Manifestations: Views of the otherworldly in painting and drawing, 2024
Curated by Dr. Evi Tselika and Dr. Elena Parpa
Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre
Press
https://nimac.org.cy/faneromata/
https://artfacts.net/exhibition/manifestations-views-of-the-otherworldly-in-painting-and-drawing-nicosia-municipal-arts-centre-nimac-nicosia-2024
Press release
The exhibition “Manifestations: Views of the otherworldly in painting and drawing”, which opens on the 21st of March 2024 at the Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre, Associated with the Pierides Foundation [NiMAC] responds to our increasingly disenchanted times and explores the otherworldly, the magical and the oneiric in art; more specifically in painting and drawing.
The esoteric and mystical origins of painting and drawing are sought out, as well as their interrelations with ritualistic processes and with practices which delve into the unconscious, the dream, the power of symbols and legends, and the energetic frequencies of the natural and material world. Multiple facets in which envisioning, daydreaming, and activating the instinctual and intuitional are revealed within artistic practices, when exploring the figure of the artist as one on the cusp of the material and spiritual world.
The exhibition thus researches not only the types of iconography employed and the specific painterly genres where such issues are negotiated (still life, landscape and self portraiture), but also relevant references to the byzantine traditions, and eclectic affinities with artistic movements such as surrealism and geometric abstraction. It also explores the ways in which art is entangled with ideas pertaining to the sacred, the soul, the spirit and the metaphysical realm. The exhibition has been developed using a historical and intergenerational approach and methodology, bringing into dialogue thirty five historic and contemporary artists from Cyprus. The aim is to explore divergent viewpoints and perspectives regarding the human condition through time. The artworks presented encourage us to question what renders our everydayness small and rigid: entrenched perceptions, dominant systems of power and knowledge, predetermined categories of gender, as well as the distinctions between nature/human, material/spirit, art/the psychic world.
The artworks belong to a variety of collections, such as the State Collection of Cypriot Art, the A.G. Leventis Gallery, the Embassy of Greece in Cyprus, and the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation collections. Artworks belonging to private collections are also exhibited.
The exhibition “Manifestations: Views of the otherworldly in painting and drawing”, curated by Dr. Elena Parpa and Dr. Evanthia (Evi) Tselika, is the first in a series of exhibitions and activities expected to take place at the Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre, Αssociated with the Pierides Foundation [NiMAC] for the year 2024. The study of the relationship between historical and contemporary art practices, which contributes to the creation of an open platform for critical debate and thought, is a key pillar of NiMAC’s strategic plan for the next three years under the direction of Dr. Elena Stylianou. NiMAC’s main concern is also to engage different audiences through its parallel activities and specially designed educational programmes.
The exhibition is funded by the Department of Contemporary Culture, Deputy Ministry of Culture and it is supported by the Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus, Chakarian Colour Centre, the European University Cyprus and the British High Commission Nicosia.