The painter Augusto Ferrer-Dalmau has been invested Doctor ‘Honoris Causa’ by the University CEU San Pablo in the academic act of celebration of the Feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas. In his acceptance speech, Ferrer Dalmau pointed out that “painting is the very best representation to visualise and understand human history; it has served and continues to serve as a testimony to the great events of the past“. He went on to point out that “artwork is a weapon to fight against neglect and oblivion, to pay homage to our ancestors and to recover our collective conscience”. He also called for the dissemination of history by every means possible, so that everyone is made aware of our ancestors’ achievements, especially young people.
The painter of the historical past and battle scenes encouraged us all to contribute to the recovery of consciousness, remembering and recreating great historic events. “My paintings pay respect to all those that gave and lost everything, bravely and true to their values; the heroism of great men and women attributable to a loyalty to their principles and a sense of brotherhood”, said Ferrer-Dalmau. He also recalled the great legacy of historic battle paintings headed by two Spanish artists, Velázquez and Goya.
María Rodríguez Velasco, lecturer in Art History at the University gave the laudation. In her speech, she said that Ferrer-Dalmau “has transformed his canvases into true chronicles to disseminate the history of Spain, both nationally and internationally.” She also noted that for him, painting is “a privileged tool to express his love for Spain, his admiration for the military and an exceptional way of transmitting these values to future generations, conscious of the necessity of knowing about the past to understand the present”.
To conclude, Rodríguez Velasco stated that it was “a source of pride and gratitude to have today’s most renowned painter of historical battles join us in the Faculty, especially for our degrees in History, Art History and Humanities“.
The Rector of the University, Rosa Visiedo, also stressed the importance of the subject area in which Ferrer-Dalmau was awarded an honorary degree: the Humanities. In her speech, she highlighted that “they represent a transversal vector that permeates all our degrees via the subjects taught by the Ángel Ayala Institute of Humanities. In times of constant change, we must protect the essential and permanent, becoming a space for the intellectual and ethical development of the members of our community, especially our students, in line with the challenges of contemporary society”.
During the celebration of the festivity of the patron saint of universities and university students, Visiedo dedicated a few words to the new doctors of the 2021/2022 academic year, reminding them that in attaining the highest academic qualification they must always find “the truth with scientific rigour, in a stimulating combination of science, reason and faith”.
She also added that the University should awaken in students an “intellectual concern for knowledge and cultivate in them their ability to think and learn”. It should also offer "an educational experience in which the contribution of study, understood as a healthy marriage between research and teaching, and the accompaniment of students towards full personal, intellectual and professional maturity, educating them in knowledge, but also in values, are fundamental".
The ceremony was brought to a close by the Chancellor of the University, Alfonso Bullón de Mendoza, who congratulated Ferrer-Dalmau, and whose work he defined as “not only artistically stunning, but historically accurate.”
Augusto Ferrer-Dalmau therefore joins an outstanding group of scientists and intellectuals such as Helmut Kohl, John Martin Scott, Gordon Tullock, Antonio María Rouco Varela, Mario Monti, Vicente Palacio Atard, Francisco Rodríguez Adrados, Margaret Foti, José Antonio Escudero, Eduardo García de Enterría, Joseph H. H. Weiler, Herman Van Rompuy, Raimundo Bassols, Joseph A. Bellanti, S.G.O. Johansson, Alberto Campo Baeza, Antonio Fernández de Buján, Rémi Brague, and José Luis Gutiérrez who have been awarded honorary doctorates by the CEU San Pablo University.
The president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, held a meeting with Augusto Ferrer-Dalmau, at University CEU San Pablo before the celebratory event, as the president, for schedule reasons, was unable to attend.