The independent cultural foundation Studio 4, presents the public exhibition entitled Τhis, Must be Athens. curated by Andreas Fakis, within the framework of Public Art Festival: Survival.
The exhibition Τhis, Must be Athens. forms the fifth action of the 2nd edition of Public Art Festival and presents sculptures and installations of medium scale by an artist duo and five artists who have developed a presence in public space.
The artists: b. (1982, Athens), Alexandros Vasmoulakis (1980, Αthens), Argyris Saraslanides (1978, Thessaloniki) and Simoni Fontana (1978, Corfu), Cacao Rocks (1985, Athens), ath1281 (1983, Αthens) and D! (1984, Athens), are participating with new art pieces.
Through the three dimentional pieces that are spreading out in six public spaces –where citizens and visitors of different, or even contrary cultural, social, ideological, religious and economic backgrounds reside– the exhibition Τhis, Must be Athens. points out the existence of a distinct, multi-valued gap, in which there are morphological characteristics which compose an image of inequality, in the standards of major European centres, such as London and Paris.
The thematic exhibition Τhis, Must be Athens. attempts to open a metaphorical dialogue in regards to the ongoing aliasing, additions and alterations that the city “accepts”; without being able to determine if there was a “zero” point.
Architectural, environmental, as well as in other levels, these deviations are functioning cumulatively and are intensified in times, where phenomena of mass transit have been observed, during which it is common that a circumstance that can be seen as “important” by a wide demographic group –which the majority of the residents of Greece are acknowledging as the “average prudent” human– precedes.
The mass visitors, are often facing an image that is quiet different from the one they (reasonably) expect; either due to the duration of their absence, or due to the beautified image they received, as recipients of promotional material by the tourism industry. A fact, which in combination with the references and the culture of the visitors, drives –most likely– a minority of citizens to see them as uncivilized and often, as homogenous demographic groups.
As the title Τhis, Must be Athens. suggests, the exhibition attempts to get in the point of view of the “distant visitor” and to drive them to different parts of Athens –at Vathi Square, at Victoria Square, at Pireos street opposite of Technopolis, at Ermou street, opposite of the old OSY depot, at Persefoni Square and at Kolonaki Square– as a wandering recipient of six short stories, which are connected and are presented by the three dimentional pieces of b., Alexandros Vasmoulakis, Argyris Saraslanides and Simoni Fontana, Cacao Rocks, ath1281 and D!.
Vathi Square, Victoria Square, Pireos (opposite of Technopolis), Ermou (opposite of old OSY depot), Persefonis Square, Kolonaki Square
Duration: 7 – 24 June
Inauguration: Thursday 8 June
The inauguration of Τhis, must be Athens. will have the form of a cycling tour. Kolonaki Square has been selected as the starting point, as it helps in limiting the uphill parts of the route, which has a length of just 6,5 kilometres.