2011 Culture Awards of Madrid Community

The Community of Madrid delivers recognitions every year to intellectuals and artists that stand out due to their intense work on national culture.

2011 Culture Awards were given to Carmen Laffon, Fine Arts; Chema Conesa, Photography, and Enrique Cerezo, Cinematographic and Audiovisual Arts; as well as Arturo Fernandez, Theater; Monica Runde, Dance; Sylvia Toran, Music; and Maria Dueñas, Literature. Other prizes were handed, such as the International Medal of Arts, received by painter Antonio Lopez, who is considered the father of the realist school in Madrid and one of the most internationally sought-after Spanish artists.

During the awards ceremony, Ignacio Gonzalez, president of the Community, pointed out that these prizes are a “symbol of gratitude to the contribution of artists that turn the city into an artistic and cultural icon ", and those who reaffirm the commitment with "and open Madrid that defends the freedom of creation, where artists don’t see their art censured."

Carmen Laffon (Seville, 1934) studied at the Fine Arts School of Saint Isabelle of Hungary and got her degree at the Fine Arts School of San Fernando, Madrid. In 1967 she created El Taller School, along with Teresa Duclos and Jose Soto, and promoted the artistic teaching, a task she carried out again in 1975 when she joined the Natural Drawing Cathedra at Seville’s Fine Arts School, through 1981. She has developed her work in terms of painting and sculpture, with a language that goes beyond realism in an effort to reveal the profound intimacy of things. She was given the Fine Arts National Award and is a member of the Fine Arts Royal Academy of Seville (1998), among others.

Chema Conesa (Murcia, 1952) got his degree in Philosophy and Letters (especially History of Art) at Madrid’s University. He began his career in El País as the redactor of sports section, until he decided to focus his passion on photography. He has affirmed that his work has been influenced by the golden age of documental photography, particularly Henri Cartier-Bresson. Conesa is the graphic editor and director of Photobolsillo collection, a series of over sixty monographic works created by Spanish photographers, produced by La Fabrica Editorial. He has also been the curator of individual and collective exhibitions; and has been working, since 1992, as consultant of World Press Photo.

Enrique Cerezo (Madrid, 1947) is one of the most successful movie makers in the Spanish industry.

Source: Press release