Down Madrid has given the awards for the 29th edition of its international art contest, an initiative carried out in collaboration with the Sacyr Foundation, with the aim of giving greater visibility to the artistic skills of people with intellectual disabilities, and thus, promote their social and cultural integration.
María Dolores Barreda Pérez, General Secratery of Painters and Sculptors (Secretaria General de la Asociación Española de Pintores y Escultores, AEPE), was responsible for inaugurating the exhibition in the Galileo Cultural Center. The exhibit will be on display for free until November 14 and showcases the 150 pieces submitted to the competition by 94 artists with Down syndrome or other disabilities.
Other attendees to the inaguration were Cristina Goncer Ortega, Coordinator of the Chamberí District; Javier Luengo, Director of Plena Inclusión; José Gabriel Astudillo López, Chairman of the AEP; Evelio Acevedo, Managing director of the Thyssem Bornemisza Museum; María Charcos, CSR and Communications tech of Sacyr and the Sacyr Foundation; and Ignacio Egea Krauel, Chair of the board of Down Madrid. Many relevant artists were also in attendance, like the painter Mónica Jimeno and the illustrator Liubov Korolkova.
All of them recognized the quality of the work of the 94 participants, and of the winners of the two categories “Oil paintings” and “Other techniques”. More specifically, the winners in the “Oil paintings” category were Francisca Hidalgo Uclés (1st prize), Mario Moreno Cuesta (2nd prize) and Inés Evangelio Gonzalo (3rd prize). On the other hand, the winners of the “Other techniques” category were Sonia Alonso Gutiérrez (1st prize), Oton Vitale Cardoso (2nd prize) and Mario Batanero Saiz (3rd prize).
In this sense, Ignacio Egea Krauel explained that “people with intellectual disabilities can express themselves creatively and bring their ideas closer to society, what makes them happy, what worries them, their feelings, even what in occasions is hard to put into words”. Equally, “art is a tool for inclusion, which is why it is critical that these artworks reach society and become widespread, so that we can highlight the artistic skills of people with Down syndrome”.
Along the lines of Egea Krauel’s declarations, Francisca Hidalgo Uclés said that to her “painting brings great joy, as well as winning this prize, which I didn’t expect”. “When I paint, I feel great, specially when I use warm colors, like red and orange. I like those best”.
Lastly, Down Madrid, stressed that through this collaboration, the Sacyr Foundation proves their commitment to diversity and talent. In this regard, the Sacyr Foundation acts on different initiatives that span from the inclusion of people with disabilities or at risk of social exclusion in a context of equal access to opportunities.
About Down Madrid
Down Madrid is a non-profit with the aim of achieving the full inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities, as well as improving the quality of life from birth to their aging. Down Madrid’s work for the past 30 years could not have been possible without the collaboration of the people and organizations supporting their efforts.