From January 21, 2022, the exhibition and symposium for contemporary Greek art in Berlin “AthensSYN II: GOING VIRAL” with 14 artistic positions of Generation Y will take place in Berlin-Kreuzberg at the newly opened STEINZEIT Gallery. The exhibition will be on view there from January 21 to March 3, 2022. The opening will be celebrated on January 20, 2022. The event is curated by Sotirios Bahtsetzis and Katja Ehrhardt.
Image above: Panos Kompis, Revealing the Earth, 2019, Video performance
The participating artists are concerned with questions that affect our future coexistence. The consequences of the pandemic literally illustrate the meaning of the word “viral” as it is also used in the digital context. Thousands of lives may depend on the actions of one individual as epidemics spread. How isolated do we feel and act as individuals?
The interconnectedness of all being, the importance of personal initiative, and the search for ecological and sustainable ways of living are at the forefront of AthenSYN II: GOING VIRAL. In it, AthensSYN shows works of painting, video, sculpture and installation by young Greek artists awarded the ARTWORKS Fellowship of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) at the newly established exhibition venue STEINZEIT Galerie, created against the background of their experiences between the socio-economic crisis of 2009 and the current Covid 19 pandemic.
The positioning of Greek art between the global South and North, scarcity and prosperity, political center and periphery, traditionalism and the will to innovate is significant.
The work of Panos Kompis is a poetic reference to human existence in defense mode, while Anestis Ioannou deals with the construction of subjectivity in urbanity.
Kyriaki Goni addresses the relationship between man and machine, which Andreas Ragnar Kassapis explores in the tense relationship of perception between naturally and technically generated images.
In the age of augmented reality, Ionian Bisai weaves social engagement into participatory and performative strategies to create hybrid video installations; Sofia Dona illuminates historical and social site-specific imprints through the moment of alienation; the MASI Collective develops an experimental approach to urban scenography and social art at the intersection of architecture, sociology, and visual art.
Maro Fasouli makes connections between somatic practices, labor, and gender; Ileana Arnaoutou’s painting and sculpture combine the topography of longing, grief, and healing with somatic processes, creating in them a “landscape of affect.”
Maria Tsagkari’s works reveal hidden narratives that subversively respond to historical references while asking questions around the politics of desire.
The works of Stefania Strouza and Irini Miga evoke associations between the symbolic world of objects and notions of temporality, physicality and geography.
Maria Louizou’s large-scale sculptures highlight the performer as a living resonating body.
Ersi Varveri shows transformational processes in the constant becoming of being.
Curated by Sotirios Bahtsetzis and Katja Ehrhardt, the exhibition opens a three-day symposium in hybrid format with artists, theorists and activists from Greece and Germany on sustainability, self-organization and alternative economies, with workshops, discussions and film screenings.
Initiated and organized by AthenSYN in collaboration with ARTWORKS, STEINZEIT Galerie Berlin and FREIRAUM in der Box Berlin. Supported by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), Schwarz Stiftung, Kulturamt Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Greek Cultural Foundation Berlin. Under the patronage of the Greek Embassy Berlin.
WHEN?
Opening: Thursday, 20th January 2022, 5 to 9 pm
Exhibition: Friday, 21st January to Thursday, 3rd March 2022
WHERE?
STEINZEIT Galerie, Kottbusser Straße 11, 10999 Berlin-Kreuzberg
WHAT?
