Professor Laura López Paniagua of CIS University delivered the second lecture of the semester for the Applied Humanities Research Group GINA (Global Imperial & National Affairs). Her talk, titled “À Gisèle: Art, Trauma, and the Limits of Representation,” brought together students and faculty to reflect on how art can help us better understand violence, trauma, and some of the key challenges facing our society.
The lecture grew out of her ongoing research and the art exhibition À Gisèle, created in response to the Pelicot case. Rather than focusing solely on a specific event, the project invited attendees to consider what happens when the bonds of trust that sustain ideas such as home, care, and security in personal relationships begin to break down.
During the first part of the session, López Paniagua explained the exhibition’s ideas clearly and accessibly. Drawing on contemporary thinkers, she raised a central question: what happens when certain experiences are so painful that they seem impossible to put into words? In that space, art becomes a way of giving shape to what is difficult to express.
The lecture also explored how certain situations cannot be understood as isolated incidents, but as part of broader social dynamics. From this perspective, students were encouraged to reflect on how legal equality can coexist with deep-rooted inequalities that continue to shape society.
One of the most meaningful moments of the session was the reference to Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning. Through this work, Professor López Paniagua highlighted that even after extreme suffering, it is possible to find meaning that transforms pain into support for others. In this context, Gisèle Pelicot’s public stance was presented as an example of strength and solidarity.
A Collective Exhibition for Memory
The second part of the lecture focused on the four artists featured in the exhibition — Armineh Negahdari, Kiki Smith, La Chola Poblete, and Maya Pita-Romero — whose works, through drawing, sculpture, and textile practices, explore the body, memory, and vulnerability. Rather than offering definitive answers, the exhibition creates a space for dialogue where female experience is presented in all its complexity.
The À Gisèle project has garnered significant public and media attention, with coverage in outlets including El Mundo, El País, El Confidencial, and Noticias Cuatro, among others. This impact has contributed to raising the exhibition’s profile and bringing its message to a wider audience interested in the role of art in addressing challenging realities. The conference allowed attendees to learn firsthand about the creative process behind an initiative that has sparked extensive debate beyond academic circles, resonating with society at large.
With this second session, GINA continues to strengthen its role at CIS University as a space where art, critical thinking, and open discussion come together to help students engage with the major challenges of our time.