Contemporary art ‘invades’ the capital
Starting this weekend and for the next couple of months, Athens will be host to a buzzing contemporary art scene. The much-awaited first contemporary Athens art biennial which comes with the provocative title «Destroy Athens» opens on Sunday. The event has provided the occasion for numerous parallel events: exhibitions, curatorial projects, happenings, graffiti and public art. The biennial, which opens at the Technopolis art center in Gazi and is curated by Xenia Kalpaktsoglou, Augustine Zenakos and Poka-Yio, aims at attacking stereotypes and invites artists to challenge timeless symbols such as those present in the city of Athens. By inviting artists from all over the world to participate, it also aims to establish itself as an international, periodical event. In fact it coincides with the Istanbul and Lyon biennials and has networked with both international events. The most expansive parallel event is Remap KM, a project that includes numerous exhibitions and will be held in the areas of Kerameikos and Metaxourgeio, south of Gazi. Thirteen participating artists, seven of whom are international, will each occupy a temporary «project space» – abandoned buildings, open areas or other venues – and put on group or one-man shows. Among them, an exhibition on the landscapes of British artist Clare Woods (at the Rebecca Camhi project space) or Mustafa Hulusi’s work on the subject of Athens (presented by the Turkish Rodeo gallery). The international galleries that will participate include Peres Projects from Los Angeles and Berlin, IBID Projects from the UK and Nice & Fit from Berlin (whose owner is Greek). Remap KM also includes an open-air video and film-screening program as well as various independent, curatorial projects such as «Young Athenians,» curated by Neil Mulholland and organized by the British Council in Greece. Other, independent exhibitions will further enrich the city’s visual arts scene. «Emergency Room,» to be held at the Ileana Tounta Contemporary Art Center is an interesting group show and the continuation of a «movement» that was first presented in Copenhagen and then New York. Conceived and curated by French conceptual artist Thierry Geoffroy/Colonel, the project invites artists from all over the world to create works on current, «emergency» situations thus bringing art closer to the latest political and social issues. Another interesting exhibition is «Disco Coppertone» organized by Locus at the Piraeus Port Authority. This group exhibition focuses on the tourist industry and the notion of vacationing as an escape and lifestyle. «Fractured Figure» at the Deste Foundation Center for Contemporary Art and the second part of the contemporary video art exhibition «Her (His) tory» at the Museum of Cycladic Art are also not to be missed. Another unusual project, to be held at the Bettina boutique in Kolonaki, is a group international art project curated by Dimitris Antonitsis. Most of the above events will be on view throughout the duration of the biennial (to mid-November). Seen as a whole, they will constitute a visual arts fiesta that will most likely give new impetus to the field of contemporary art in this country. www. athensbiennial. org/ www. remapkm. com/ www. emergencyrooms. org/ www. locusathens. com.
