Oedipus in search of Colonus | Loukia Alavanou
Dates
Tickets
Age Guidance
Venue
Time & Date
Tickets
Onassis Stegi Friends and general presale: from 22 SEP 2023, 17:00
Information
Available time slots
*19:00, 19:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00, 21:30, 22:00, 22:30, 23:00
Duration
15 minutes
Language
The installation is entirely in English.
Information
Persons who are pregnant, who have heart or vision problems, who suffer from epilepsy or some other serious medical condition, who use hearing aids, or who use a pacemaker or some other implanted medical device are advised to consult their physician before using a VR headset.
The use of VR headsets by minors is restricted to those aged 13 and over, accompanied by an adult.
ARIONA accepts no liability for any damages incurred by VR headset users who fail to comply with the guidelines set out above.
Introduction
The VR installation by Loukia Alavanou, who represented Greece at the 59th Venice Art Biennale, is coming to the Exhibition Hall -1 of Onassis Stegi. A 15-minute film shot with 360° VR technology and members of the Roma community from Nea Zoi in Aspropyrgos of Western Attica, in the roles of a cast of actors who follow in the traces of Oedipus.
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The VR installation by Loukia Alavanou, who represented Greece at the 59th Venice Art Biennale, is coming to the Exhibition Hall -1 of Onassis Stegi. A 15-minute film shot with 360° VR technology and members of the Roma community from Nea Zoi in Aspropyrgos of Western Attica, in the roles of a cast of actors who follow in the traces of Oedipus.
Documentary, fiction, drone flights, slapstick, video clips inspired by the trans-Balkan pop culture of contemporary Roma artists, sophisticated pranks, VR technology, hemispherical domes, and hybrid posture chairs—inspired by the architect of modernist utopia Takis Zenetos—comprise Loukia Alavanou’s installation “Oedipus in Search of Colonus.”
In the semi-lit exhibition space of Onassis Stegi at -1 Level and within a theatrical atmosphere, the visitors of the installation are led to the specially formulated hemispherical domes, inside of which are the hybrid posture chairs—a cross between an office chair and an anatomical TV recliner chair—that, due to their ergonomic design, allow the visitors to experience the 360° spectrum of the film unrestrained. In addition, the sound design of the VR film is directional and, like the image, is responsive to the movements of the visitors, culminating in an unparalleled experience.With her installation, Loukia Alavanou invites the audience to a journey through time, with a plot revolving around the themes of aging and death, human dignity and universal freedom, and permeated by our current societal reality, immigration, displacement, minorities, and human rights.
Alavanou has previously been an Onassis Foundation scholar and is currently a fellow artist at ONX Studio, the New York-based and global-wide initiative led by Onassis Foundation on Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality.
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Photo: Pinelopi Gerasimou
“I was visiting an off-the-map area to the west of Athens when I got lost and found myself in the Roma ghetto, which is one of the toughest places in Greece. This Roma community moved here in the 1980s from Thebes, just like Oedipus, who was also from Thebes. There is actually an assumption that the path Oedipus took on his way from Thebes to Colonus passed through this precise location, Nea Zoi—which interestingly means ‘New Life’.” – Loukia Alavanou
A journey through time, with a plot revolving around the themes of aging and death, human dignity and universal freedom, and permeated by our current societal reality, immigration, displacement, minorities, and human rights.
The first edition of the film "Oedipus in Search of Colonus" is part of the Onassis Collection and was powered by Onassis Culture, supported by PCAI/Polygreen Culture and Art Initiative.
The installation’s presentation at the 59th Venice Art Biennale, curated by Heinz Peter Schwerfel, was realized with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, powered by the Onassis Foundation, and implemented by the National Gallery, as well as the further support of the Greek Film Center, NEON Organization, the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, and OUTSET.
The film was initially developed at the program FEATURE EXPANDED (HOME, Manchester / awarded by Lo schermo dell’arte, Florence) where the director had received a scholarship.
Photo: Jacopo Salvi / Courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia
Installation view of Loukia Alavanou, Greek Pavilion, 59th International Art Exhibition—La Biennale di Venezia, 2022
Εxhibition Credits
Onassis Culture
Communication & Content Department
Onassis Stegi
Film Credits
59th Venice Biennale
Greek Pavilion
Greek Pavilion
Greek Pavilion
Greek Pavilion
Greek Pavilion
Greek Pavilion
