Vítor Blanco, from the Critical Communication - CRITICC Research Group, defended their thesis entitled “Crime control as social interation. A conversation analysis of police border checks” this past month with an excellent rating and has been awarded the cum laude qualification. The thesis has been directed by Dr. Pilar Medina-Bravo, from the Critical Communication - CRITICC Research Group.

Vítor's thesis studies contemporary 3D art from the framework of queer studies, and more specifically from the idea of "volumetric frictions" as a framework to read hegemonic modes of representation and contrahegemonic practices or meanings found in and created through them. Vítor structures the thesis in six axis (realism, space, science-fiction, body, time and identity), each relating to a different topic of conversation within queer theories which can be observed in the work of queer 3D contemporary artists. To do this, they employ the "Carrier Bag" methodology, which allows for the complexity that the topic requires.

The tribunal was formed by Dr. Mercè Oliva, from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra, as a president; Dr. Víctor Ramírez Tur, from the University of Barcelona, as secretary and Dr. Marta Valentín Vicente, from Kansas University, as a member, highlighted the innovative conversation brought forward by Vítor in the thesis, as well as the possibility of continuing using this method to further the analysis into other topics relating to contemporary art and queer studies. The court also valued Vítor's body of work, developed during the making of their thesis, very positively.