EXHIBITION

DOWN TO EARTH

09.02 –
30.04.2023

An exhibition collectively put together by curators of MOMus

Artists: Zoe Giabouldaki, I broke the vase (Eva Matsigkou – Nefeli Sani), Marion Inglessi, Yannis Kastritsis Akis Kersanidis – Chryssa Tzelepi (anemiCinema), Katerina Moschou, Vasilis Nempegleriotis, Sotiris Panousakis, Vangelis Pliarides, Ifigeneia Sdoukou, Sophia Tolika, Yorgos Tsakiris, Stratis Vogiatzis

Curators: Yannis Bolis Domna Gounari, Areti Leopoulou, Theodore Markoglou, Thouli Misirloglou, Hercules Papaioannou, Katerina Syroglou

The concept of Geocultura, the central theme of the 8th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art, lies at the core of Down to Earth, an exhibition collectively put together by curators of MOMus, at MOMus-Museum of Alex Mylona in Athens from February 09 until April 30, 2023 (Opening: Thursday, February 09, 2023 at 19:00; the museum will be open to the public since 11:00 the same day)

Works created by contemporary Greek visual artists endeavour to interpret and illustrate the connection and traumatic division, the “unnatural” and “paradoxical” separation, the domination of humankind over the natural environment.

The exhibition attempts to link together the latest facts, the realities of a technological, globalised era of overconsumption, the destruction of the environment, the wanton exploitation of natural resources and the climate crisis, with ecology, primordial myths, and the hoped-for pursuit and emergence of a new conceptual and experiential relationship between people and nature.

Using different mediums and perspectives, featured artists act on their material, present their own suggestions and propose a “down to earth” exhibition, in other words an exhibition focused on the values and processes of the earth. Art returns to “nature” and contemporary notions about the latter, while “nature” permeates life and art, attempting to contribute to the formation of new ways of thinking and being, thereby becoming fertile ground for an alternative view of the world, for a fruitful coexistence between the social and the natural.

Artists: Zoe Giabouldaki, I broke the vase (Eva Matsigkou – Nefeli Sani), Marion Inglessi, Yannis Kastritsis Akis Kersanidis – Chryssa Tzelepi (anemiCinema), Katerina Moschou, Vasilis Nempegleriotis, Sotiris Panousakis, Vangelis Pliarides, Ifigeneia Sdoukou, Sophia Tolika, Yorgos Tsakiris, Stratis Vogiatzis

Curators: Yannis Bolis Domna Gounari, Areti Leopoulou, Theodore Markoglou, Thouli Misirloglou, Hercules Papaioannou, Katerina Syroglou

MAP

VENUE

MAIN EXHIBITION

BEING AS COMMUNION

The central exhibition of the 8th Thessaloniki Biennial of Contemporary Art aims to think critically about co-existence and collaborative practices as creative tools for handling the multiple crises that we face. Thinking through being as communion, 28 artists via their respective practices touch on various forms of more than human collaborations, with our spectral past and our challenging present, thinking of how we can co-exist with animate life around us, the land that we stand on, the food that we eat and the air that we breathe. Being as Communion will focus on inclusive practices that explore different forms of care, love and mutuality, whilst also proposing generous forms of support systems. Invited artists and artist collectives will explore the human impact on the eco-systems that we share, whilst suggesting forms of more equitable existence, for humanimal survival, probing to what extent we can learn new ways of being with, rather than dominating the world around us.

Ten key sites and museums of the city of Thessaloniki will host the exhibition’s works, in dialogue with the city’s layered history, allowing for a polyphonic reading of the exhibition in ten equal parts.

04.03 –
21.05.2023

MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art, Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki, Museum of Byzantine Culture, National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation, Hamidie – Islahane Cultural Venue, Eptapyrgio, Yeni Jami, Thessaloniki French Institute, Glass Box “Scultures’ Garden” (seefront area), Thessaloniki Concert Hall (building M2)

The central exhibition of the 8th Thessaloniki Biennial of Contemporary Art aims to think critically about co-existence and collaborative practices as creative tools for handling the multiple crises that we face. Thinking through being as communion, 28 artists via their respective practices touch on various forms of more than human collaborations, with our spectral past and our challenging present, thinking of how we can co-exist with animate life around us, the land that we stand on, the food that we eat and the air that we breathe. Being as Communion will focus on inclusive practices that explore different forms of care, love and mutuality, whilst also proposing generous forms of support systems. Invited artists and artist collectives will explore the human impact on the eco-systems that we share, whilst suggesting forms of more equitable existence, for humanimal survival, probing to what extent we can learn new ways of being with, rather than dominating the world around us.

Ten key sites and museums of the city of Thessaloniki will host the exhibition’s works, in dialogue with the city’s layered history, allowing for a polyphonic reading of the exhibition in ten equal parts.

04.03 –
21.05.2023

MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art, Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki, Museum of Byzantine Culture, National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation, Hamidie – Islahane Cultural Venue, Eptapyrgio, Yeni Jami, Thessaloniki French Institute, Glass Box “Scultures’ Garden” (seefront area), Thessaloniki Concert Hall (building M2)

EXHIBITIONS

PROJECTS

09.02 –
30.04.2023

An exhibition collectively put together by curators of MOMus

21.12.2022 –
21.05.2023

ΜΟΜus-Museum of Modern Art-Costakis Collection

09.02 –
30.04.2023

An exhibition collectively put together by curators of MOMus

09.02 –
30.04.2023

An exhibition collectively put together by curators of MOMus

21.12.2022 –
21.05.2023

ΜΟΜus-Museum of Modern Art-Costakis Collection

BIENNALE 8

GEOCULTURA

The exchange of ideas, values and norms, within a context of a multitude of cultural, geographical and political debates and conflicts, is at the core of the concept of 'geoculture' in the political and social sciences. This is the rationale behind the decision of the 8th edition of Thessaloniki's Biennale of Contemporary Art to turn its attention to the terms 'land' (“geo-”) and 'culture', connecting the cultivation of land with culture, understood as a set of resources, texts and practices which are available to people, helping them better understand and more effectively act in the world. It explores issues of memory, history, and managing both the natural and man-made environment, under the conditions of the climate, economic and refugee crises.

The participating artists focus on histories of places and people; they touch upon issues of identity, ethics, equity and sustainability; they suggest improvised ecological technologies; they explore the potential for collective existence and question the systems by which production, consumption and profitability are organized; they put into practice ideas of resource sharing and equitable living, as well as ways of reassessing the commodification of human and non-human life. Through their works, imagination becomes a crucial factor in facilitating the audience to imagine different versions of the future.

Firmly believing that art broadens our understanding of the world, the 8th Biennale seeks not only to raise environmental awareness, but also to multiply future possibilities, with new claims and visions. The 8th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art aspires to serve as a means of communication with the world, as an act of justice and freedom, of trust and progressive thinking.

The Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art is financed by Greece and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund) is organised by MOMus and implemented by MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art-Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art and State Museum of Contemporary Art Collections.

The participating artists focus on histories of places and people; they touch upon issues of identity, ethics, equity and sustainability; they suggest improvised ecological technologies; they explore the potential for collective existence and question the systems by which production, consumption and profitability are organized; they put into practice ideas of resource sharing and equitable living, as well as ways of reassessing the commodification of human and non-human life. Through their works, imagination becomes a crucial factor in facilitating the audience to imagine different versions of the future.

Firmly believing that art broadens our understanding of the world, the 8th Biennale seeks not only to raise environmental awareness, but also to multiply future possibilities, with new claims and visions. The 8th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art aspires to serve as a means of communication with the world, as an act of justice and freedom, of trust and progressive thinking.

The Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art is financed by Greece and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund) is organised by MOMus and implemented by MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art-Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art and State Museum of Contemporary Art Collections.