Valencia. Year 2006. The Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), innovative, entrepreneurial and creative since its inception, decided to take a step further and break down a new barrier. Led by the then Vice-Rector for Culture, Joan Peiró, Poliniza was born, a festival that opened the doors and minds of the university to urban art, a daring symbiosis that brought together two worlds that were initially distant and not always on good terms.
The works of Blu, Logan, Julieta, Escif, Deih and many other graffiti artists filled the walls of the UPV with talent and art. The university committed to continuing a project that quickly established itself as a national and international benchmark in the field.
Two decades later, the festival has celebrated its 20th edition, proud of its unique history and determined to continue promoting the spirit that inspired its creation.
This year's edition once again featured major urban artists from the national and international scene, such as 108 (Alessandria, Italy), Lidia Cao (Santiago de Compostela), Musa 71 (Barcelona), Felipe Pantone (Valencia), GordoPelota (Buenos Aires, Argentina), Wasted Rita and Catarina Lira Pereira (both from Lisbon, Portugal), who have left their mark on the history of the festival, each with their own ideas and absolute freedom to express them.
Once completed, their creations now shine with their own light on the walls of the Universitat Politècnica de València, which continues to promote the free circulation of ideas, ingenuity, and art through a group of leading figures in the field who particularly value what this festival represents.
'I think it's incredible,' say Musa 71 and Lidia Cao proudly, each on their own when asked. 'It's spectacular,' says GordoPelota. 'I have many friends who participated in previous years and told me about it, but being here... I thought it was something more isolated, but it's impressive on this campus with the people. I'm very happy to be here,' says the Buenos Aires native.
'I like it a lot,' says Italian 108, who highlights the importance of 'leaving something inside people, young people, students, to help create a more open society.'
Along with the 9 pictorial interventions in this edition - which also include those by students from the Painting and Environment course, which can be seen on the walls of the Faculty of Fine Arts and the Agora of the UPV Vera Campus - the 20th edition of the festival also offers the chance to enjoy 18 works from previous editions, with pieces by artists such as Dulk, Escif, Pichiavo, Franco Fasoli, Luca Goce, Vero Rivera, Elian Chali, Big, Lebrel, Alberto Montes and Joana Rego.
All of these works lend a special and extraordinary personality to an iconic festival at a university, the Universitat Politècnica de València, which can boast not only of being number one in Spain according to the Shanghai ranking but also of having and offering a heritage, a cultural level and an open-mindedness that are as constructive and enriching as they are positive and necessary.
Carlos Ayats Pérez / UPV Communication Area
Outstanding news