As evidenced by the universal symbol of hands in prayer, the debt crisis looms in Greece. But in downtown Athens there are signs that the struggles have given birth to an artistic awakening, a recent New York Times article reports.
“The debt crisis here has created an intriguing bright spot: a burst of artistic activity in response to the national identity crisis it has provoked,” says Rachel Donadio of the NY Times.
Donadio continues, “Art galleries are thriving. Street artists paint tiny gems amid the growing downtown squalor. A new generation of filmmakers has captured the air of uncertainty by making the familiar strange.”
Similar to well known British street artist, Banksy, this artist’s identity remains undercover.
Greece has submitted the film, “Attenberg,” directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari, to be considered for an Academy Award nomination this year. It’s happened before – creativity and art are not necessarily born of peaceful and easy times.
The Times states galleries are thriving, but gallerist Rebecca Camhi clarifies, “People are buying less and less…but there are more visitors.” That art can be a comfort in times of despair, is not a foreign concept.
The exhibition pictured above was held at the Kunsthalle Athena, reported to be a “beautifully run-down old building, a warren of rooms with peeling paint, ornate mouldings and spotty wiring.”
Evidently, art hung on moldy walls – a setting which aptly echoes the economic climate. In this photo, a sentiment many of us can relate to during these uncertain times.
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Related articles
- In Athens, Crisis as Muse (nytimes.com)
- In Transit Blog: Guess Where This Is (intransit.blogs.nytimes.com)
- Battered by Economic Crisis, Greeks Turn to Barter Networks (stevebeckow.com)
- Pictures of the Day: Greece and Elsewhere (lens.blogs.nytimes.com)
- Artist Paints Burning Bank on Day of Rage (zatista.com)
- Upset in San Francisco (zatista.com)
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