Tradition and experience are the terms that define DOMPAL. For almost 60 years, the company has been working for excellence in Jabugo (Huelva) and Guijuelo (Salamanca). From the beginning in 1962, the architect of the company, Francisco Martín Moreno, had a very clear objective: to obtain the recognition of its clients as the best supplier of each of its products.

It is in Jabugo and Guijuelo where the holm and cork oaks become the ideal habitat for the Iberian pig, and it is in these areas that DOMPAL establishes its base of operations. DOMPAL's master ham makers are true artists, and in the manner of a goldsmith, they are capable of carving the Jewel of Bellota into exclusive pieces with unique flavours, using top quality raw materials.

Currently, the company, under the General Management of Juan Carlos Tejero, has consolidated itself as a leader in the sector, projecting itself into the future with a new Production Centre in Jabugo equipped with IFS and BRC certification, which will allow it to satisfy the most demanding demands, setting itself the challenge for the near future of international trading of its excellent product.

DOMPAL has a large warehouse in Alcobendas (Madrid), where it stores more than 50,000 hams from all the protected designations of origin, as well as a variety of gourmet products to accompany the ham. DOMPAL's headquarters smells of "well-made, healthy, and wholesome product".

In 2017, in order to be able to cover the growing offer and expand the company nationally and internationally, DOMPAL built up a new dryer of about 5,000 square meters with facilities adapted to the latest technological advances, but honestly preserving the tradition of Jabugo’s hams. In the traditional way, the surface is distributed in three floors; with natural dryers in the upper part, elaboration in the ground floor and a lower part devoted to the wine cellar.

DOMPAL distributes its products in more than 2,000 establishments (restaurants, specialised and gourmet shops) in Spain and Europe, and has received numerous quality awards and national and international recognition. Although, as its team points out: "our best award is to have such emblematic clients as El Corte Inglés or Paradores Nacionales of Spain, who place their trust in us and our products to offer the highest quality to their customers".

Some of the most outstanding awards that DOMPAL has received are: “Medalla de oro al Mejor Jamón de Bellota Calidad 5 Dompales” of the German Butchers Association (Stuttgart, 2006), “Trofeo al mejor jamón ibérico de bellota de Castilla y León 2015”, granted by the hoteliers' association of Castilla León, “Premio FES mejor empresario en el exterior, Francisco Martín Moreno, presidente de Domingo del Palacio S.A”, “Ganador al mejor jamón ibérico de Cebo de Castilla y León 2016”, granted by the hoteliers’ association of Castilla León and “Triple Medalla de Oro en la feria cárnica IFFA 2019 de Alemania”, among others.

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.