FAQ NET 2021: Part I

FAQ NET: It is the name of the new column that we started as Media Partners on a regular basis of Platforms Project-Independent Art Fair, asking a common question to participating artists – representatives of artistic groups and collectives, resulting from the needs of contemporary reality and the changes that have already occurred after the Covid 19 Pandemic and the Global Lockdown; with Platforms Project-Independent Art Fair to pioneer in the European Art Fair and present Platforms Project Net 2021(27/5-10/6/2021) as a prelude of the Art Fair.

By Efi Michalarou & Dimitris Lempesis

How do you feel participating in an online Art Fair like Platforms Project 2021? It’s the second edition that emerged through the needs of Covid 19 World Pandemic fighting. What are the new challenges and what do you expect from this participation?

Faye Tzanetoulakou (CYBORG/ASMA): I feel honored and very excited to participate, with my platform CYBORG/ASMA, in the biggest international art fair of its kind, where 91 art collectives from all over the world engage in meaningful visual conversations and thought-provoking online discussions about art, especially during the post-covid era.
This year’s Platforms Project carries the staggering number of 1600 works and 900 artists. This year also there will be participation of 17 art studio from the Athens School of Fine Arts, showcasing the newest trends in art experimentation. In this climate, full of a pluralistic biodiversity of art forms, mediums and expressions, we will get a better view of where art is moving to, especially as it presents itself in a wider audience via the internet, due of course to the current circumstances, according to the health regulations worldwide. We can only hope things are going to get better again soon and enjoy Platforms Project in its real, lively environment that we know and love.
In our Platform, our main core of interest is the altering of reasoning patterns in the new Machine Age of the Anthropocene, where humans communicate in a virtual environment with each other, proving right the ominous atmosphere of Fritz Lang’s prophetic Metropolis movie. When the pandemic came, our worse artistic nightmares took an unexpected realistic image, and we felt that we need to deal with it in a Goyaesque way of visual representation. The artists involved in our project which I curate together with my colleague Markella Tsichla are Andromachi Giannopoulou, Periklis Pravitas, George Oiback, Francesco Moretti, Sotiris Batzianas, Kristian Xypolias/Construct, Athanasios Pallas, Iordanis Stylidis.

Lavor Lubomirov (Cable Depot): More than a year into Covid, I feel like we have all accepted online life and made our own efforts to live this way. Online is still strange. The adventure of meeting new people who run new artist run spaces and discovering connections is not there in the same way anymore, but it also easier to explore. It seems to mean being more proactive in terms of making connections – looking, exploring online, emailing. Instagram has a larger part to play. Nonetheless, I keep looking forward to going back to a physical event, hopefully in October. Meanwhile, I’m planning to use the 2nd online edition as an opportunity to research all the amazing platforms who are taking part this year before hopefully meeting them in person late this year. I guess the main difference between this year’s online project and last year’s is that this year it feels more hopeful. Last year we seemed to believe almost to the last moment that maybe we could still all get together, and then we knew it was impossible. This year there is real hope.

Fiona Mouzakiti (Project 2): The digital version of Platforms Project 2021 retains its lively character through a variety of talks and online performances. It gives the opportunity to its participants to get to know each other ant to research the work of a diverse group of artists initiatives. We greatly appreciate that in a time of hardship, the event was not simply postponed but instead thought and effort was applied in order to showcase the work of all participating artists. “Project 2”, will present the work of three women artists researching the concept of “Oblivion”. We expect to display our artworks to a wide audience, through the online version of Platforms Project and its impact on social media. We are looking forward to get better acquainted with the works of other artists groups and contact fellow participants, if there is an interest of collaboration in the future. In the mean time we hope the pandemic will be subsidize and the next Platforms Project will be a life event, where we can all meet again with optimism and creativity for the future.