Europe is undergoing a profound redefinition. Amid the crisis of its founding narratives, the rise of nationalism, and the emergence of artificial intelligence, culture is becoming both a battleground and a potential compass. This series proposes thinking about Europe not through its institutions, but through its collective imagination, its creative practices, and its contradictions.

Three sessions. Three conversations. Voices from the fields of writing, journalism, cultural management, law, and technology.

For the past two decades, el Círculo acts as Casa Europa In Madrid: a space to rethink, build, and debate Europe through contemporary culture, art, and thought. Based on this conviction, el Círculo It incorporates the European dimension as the core of its programming and actively participates in the debates that shape the European project, through alliances and collaborative projects with leading organizations in the European cultural field. Imagine Europe From culture stems that commitment: from the conviction that debates about what kind of Europe we want to be also belong to the citizens.

Program

Saturday, May 9th at 12pm – Rooftop

What kind of Europe are we talking about? With Lorenzo Silva and Montserrat Domínguez.

May 9th is Europe Day, and el Círculo de Bellas Artes is also a Casa Europa In Madrid. With that dual meaning, we inaugurate Imagining Europe through Culture, a series of debates on the role of culture in Europe today. The inaugural session proposes an open conversation about the narratives that construct and erode Europe: which imaginaries are breaking down and which are missing, who tells Europe's story and from what perspective, what threats creative freedom faces, and what it means to feel European beyond institutions. Sixty minutes between writer Lorenzo Silva and journalist Montserrat Domínguez, on the rooftop, accompanied by vermouth.

Tuesday, May 12 at 18:30 p.m. – Valle Inclán Room 

How is culture sustained in Europe? With Antonia Blau and Carlos Almela. Moderated by Jara Díaz Alberola

Europe has ambitious instruments to support its culture: Creative Europe, the Culture Compass, transnational networks, and private philanthropy. Bridges have been built, projects funded, and alliances forged that didn't exist decades ago. And yet, the question remains: what forms of cultural cooperation are truly working, and what conditions would make it possible to go further?

What role does cultural philanthropy play, and what values ​​guide its actions? Where are the real limits of artistic mobility and cultural circulation beyond national borders? What shared European narratives are we building, and which ones remain to be developed? This is a conversation based on the experiences of those who work in transnational contexts every day, with the freedom to point out both what works and what is lacking.

With Antonia Blau, Director General of the Goethe-Institut Madridand Carlos Almela, head of cultural projects at hablarenarte and general coordinator of the Master's in Cultural Management at UC3M. Moderated by Jara Díaz Alberola, International Projects Coordinator at el Círculo

Tuesday, May 26 at 18:30 p.m. – Valle Inclán Room

Who imagines Europe tomorrow? Esther Paniagua and Eva Moraga

Artificial intelligence is transforming how culture is created, distributed, and consumed. Europe has responded with the AI ​​Act, a pioneering regulatory framework on a global scale, and yet the most difficult questions remain: What kind of culture do these systems produce, in what languages, and with what imagery? What happens to creators' rights when their works train models without permission or remuneration? Can Europe build its own approach—pluralistic, multilingual, and geared toward the common good—or does the speed of technological change always leave us one step behind?

A conversation between Esther Paniagua, a journalist who has spent years mapping technological power and its cultural consequences, and Eva Moraga, a lawyer specializing in the arts and culture sector who defends creators' rights in decision-making spaces. Two different perspectives on the same territory: what is at stake when we let others decide what culture the machine produces.