PRESENTATION: Exit, Part II

For the second year, the Athens School of Fine Arts and the Rector, present a group exhibition of young artists organized by the 1st Sculpture Lab under the guidance of Professor Nikos Tranos, at the Annex of the School of Fine Arts in Hydra – Emmanuel Tombazis Mansion. This year, the exhibition is entitled “Exit” (Part I).

By Efi Michalarou
Photo: Artists Archives

Twelve young graduate artists, in dialogue with their teacher Nikos Tranos. In a student-teacher relationship, they utilize different expressive media such as sculpture, painting, photography, and installations. They create artworks where scale is not of great importance, in an era where dimensions are constantly changing, and the power of art is embedded in essence, in the fragment, and ultimately in the journey undertaken by the artist, which is internal-conceptual. It is in that realm where emotions are transformed into images and memories into visual fragments of a puzzle that composes the contemporary narrative. Sotiris Karathanasis creates a figure made of foam and vinyl with no gender or shape, as it encompasses all the characteristics of today’s human geography, where identity and gender are not what define the dynamics and personality of the individual. While Tzeni Doupi composes a world-miniature from paper and wood that balances between reality and desire, dream and nocturnal emission, consisting of familiar elements and objects. Hristos Hantzis constructs the shell of a house that shelters not only the body but primarily the soul, as indicated by its title. It is a tiny housse of wood, which, instead of fences or walls, features a cluster of wood log barricades, humorously inscribed in the door “I have nothing.” Yiannis Papadakis creates a ceramic baby in off-white color, resembling an adult tormented by many things and even more afflictions. It represents the modern individual who has lost their innocence early on in a world that is almost prohibitive. While Ioana Kerefiadou’s colorful ceramic portrait heads, through repetition and the intense monochrome of purple, allude to male figures of the past, they also encompass a sarcastic disposition towards the notion of seriousness and institutions. Eugenia Antoniou forms on her canvas one portrait composed of many different pieces of a microcosm and creates a natural environment with animals and trees, a portrait of the whole planet Earth, a commentary on the destruction of the environment, climate change, and a wonderful entire world that is in danger of being erased by human greed. Just like Nikos Piromalis and his installation made of glased ceramics titled “Red Circle,” he makes a commentary on overconsumption and the destructive intervention of humans in the perpetual course of nature… Through the vulnerability, fragility, and sensitivity of fabric, Nourako creates sculptural forms that refer to emotions such as tenderness and how it shifts according to the strength of the moment and circumstances. Lydia Vaiktaraki creates sculptures in black or white color that resemble fences, obstacles, grids, and nets, but also a huge hammock, connecting them with humble everyday objects such as hairgrips and chicken wire, in a dual approach that sometimes hinders us and sometimes protects us. It sometimes unites us and sometimes separates us, but it certainly encompasses the need for communication… Lorina Karatza is using traditional techniques such as embroidery to create a work of contemporary art where her threads contribute to the emotions on a classic white shirt with the symbolism it contains, as it is connected to the soul and everything it encompasses within. Through her digital photography reminiscent of Edward Hopper’s painting style, Louisa Vradi invites us into a dreamlike yet dangerous world, as the allure of the unexplored entails the challenge and pleasure of the new, the unknown, and the ambiguous danger. Georgios Chatzispirou leads us to the joy of life and our enjoyment through his pop paintings, paying tribute to the grace and pleasures of women according to the artist himself.

Participating Artists: Sotiris Karathanasis, Doupi Tzeni, Hristos Hantzis, Nikos Tranos, Lidia Vairaktaraki, Lorina Karatza, Louisa Vradi, Nikos Piromalis, Georgios Chatzispirou, Yiannis Papadakis, Ioana Kerefiadou, Eugenia Antoniou and Nourako

Photo: Louisa Vradi, Untitled, 2022, Photograph, digital print, 75 X 110 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

Info: Curator: Efi Michalarou, Annex of the School of Fine Arts in Hydra – Emmanuel Tombazis Mansion, Hydra Island, Greece, Duration: 18/6-18/8/23, Days & Hours: Tue-Sun 19:30-22:30 (closed 15/8/2023)

* The exhibition is supported by the Hydra Municipality Public Benefit Enterprise (K.E.D.Y.)