Fundación Amigos Museo del Prado” at the Segovia Campus. During the conference, participants explored the nature of talent, innovation, and the human capacity to generate thought and express it. They debated whether genius is born or made, and discussed how creativity and innovation can be cultivated and developed. The conference challenged the idea that only a select few are born with artistic genius and featured Catalina Tejero, Vice Dean of IE Arts & Humanities, and Teresa Parladé Browne-Swinburne, renowned researcher, and Professor of Art History.
During the week, attendees also had the opportunity to gain insights into the “Freud: New Perspectives” exhibition at the Thyssen Museum, curated by Paloma Alarcó. The collaboration provided a virtual tour of the exhibition, showcasing behind-the-scenes details and giving attendees a chance to appreciate the effort and creativity that went into curating this important presentation.
The 2023 Arts & Humanities Week provided a stimulating program of events that brought together the IE community to explore the intersection of arts, humanities, and technology. At IE Foundation, we are pleased to continue our commitment to supporting projects, events, and initiatives in the humanities that foster cultural inspiration.