This exclusive Madrid Lager’ format of 50 cl. of Cervezas La Virgen can only be enjoyed during the celebration of Art Madrid. In addition, the winning design will receive a prize of 500 euros.

The chosen product to inspire you is one of the most acclaimed beers of La Virgen, the Madrid Lager, awarded in the last three years as best Lager style Helles of Spain in the World Beer Awards. It is the first variety that La Virgen made, the more classic and authentic, the perfect draft beer which is also available in 33cl cans since last year. As their creators explain, "the can of Madrid Lager is here to stay and you can take it anywhere" because "we love the can and the possibilities that surround it". The design has to be made for the 50 cl-format, which it is made exclusively for the fair. The only limit to your creativity will be the size of the product format: 135mm high by 204mm wide.

Although designs must be able to be reproduced in digital format for later printing, so it is preferable to present works of digital illustration or graphic design, you can work from any technique or theme. You can also work with the metallic qualities of the material because the label will be produced as a transparent vinyl, so if you leave blank spaces in your design, you will see the metallic colour in those areas. In addition, the design should visually integrate the logos of Cervezas La Virgen and Art Madrid'19, as well as the sentence "Special Edition Art Madrid'19".

If your passion is as strong as that of La Virgen's master brewers, surely you have more than one design in mind. Do not worry because each artist can submit up to 5 proposals, as long as they are unpublished. Participation is open to all kinds of creators, artists or professionals, however, do not forget that the deadline for submission is February the 10th.

View of the taprooms and La Virgen´s Fabric

The selection process is divided into two parts: first, there will be a pre-selection of 10 finalists by Art Madrid, whose designs will be published on our website, newsletter and social networks. In the second phase, open voting will be made on Instagram with the hashtag #ConcursoLaVirgenAM19, this vote will also influence the final criteria of Cervezas La Virgen. The winning design will be announced the week before the Art Madrid’19 fair.

La Virgen craft beers are made since 2011 "without tricks, without haste", entirely with natural ingredients, following the best traditional processes while incorporating the latest technology, respecting the environment and promoting responsible consumption. Always from the heart, because they are lucky to be able to do what they really like. Therefore, creativity and quality are characteristics shared by Arte Madrid and La Virgen; Join us in this remarkable experience and show us your talent.

Good luck!

From July 7 to 9, 2025, the Balsera Palace will host the First Course on Collecting and Contemporary Art, an intensive 15-hour program that will explore the complex and fundamental question of taste in contemporary art. Organized by the Nebrija Institute of Arts and Humanities at Nebrija University and the Avilés City Council, in collaboration with 9915 — Association of Private Collectors of Contemporary Art and the Institute of Contemporary Art, the course offers a unique opportunity for analysis and debate on the dynamics that shape aesthetic and symbolic value in today’s art scene.

First Course on Collecting and Contemporary Art. Avilés, Asturias

The notion of taste, intrinsically tied to aesthetic judgments and power relations, has played a decisive role in the historical prominence of artists and artworks. However, contemporary art—marked by its breaking of conventions, diversity of media and techniques, and critical stance toward traditional canons—raises fundamental questions about the continued relevance of this concept.

This course will explore how the decisions made by key players in the art system—institutions, private collections, galleries, curators, and artists—continually redefine a field of taste shaped by aesthetic, symbolic, cultural, social, and political logics.

"¿But does it exist, and what is the prevailing taste of our time—so seemingly confused, fragmented, indecipherable?" - Omar Calabrese, The Neo-Baroque Era.

The academic program, directed by José Luis Guijarro Alonso, Director of the Master’s in Art Market and Related Business Management at Nebrija University, and Pablo Álvarez de Toledo, Head of the Department of Arts at Nebrija University and the Nebrija Institute of Arts and Humanities, will bring together a distinguished group of national experts—including collectors, critics, curators, gallery owners, and artists—whose contributions will address key issues in shaping aesthetic, symbolic, and market value in today’s art world.

PROGRAM

MONDAY, JULY 7

9:30 AM Registration.

10:00 AM Course Opening Nebrija University Avilés City Council Presented by Rosario López Meras – President of the Association of Contemporary Art Collectors, 9915, and Adrián Piera – President of the ICA, Institute of Contemporary Art.

10:30 AM Course Presentation By José Luis Guijarro Alonso – Art Historian and Anthropologist, Researcher, and Director of the Master’s in Art Market and Related Business Management at Nebrija University.

11:00 AM Coffee Break.

11:30 AM Panel Discussion The Taste of Private Collecting as a Prelude to History. Speakers: Candela Álvarez Soldevilla – Entrepreneur and Collector; Javier Quilis – INELCOM Collection; José Miguel Vegas Valle – Collector. Moderator: Luis Feás – Critic and Curator.

1:00 PM Lunch Break.

3:30 PM Individual Lecture On Good Taste in Contemporary Art. Speaker: Marisol Salanova – Curator and Art Critic, Director of Arteinformado.

4:45 PM Panel Discussion The Influence of Galleries in Shaping Contemporary Taste. Speakers: Elba Benítez – Gallerist; Ricardo Pernas – Gallerist (Arniches 26); Aurora Vigil-Escalera – Gallerist. Moderator: Rafael Martín – Coleccion@casamer.

6:00 PM End of Day.

6:30 PM Activity and Cocktail Visit to the Exhibition Asturian Artists in the Pérez Simón Collection – Avilés.

TUESDAY, JULY 8

10:00 AM Individual Lecture Contemporary (Bad) Taste: Kitsch, Camp, and Tacky. Speaker: Julio Pérez Manzanares – Autonomous University of Madrid.

11:00 AM Coffee Break.

11:30 AM Panel Discussion Institutions and the Formation of Contemporary Taste. Speakers: Virginia López – Artist, Founder of PACA_Proyectos Artísticos Casa Antonino; Julieta de Haro – Artistic Director of CentroCentro; Carlos Urroz – Director of Institutional Relations, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía. Moderator: Laura Gutiérrez – Director, School of Art of Oviedo.

1:00 PM Lunch Break.

3:30 PM Panel Discussion Beyond the Eye: The Taste for Ethical, Ecological, Social, or Political Concerns in Contemporary Art. Speakers: Semíramis González – Independent Curator; Eugenio Ampudia – Artist; Claudia Rodríguez-Ponga – Independent Curator. Moderator: Bárbara Mur Borrás – PhD in Fine Arts.

5:00 PM End of Day.

5:30 PM Activity Visit to the Studiolo Exhibition – Candela Álvarez Soldevilla Collection.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 9

9:30 AM Meeting with Asturian Artists Speakers: María Castellanos – Artist; Avelino Sala – Artist; Consuelo Vallina – Artist. Moderator: Pablo Álvarez de Toledo – Nebrija University.

11:00 AM Activity Visit to the Niemeyer Center – Avilés.

Course Closing Ceremony.

This course is designed for art professionals, collectors, researchers, and students seeking an in-depth analysis of the dynamics that shape taste and collecting practices in contemporary art. Adopting a critical and multidisciplinary perspective, it provides a unique opportunity to rigorously examine the aesthetic, symbolic, and structural factors that underpin the legitimization of contemporary art.