The Minister of Education, Culture and Sports of Spain, José Ignacio Wert, along with the Council of Ministers of that nation awards the Gold Medals of Merit in the Fine Arts to those individuals and entities that standout in the field of artistic and cultural creation and who have offered important contributions in the promotion, development or diffusion of art and culture or in the preservation of the artistic heritage. Among those who received the medal in March of 2014 is PhotoEspaña, the international photography festival promoted by La Fábrica and celebrated every year in Madrid during June and July. The festival began in 1998 and has gradually grown into a referent in the visual arts world. Besides its main headquarters in the capital of Spain, during its several editions the event has been presented in many other venues, including Toledo, Aranjuez, Paris, Lisbon and Cuenca. The exhibitions that are part of it are presented in the main art centers and museums of the city of Madrid, as well as in cultural spaces. Patricia Phelps de Cisneros and her husband, Gustavo Cisneros, were also awarded the medal. They are the creators of the Fundación Cisneros that for the last decades has continuously promoted and supported education and culture in Latin America. Likewise, from the Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros, its founder promotes the conservation, study, presentation and promotion of the Latin American material culture; from ethnographic objects to contemporary art, as well as the excellence in the field of the visual arts. Phelps closely collaborates with the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (MNCARS) and heads the foundation of that museum. In recognition of her efforts, Patricia Phelps has received several awards, such as the Leone d'Oro di San Marco in Venice, the Legion of Honor Cross given by the government of France, the Gold Medal by the Americas Society, and the Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney Award for Outstanding Patronage of the Arts, among others. Other recipients of the award also include personalities and institutions associated with the world of architecture, theater, filmmaking, cultural publications and music, includig: Alicia Hermida, Cecilia Margarita Bartolomé-Pina, Eduardo Cardenal-Gómez, Festival Internacional del Cante de las Minas, Gerard Mortier, Joan Pons-Álvarez, Jorge Herralde-Grau, José Ignacio Wert, Juanjo Seoane, Mansilla+Tuñón Arquitectos, Manuel Alejandro, Sybilla, Teatro Principal de Mahón, Tomás Marco Aragón, Victorino Martín-Andrés and Victoria Eugenia (Betty).