Category: ARTWORKS

Three young visual artists, all of them Fellows of the 1st SNF Artist Fellowship Program, spent some days (July 13-19) at the village of Vamvakou, within the Artist Residence Program organized by Vamvakou Revival. Iasonas Megoulas (aka Cacao Rocks), Alexandros Simopoulos and Pavlos Tsakonas, studied the history of the village and created three murals, potentially landmarks, opening a discussion on the use of the public space and its relationship to nature and art.

The Artist Residency Program was organised by Vamvakou Revival within the initiative of the Revival of the village thanks to the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF).

Joining forces, our curatorial fellows Eva Vaslamatzi, Danai Giannoglou, Christina Petkopoulou, Mare Spanoudaki and Maya Tounda, organized a roundtable discussion to present their individual practices via Zoom. The presentations were followed by Q&A leading to a fruitful discussion about what it means to be working as a young curator in Greece.

State of Concept presents the works of artist, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, in a series of screenings as part of the chapter State Affairs. “State Affairs” is dedicated to artists that work mainly with video, and presents artistic practices that focus on thematics that are being narrated gradually through several artworks and a longer timespan and are distinguished for their interest in shedding light in historical conditions and how they affect contemporaneity. The program aims to address directly current affairs, predicaments, problematics, and cul-de-sacs of contemporary living, by summoning the past.

Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s work explores the power of storytelling through sculpture and video. His projects involve months of research-based work, and often include the involvement of communities and groups of citizens, focusing on the History we inherit, and on memory. Nguyen draws on and works with dominant – and often colonial – histories, but also surrealist narratives that he turns into image-sequences. Facts and fiction intertwine poetic narratives that permeate time and place. He is a member of “The Propeller Group”, one of Vietnam’s oldest and most important art groups.

His latest work, “The Boat People” (2020, duration 19 ‘), which is currently being screened at MOMA in New York, is set in an unspecified post-apocalyptic future at the precarious edge of humanity’s possible extinction. The film follows a band of children led by a strong-willed and resourceful little girl. They travel the seas and collect the stories of a world they never knew through objects that survived over time. The film “The Island” (2017, duration 42 ‘), is shot entirely on Pulau Bidong, an island off the coast of Malaysia that became the largest and longest-operating refugee camp after the Vietnam War. The artist and his family were some of the 250,000 people who inhabited the tiny island between 1978 and 1991; it was once one of the most densely populated places in the world until the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees shuttered the camp in 1991. The third film is a collective production of the Propeller Group entitles The Living Need Light, The Dead Need Music (2014,duration24’) a film merges documentary footage of actual funeral processions with stunning re-enactments discussing funeral traditions in Southern Vietnam.

On Friday July 3rd, we held our last curator’s talk for the 2nd SNF Artist Fellowship Program with Charis Kanellopoulou, art historian, curator, writer and member of our selection committee. Charis presented several of her curatorial projects addressing core elements of her practice while referring to her interest and experience on archives, private collections, institutions, commissions for the public space and the close collaboration with artists.

June was full of inspiring discussions and creative ideas thanks to our amazing fellows and their Zoom presentations. Visual artists Fellows Valinia Svoronou, Eva Papamargariti, Evi Kalogeropoulou, Maria Varela, Maria Nikiforaki, Christina Dimakopoulou, Theodora Kanelli, Apollon Glykas, Eleni Xynogala and dance Fellows Martha Pasakopoulou and Dimitris Mytlinaios presented their practice, received feedback from their peers and discussed openly their concerns.

On Monday we had the pleasure to meet via Ζoom movement artist Michele Rizzo. Michele gave an insightful talk about his projects and personal reflections around the poetics of transformation, the art of private transcendence, the shift between spaces and its relation to spectatorship, individual versus communal experience. He shared with us insights on the creation of the works ‘HIGHER’ (2014), ‘Spacewalk’ (2017) and ‘Deposition (2020).

Honored to have with us via Zoom Alexander Payne, American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Alexander talked to our Moving image Fellows about the emotional resonance in films, the notion of “harmolipi” — when drama and comedy co-exist– and gave useful tips about set and production design, screenwriting and casting actors. The discussion was moderated by Daphne Matziaraki – director, writer and producer. Thank you both for such an inspiring and intimate talk!

What do we mean by “live”? What is our relationship to the public? What is experimental and what is interdisciplinary? What do we mean by political?

Important questions raised by Katie Duck , dancer, choreographer and director, during her Zoom talk for our Fellows on Friday June 19. Katie’s talk about the consequences on the professional life of performing artists, during and after the lockdown, was moderated by Maria Mavridou, greek contemporary dancer based in Amsterdam. Many things to think about. Thank you all for the stimulating discussion :)

Useful Links:

2004 with Alex Waterman (Bach cello)

2015 CAGE (edit of different versions)

2016 with Mary Oliver (improvisation viola)

2018 Abandon Human

2019 Improvisation summer course / Freakatoni Witchy Weekends

(teaching) Documentary Brazil 2020

Vamvakou Revival in collaboration with ARTWORKS and with the contribution of the co-founder of Syros Film Festival, Jacob Moe, realizes for the first time an online film festival under the theme “Life in the countryside: Nature & Hospitality”, as part of the Vamvakou Revival initiative, implemented with the guidance and financial support of Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). Five filmmakers who have been awarded by ARTWORKS, within the framework of the SNF Artist Fellowship Program, will present their work and share with the audience films related to the theme of the festival.

Within 5 days, you will discover what canaries and lifejackets, bees and volcanoes, the sea and mountains have in common. Through 5 films, Nature and Hospitality unfold from various viewpoints and aspects. The Beginning and Love; The End of the World; Old Age and Death; The Civilization of Revenge and Destruction; Light and Dark.

Participants: Giorgos Kivernitis, Konstantinos Antonopoulos, Yorgos Zois, Lia Tsalta and Vasilis Kekatos.

Screenings from 18-23 Ιουνίου @ vamvakourevival.org

Despite the physical distance, we stayed connected to our Fellows with a series of online artists’ presentations via Zoom.
During May, six of our Fellows presented their work and practice to their peers, received fruitful feedback and discussed with them their concerns and future plans.

On Friday May 29th, we invited Nayia Yiakoumaki , curator of Archive Gallery, to talk about her work at the Whitechapel Gallery where she has developed a program of research exhibitions based on the fusion of art and archives. Apart from her curatorial and research projects, Nayia is also a visual artist and served as a member of the ARTWORKS selection committee for the 2nd SNF Artist Fellowship Program.

Exploring new ways of social interaction and digital learning, we are happy to announce our recent collaboration with The New Centre for Research & Practice, an international, non-profit, higher education institute in the Arts, Humanities, and Sciences.

Through a rigorous program of online seminars and archived videos about art, curatorial practices, critical philosophy, media and technology, social and political thought, we offer our Fellows inspiration in the work of a carefully selected network of thinkers and scholars.

Some of the currently running seminars at the New Centre for Research & Practice which our Fellows can attend online Essay Events από την Rachel Rakesare the following:

The Problem of Narrative: Visual Arts by Klaus Speidel

Modern Monetary Theory: The Sixteenth Century Challenge by Colin Drumm

Essay Events by Rachel Rakes

More info visit: https://thenewcentre.org/seminars/

Our Fellows 2019 attended a workshop on artists’ rights and intellectual property at the new library of the Athens School of Fine Arts (ASKT) by Marina Markellou. The workshop raised issues such as the notion of intellectual property, the legal framework in Greece, appropriation and artists’ rights. Several case studies were presented and discussed.

Marina Markellou is an Attorney and Adjunct Lecturer of Law at the Panteion University, the Open Hellenic University and the Open Cyprus University. She specialises in Intellectual Property law, corporate, civil and data protection law.

Christopher Marinos, independent curator and member of our selection committee, designed a workshop for our Curatorial Fellows that consisted of guided tours at private, corporate and museum collections and inspiring conversations with artists and art professionals.

The workshop consisted of the following visits:

1. Visit at the house of artist and professor Rena Papaspyrou, Athens, 13.01.2020
2. A preview of the new display of the permanent collection of the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Athens, 22.01.2020
3. New Library of Athens School of Fine Arts (ASKT), Christos Joakimides collection, 27.01.2020
4. Epi Protonotariou House, Paiania 03.02.2020
5. Zeya Collection, Athens, 10.02.2020

Participant Fellows: Danai Giannoglou, Christina Petkopoulou, Mare Spanoudaki, Maya Tounta, Eva Vaslamatzi.

Within our collaboration with Benaki Museum, some of our Fellows had the chance to present their creative practice and works to Benaki Contemporaries and the rest of their co-Fellows. After their presentation, a q&a session was followed which led to open discussions and insightful exchange of ideas for the artistic practice, the institutional framework , artistic research and other interesting topics.

The following Fellows presented:
1. Thodoros Giannakis, 07.12.2019
2. Zoe Gaitanidou, 07.12.2019
3. Virginia Mastrogiannaki, 07.12.2019
4. Anastasia Douka, 07.12.2019
5. Margarita Bofiliou ,18.01.2020
6. Theo Prodromidis, 18.01.2020
7. Aggeliki Bozou, 06.02.2020
8. Anastasia Labrou, 06.02.2020
9. Alexandra Koumantaki, 06.02.2020
10. Olga Evaggelidou, 06.02.2020

Thank you all for sharing and special thanks to The Benaki Museum for hosting us!

ARTOWORKS invites the Director and Chief Curator of Center of Contmporary Art, Tel Aviv – Nicola Trezzi – to a talk at Innovathens.

A few words about the talk:
Preceded by few pioneering positions, the last 20 years have witnessed the emergence of new kind of artist(s) who do NOT work alone and do NOT work with their own names. Through the conception – often based on appropriation from the field of art as well as from other fields – of their signature as the first work of art we encounter, a sign which replaces “inherited identity” with meaning, these artists are also redefining the kind of authorship that has been associated to artists since the time of Giorgio Vasari. Working through collaboration, agency and outsourcing, these artists take the notion of multitasking to the next level. Following these premises, the talk will expand on this framework and present representatives of such positions from all over the world.

A few words about the speaker:
Nicola Trezzi (Magenta, Italy, 1982) is an educator, exhibition maker and writer, currently the director of CCA Tel Aviv. From 2007 to 2014 he was US editor at Flash Art International, and his writings appeared also Flash Art Italia, Flash Art CZ&SK, artnet News, artpress, Il Sole 24 Ore, Monopol, White Fungus. He also contributed to the several exhibition catalogues, such as Postmonument (The 14th Sculpture Biennial, Carrara, 2010), Michael Kienzer: Logic and Self-Will (Kunsthaus Graz, 2012), Joshua Neustein: Drawing the Margins (Israel Museum Jerusalem, 2012), Michal Helfman: Change (CCA Tel Aviv, 2014), Ylva Ogland: She, an Introduction (Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm, 2015), Ido Bar-El: Bagatelle, Paintings, 1986–2015 (Tel Aviv Museum of Art, 2015), Shai Yehezkelli: In Praise of Avalanche (Tel Aviv Museum of Art, 2016), Ashley Bickerton: Ornamental Hysteria (Newport Street Gallery, London, 2017), Efrat Natan / Nahum Tevet (Villa Stuck, Munich, 2017), and Yaara Zach: Lay Low (Petach Tikva Museum of Art, 2018). A staff member of the Prague Biennale Foundation from 2007 to 2014, he co-organized the following exhibitions: “Painting Overall” at the Prague Biennale 5, “Four Rooms” at the CCA in Warsaw, “Modern Talking” at the Muzeul National de Arta Cluj-Napoca, “Circa 1986” at HVCCA in Peekskill NY, “Champs-Élysées” at Palais de Tokyo in Paris, “Diagonal Histories—Imre Bak, Peter Halley—” and “Yael’s Dreams (and Nightmares),” both at Art+Text Budapest, “Yael Efrati: Eva and Emerick,” MNAC in Bucharest, “KEDEM–KODEM–KADIMA” and “Laurent Montaron: Replica,” both at CCA Tel Aviv. From 2014 to 2017 he was head of the MFA program at Bezalel Academy of Art and Design Jerusalem and he previously lectured at the Yale University School of Art (New Haven CT), SIAC (Chicago), iCI (New York), the Indonesian Institute of the Art (Yogyakarta) and The Faculty of Arts – Hamidrasha at Beit Berl College (Israel). Since 2007, he is associated to Lucie Fontaine, a pseudonymous, nomadic and collaborative project, which ideas have been presented in venues such as Marianne Boesky Gallery in New York, Galerie Perrotin in Paris, Iaspis in Stockholm, Artport in Tel Aviv and Kayu in Bali, among others.

The talk will be hosted on Thursday 20/02 at 11.00 @ INNOVATHENS.

Thank you for your support Athens Culture Net!

Alessandro Castiglioni, senior co-curator of the Mediterranea 19 Young Artists Biennale, presented his curatorial practice and research on small territories and radical experiments in the art history of San Marino. Mediterranea 19, a transnational Biennale, will take place in the Republic of San Marino from October 2020 to February 2021 under the title School of Waters, featuring artists, researchers, writers under the age of 35, coming from or based within a constellation of territories related to the Mediterranean Sea.

 The open call runs through January 26, 2020.

Thank you to all our Fellows for coming and special thanks to our founding donor, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

On Friday October 25th we visited ARCH. Our Fellows 2019 had the chance to meet in person Athina Ioannou, artist in residence at ARCH and  discuss with her about the preparation of the exhibition Floating Gestures, the outcome of her 2-month stay at ARCH. Athina also talked about her artistic practice and her work until now. Atalanti Martinou, Founder and Director, informed our Fellows about the general scope of ARCH, its future activities and programme.

* The exhibition Floating Gestures is opening on November 7th