Fluidity, FokiaNou Art Space

“Butter fields”

The essence of fluidity and the quest for meaning amidst a tumultuous and intricate world lie at the heart of Dionisis Pappas’ philosophy. His artistic expression seamlessly traverses the realms of reality and imagination. Within his sketches, the ephemerality and mutability of existence are frequently depicted through the fluidic and ethereal forms of emerging entities, emanating from a primordial past. These amorphous entities, in perpetual flux, embody the uncertainty inherent in human existence, lending substance to the concept of ambiguity, often tinged with a touch of humor.

Acknowledging the impossibility of attaining absolute knowledge in a reality devoid of objective truths or immutable values, he embraces a landscape of manifold facets and intricacies, where knowledge and experience are subjective constructs.

Limbs or visages melting like butter, the fluid contours, and distortions recurrently portrayed in Pappas’ oeuvre symbolize the quest for a renewed sense of self, signifying a departure from the constraints of reality, the dissolution of stability, and legibility. Yet, they concurrently serve as a metaphorical vehicle for liberation from the constrictions of antiquated paradigms, heralding a process of rejuvenation and metamorphosis. Thus, they facilitate the inevitable transformation that everyone undergoes, navigating the enigma of an unpredictable future and the labyrinthine complexities of time.

 

FokiaNou Art Space is pleased to present “Fluidity”, an exhibition in which two artists seamlessly traverse realms of reality and imagination, one through a combination of analog and digital photography and video, and the other through intricate pencil drawings on wood sculptures. Bourbou’s ongoing photography project, entitled “ILLUSION, or the eighth place”, inspired by Fernando Pessoa’s The Book of Disquiet, imagines realistic landscapes by the sea through the prism of utopia. Some works are hand-printed; others are digitally processed in high contrast and some use double figures, collage, ink and acrylics. Pappas’ sketches portray the ephemerality and immutability of existence through limbs and visages melting like butter, fluid contours and distortions. His two and three-dimensional works serve as a metaphor for rejuvenation and metamorphosis.

Maria Bourbou was born and grew up in Athens. She studied Photography at the Center of Study and Practice of Photography in Athens and Video Art at National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Residing abroad for many years (Luxembourg, Madrid, Lisbon and Vienna), her work has been shown internationally and is held in many private and public collections.

Dionisios Pappas grew up in Chalkida but is currently based in Athens, having completed postgraduate studies in History and Archeology at the Athens University of Applied Sciences, and later at the Athens School of Fine Arts. He has exhibited widely both in Greece and abroad, in addition to creating works in public spaces.