Between You and Me and the Wall

Omikron Gallery presents the group exhibition "Between You and Me and the Wall", from 22 January until 16 February.

Based on the reflections of the curators, the exhibition attempts to take a spherical look at the artistic practice. Emphasizing on the creative, existential and partially political aspects of art -i.e. the work of art outside the boundaries of the frame, the creative process and that of re-construction of a work of art, the history of murals from the prehistoric era, to the murals of Pompeii and the frescos of Rome all the way to contemporary street art- Maria Stathi and Polys Peslikas invite ten artists to produce works directly on the surfaces of the gallery walls. The selection of artists covers a vast spectrum of Cypriot artists’ generations: Evelyn Anastasiou (1981), Kyriaki Costa (1971), Elina Ioannou (1979), Angelos Makrides (1942), Panayiotis Michael (1966), Vicky Pericleous (19??), Lefteris Tapas (1974), Philippos Theodoridis (1978), Phillipos Vasiliades (1980) and Stelios Votsis (1929).

Each one of the ten artists is called to leave their mark on the walls of the gallery, producing site-specific murals. The projects, which are mostly new works, exist in the space as fingerprints, as elements of an environment’s infrastructure, a microcosm of a utopian landscape, a passage. They are topographies of the artists’ personal concerns and feelings and of a collective culture, as they all bare identifiable data: architectural and pictorial elements come together with graphic -linear and geometric- forms. Whether the murals are gazed at independently, or seen as a collective approach towards the subject, the art in the space unfolds before the audience as a reversed landscape (or as smaller, isolated ones). The exhibition’s title, a pun, allows for any narration and interpretation, since it is referential to structure, boundaries and the walls that surround one.

The exhibition reminds one of a protest, which having come to an end reveals marks on building walls merely implying the events which previously unfolded in that space. With the end of the exhibition the murals will be wiped away and painted over and the space will return to its primary, void state. The murals will have existed for three weeks in the gallery, and without leaving a trace behind, they will become memories – memories preserving the past. For one to encounter these murals again, the works will have to undergo the (re)production procedure once more.

The exhibition is curated by Maria Stathi and Polys Peslikas.

Artists participating: Evelyn Anastasiou, Kyriaki Costa, Elina Ioannou, Angelos Makrides, Panayiotis Michael, Vicky Pericleous, Lefteris Tapas, Philippos Theodoridis, Phillipos Vasiliades and Stelios Votsis.

Private view on Friday 21 January 2011 at 8 pm.

The exhibition will be open between 22 January until 16 February 2011.

Opening Hours
Daily: 10.00-13.00 and 16.00-20.00
Saturday: 10.00-14.00

For more information:
Maria Stathi (Tel. 22678240)