The ULL will present César Manrique with its medal of honor, the highest distinction

The University of La Laguna will celebrate the awarding of its Medal of Honor to the artist and environmental activist César Manrique next Monday, April 25 at 12:00 noon, shortly after the centenary of this important figure of Canarian culture has been celebrated.

The Medal of Honor is the highest distinction awarded by the University of La Laguna, which has only been awarded twice before, to the Queen of Spain and to the jurist Francisco Tomás y Valiente, the ULL states in a statement.

Specifically, in 1991 it was received by the Queen of Spain on the occasion of her attendance at the closing of the multidisciplinary continuing education course in drug dependence that was being taught at the then School of Nursing and Physiotherapy; and in 1996 the jurist Francisco Tomás y Valiente, awarded posthumously, in recognition of the extraordinary services rendered to the University and the State.

The awarding of this decoration to César Manrique was unanimously approved by the Governing Council of the academic institution on September 25, 2019, but the medal awarding ceremony had to be postponed until this occasion due to the capacity control measures derived from the pandemic.

The event will begin, precisely, with the reading by the general secretary of the university, Elvira Afonso, of that concession agreement endorsed by the institution and, immediately afterwards, the professor of Art History and director of the Cátedra Cultural César Manrique Francisco Galante Gómez will read the laudatio in honor of the honoree.

After the medal is presented to the president of the César Manrique Foundation, José Juan Ramírez, who will say a few words of thanks, the president of the Island Council of Lanzarote, María Dolores Corujo Berriel, and the rector, Rosa Aguilar, will speak at the event.

The session will also feature a performance by saxophonist Fran Rodríguez.