Solo show
26 September – 3 November 2019
Flow | Urban Ecologies creates an emerging dialogue between the city as a type of ecosystem and the interconnected energies that live within it. Using ecology as a reference, each artist has been invited to respond to the four elements of nature as a starting point: water: earth: air: fire. Sculptures, installations, videos and drawings accumulate in the two spaces, rewriting our experience of the city into an instinctive living environmental experience.
The element of air is explored in the works of Lili Hasioti, Vassilis Gerodimos and Monique Jansen. Athens-based Hasioti presents canvas projects that examine alternative sources of clean energy such as wind power, suggesting how ancient and analogue technologies can be repurposed to provide modern solutions. Jansen has meticulously approached ordinary postal envelopes that have been sent through the air to both hemispheres. This "herd" of printed designs has migrated to Athens, connecting the southern and northern hemispheres.
Fire is explored in Heatscapes by British visual artist Layla Curtis. The film of the runners has been captured by thermal cameras creating a stunning visual record of the human heat trail generated by individuals as they interact and navigate the city.
Alex Hartley's film Come into my Sleep destabilizes the idea of the difference between virtual architecture and wild nature, reducing architecture to a climbing surface. A line is drawn by a collective cinematic protagonist, which carves the body, touches and clings to the different levels of the architecture, as if climbing rocks, thus questioning the difference between the natural and the urban. Los Angeles-based visual artist Soo Kim creates, through photographs, intricate networks of absence and voids, questioning the visual material nature. In Stefania Struza's sculpture, the information is etched into the marble which contrasts with the slow geological flows of the material itself. The above works reflect the earth element.
Inspired by Greek and international events, Zoe Giambouldakis and Tania Kovats reflect the element of water. British visual artist Kovats presents a series of drawings called Sea Stains on outdated atlases, indicating the way the earth stains our connected waters. Yambouldaki presents a work that examines both the limits of construction and representation through the use of water. The artist tries to manipulate water and another similar substance and with their non-photogenic nature, she lets the work define itself in its own time.
The Flow | Urban
Ecology aims to enhance a sense of environmental awareness while
encouraging recognition of our place in the world and our role within
it. It is not suggested
that art can stop climate change, but art and culture can keep these
critical issues in our minds and imaginations.
Exhibiting Artists: Layla Curtis, Vasilis Gerodimos, Zoe Giabouldaki, Alex Hartley, Lily Hassioti, Monique Jansen, Kim Soo, Tania Kovats and Stefania Strouza