Ülkü Süngün (Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design) and Anujah Fernando (Berlin University of the Arts) opened the Summer 2026 edition of the IFiF Impulse Lecture Series with an online lecture presenting first insights from the Critical Faculties research project.

Their lecture, "Critical Faculties: BIPOC+ FLINTA* in Art Academies. Artistic and Academic Research in Dialogue," explored one of the central tensions shaping current debates on diversity and equality: the ambivalence of visibility. Within the context of higher art education, visibility was discussed not only as an emancipatory resource but also in relation to the risks of hypervisibility and questions of safety, particularly for BIPOC+ FLINTA* artists, researchers, and educators.
The project investigates structural inequalities and institutional exclusion through the intersection of initiatives supporting FLINTA* academics and professors affected by racism. By bringing artistic and academic research methods into dialogue, it seeks to make visible and critically examine the mechanisms operating at the intersection of gendered and racialized inequalities.
The lecture was part of the IFiF Impulse Lecture Series, which highlights the work and visibility of innovative women researchers across a wide range of disciplines.