Jorge Sebastián is a professor in the Department of Art History at the Universitat de València, and has received research grants from the Real Colegio Complutense de Harvard University (RCC Harvard) in 2017 and 2018. His research as a historian covers a variety of fields, such as the visual representation of the human gender in the Hispanic monarchy of the Modern Age, or studies on the painter Sofonisba Anguissola. Since 2018, he has been Technical Manager of SILKNOW, a research project funded by the European Commission (Horizon2020 programme).
How did you find out about the Real Colegio Complutense at Harvard University?
For an art historian, I have a really bad memory. Anyway, I don't remember it clearly. I think I saw something in a general letter from the University. But it's been a long time, to be honest. The application for my first stay was in spring 2016.
What led you to apply for the long-stay scholarship at Harvard RCC?
The proximity to a professor of art history at Harvard, who would later be the "sponsor" of my stays, as they say there. He taught me many years ago, and fortunately he remembered me. Without an endorsement from a member of his faculty, you can't show up. It's not easy to get someone there to vouch for you as a guest researcher, because they constantly get applications from all over the world. But if someone endorses you, and you also get funding with the RCC scholarship, it really is an opportunity that must be seized.
In your case, it's the second time you've been awarded the scholarship for long stays. What motivated you to come back?
Well, I had made a lot of progress in the bibliographic consultation of my project, but interesting sources and derivations were still emerging. Both in this field and in the field of digital humanities, the setting for congresses, events and publications was (and still is) vibrant throughout the northeast coast area: Boston, New York, and many other centers. Interesting contacts and collaboration possibilities emerged, which encouraged me to try again. RCC itself understands that it takes time to network with elite institutions, it doesn't usually consist of chatting once at a congress and that's it. So it made sense to delve into the already open field. And I already knew how things worked, it was easy to try again.
Can you tell us the main points of your research?
My main project is a book about Sofonisba Anguissola, an Italian painter who spent 13 years in Spain at the court of Philip II. Although she was a celebrity during her lifetime, and her art is particularly interesting, she then fell into oblivion, and now she is recovering. The Prado dedicates an exhibition to her, with which I collaborate, in the autumn of 2019.
I have also devoted time to other projects in the area of digital humanities.
What has your time at RCC Harvard University contributed to your research?
Beyond what has been said in other points, it has allowed me to make my work known to colleagues or publishers who, otherwise, I think would have paid less attention to me. I've noticed that including the names Harvard and RCC as part of your signature gives you a plus of attention. It's not an absolute rule, and of course you only do it while you're there. But it's noticeable.
How would you rate your stay at RCC Harvard University in general?
My balance is very positive, but you have to be aware of all its aspects. Economically, it's an investment. You have to put in money to take the TOEFL exam [Test of English as a Foreign Language], and get your visa. Depending on the department and school, you may also be asked a fee for accepting you as a user of their resources. And since the standard of living there is very high, although the scholarship endowment is good, at the end of the day, you end up putting some money in. That said, once you're there, the research and academic experience more than makes up for those sacrifices.
What has been the most positive thing about your scholarships?
Well, in any stay, the fact of moving away (not as much as you would like) from the daily tasks of classes and management helps you advance in research. Apart from that, access to excellent libraries, and updating through congresses, events, conferences... The cultural and intellectual life on campus (and in the region in general) is very intense, and there are always world-class people who are there as guest lecturers, giving conferences, etc.
And the hardest part?
The weather! Massachusetts, between February and April, definitely has little to do with València. I shouldn't exaggerate, everything is perfectly conditioned, but for this Mediterranean, going out on the street while it snows, or with ice on the sidewalks... makes you miss your homeland a lot.
On the other hand, to be able to leave València for three months I had to accumulate most of my teaching in a single term, and of course, that was very intense.
What would you say to other colleagues who are considering doing a scholarship like yours?
Obviously, it depends a lot on each person, their family circumstances, their research topics, the resources they need... As a general idea, if you have or can get an endorsement from a Harvard professor in your discipline, I would say go ahead, my experience is very positive.
What future prospects do you have?
In the two stays I had, I was able to do in the RCC some mini-symposia about my period and field of research, for the public of the area of Boston and surroundings. They turned out very well, bearing in mind that this is a modest initiative. This year has been the third edition, and this is growing, so I hope to do something stable. It would serve as an annual occasion to bring together researchers in Hispanic and artistic subjects from both sides of the Atlantic.
I am confident that these contacts will also lead to researchers from there coming to València. It's something that hasn't materialised yet, but I think it will happen sooner or later. There is interest in our history and our art, so if you facilitate contact, it opens up opportunities in the reverse direction as well.
