How can local myths and legends share contemporary art? Eugenia Vereli, Iasonas Kambanis, and Natalia Manta, the three artists hosted by the Thermia Project on the island of Kythnos, supply an answer.
The residency program for artists that took place for the fourth year on the island of Kythnos from April 24 to May 11, during which time the three artists got to know the island’s folk art and folk traditions, interacted with locals, and transformed oral traditions into works inspired by local mythical creatures. The artistic outcome will be presented on July 12-20 at the exhibition Hidden Mythologies, curated by Odette Kouzou and supported by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), at the Primary School of Chora in Kythnos.
For the first time this year, the residents cocreated a work with the students of the Kythnos primary school in a creative workshop. Together they imagined, drew, and painted creatures from the island’s stories. This two-way exchange enabled the students to learn from the experience of the professionals, but also to offer their own fresh and youthful perspective to the work, which was unveiled to the public on May 3.