Remembering the philosopher Miladin Životić, the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory of the University of Belgrade confers the award for critical engagement to leading theorists whose work has significant impact on social practice.
The Scientific Council of the Institute, on the proposal of the Committee, has decided that the Miladin Životić award for 2022 be conferred to Maurizio Ferraris, professor of theoretical philosophy at the University of Turin and the president of the Laboratory for Ontology (LabOnt, University of Turin).
During his studies, Mauricio Ferraris’ mentors were Gianni Vatima and Jacques Derrida whose influence is present in Ferraris’ work. Besides being the founder of new realism as well as the author of The Manifesto of New Realism, Ferraris’ philosophical practice is recognizable for its exceptional engagement. Through his non-academic work, Maurizio Ferraris stands out as an engaged intellectual who critically reflects on contemporary events and phenomena, while he constantly reflects on the conditions of social reality and engagement in his academic work.
Maurizio Ferraris has a rich academic career. He was the program director of the international school of philosophy in Paris (Collège International de Philosophie). Moreover, Ferraris taught at the University of Trieste and at the University of Macerata; he was also a guest lecturer at Harvard, in Munich, Paris, Beijing , and Rio de Janeiro. Currently, Ferraris is the director of the Scienza Nuova Institute for Advanced Studies in Turin. He is the author of about seventy books, most of which have been translated into foreign languages. Ferraris is also the editor-in-chief of the Rivista di Estetica journal as well as a member of the editorial board of the Critique journal. He is a columnist for various newspapers and signs about 800 newspaper articles. Ferraris is the creator and the participant of dozens of television programs. The insights of his new realism are applied in diverse areas, such as architecture, literature, pedagogy and medicine. His articles, interviews and public appearances cover contemporary social phenomena, such as the ethics of artificial intelligence, post-truth discourse, as well as the importance of documentation in terms of digital politics. His latest insights, similarly, concern the post-corona state (see Post-coronial Studies, Torino 2021).
At the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, Maurizio Ferraris has held several lectures; he also co-edited the book Artworks as Persons (2020) which was published by the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory.