The ARENAS exhibition Going Extreme: How Extremist Narratives Are Destroying Democracies opened on 9 September at the Universitat Jaume I in Castellón, marking the first time the exhibition has been presented in the Valencian language.
In the photo:
Vicent Sanz, The director of the Chair of Democratic Memory of the Jaume I University
Mercedes Caballero, Responsible for Democratic Memory of the Socialist Party of Valencia Region
Fernando Martínez, The Secretary of State of Democratic Memory of the Government of Spain
Jesús Lancis Sáez, The Rector of the Jaume I University
Prof. Steven Forti, Autonomous University of Barcelona, ARENAS
Francisco Javier Vellón Lahoz, The Dean of the Faculty of Human and Social Sciences of the Jaume I University
María Luisa Flor Peris, Deputy rector on Innovation of the Jaume I University
Antonia García Valls, Subdelegate of the Government of Spain for the province of Castellón
José Luis Lorenz, The regional deputy of the Socialist Party in the Valencian Parliament
Since its launch, Going Extreme has travelled across Europe, from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona to the University of Cergy Paris, Granada, Córdoba, Sevilla, Düsseldorf, and Helsinki introducing students, researchers and the public to the visual and narrative techniques extremist movements use to spread their messages. Each stop has adapted the exhibition to reach new audiences, but this Valencian edition marks a new kind of milestone: extending the exhibition’s reach into another language, and with it, into communities who engage with these ideas closer to home. It is important to remember that the Catalan-language version of the exhibition—which was first shown at the Dansàneu Pyrenees Cultures Festival—also opened on July 27.
The opening coincides with the inauguration of the Chair of Democratic History and Memory (Càtedra de História i Memòria Democràtica, CDM) at Jaume I University. Castellón is the first location anywhere to host the Valencian-language version of Going Extreme, made possible through the joint funding of the CDM and Spain’s Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory.
The inauguration brought together a notable line-up of academic and political figures, reflecting how closely the exhibition’s themes intersect with Spain’s ongoing work on democratic memory. Among those taking part were Vicent Sanz, Director of the Chair of Democratic History and Memory at Jaume I University; Fernando Martínez, Spain’s Secretary of State for Democratic Memory; Jesús Lancis Sáez, Rector of Jaume I University; and Steven Forti of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, curator of the exhibition and coordinator of the ARENAS Glossary on Extremism. They were joined by María Luisa Flor Peris, Deputy Rector for Innovation at Jaume I University; Francisco Javier Vellón Lahoz, Dean of the Faculty of Human and Social Sciences; Antonia García Valls, the Spanish Government’s Subdelegate for the province of Castellón; Mercedes Caballero, responsible for Democratic Memory within the Socialist Party of the Valencian Region; and José Luis Lorenz, regional deputy for the Socialist Party in the Valencian Parliament.
For ARENAS, this is a meaningful validation. Making the exhibition available in Valencian is a small but concrete step towards meeting audiences where they are, and it demonstrates how ARENAS’s research can be embraced and locally adapted by partner institutions in ways that extend well beyond the project’s original outputs.
The exhibition will remain open to visitors at the Faculty of Human and Social Sciences at Jaume I University until 25 September, before moving to the Faculty of Law and Economic Sciences at the same university, where it will be on display from 28 September to 8 October.