I create, therefore I am
Open invitation

Working with the State Museum of Contemporary Art and the Contemporary Art Centre of Thessaloniki, Visual Arts in Greece formally began to open new horizons for recording, analysis and interpretation and to develop possibilities for a variety of ramifications. As a first step in exploring and identifying the officially recorded artistic production, it seems to be well and truly launched.

At this stage, and while the intent is to remain within manageable dimensions, another need has emerged, this time from the artistic milieu itself and its interpretive requirements, and that is the need to find a way and a method of approaching the non-recorded artistic production that always exists but that remains unseen.
Where are the artists who have not shown their work in a museum or gallery for the past years, and what are they doing now? By what criteria have they been left out of the official commercial or non-commercial artistic scene? Is their isolation a matter of conscious choice or an accidental development?
Our proposal, then, is to use an established vehicle, like the SMCA-CACT, as a means of approaching those who wish to exhibit their work outside their studio and have not yet had an opportunity to do so.

Following the recommendations of a panel that will be selected to choose the participating works, our proposal aims at an exhibition with the title “I create, therefore I am”, to take place in the SMCA-CACT venues in December 2008.

This invitation is issued by the SMCA-CACT to:

• Greek visual artists of any age, regardless of formal qualifications (i.e. including the self-taught)

• Who are resident in Greece or abroad

• Who have not shown their work in a gallery or museum in the last 3-5 years.

This is a project that could be the starting-point for a more democratic promotion of those artists who remain behind the scenes.
From a practical point of view the project aims at setting new terms for the selection of the works of artists who are promoted today, as well as to help overturn the artistic status quo as it currently exists in Greece.


DATE FOR ENTRIES

Entries must postmarked between 1 May and 15 September 2008

SPECIFICATIONS

The artist must submit a CD-DVD containing:

• 5 photographs of works (or other files, e.g. video, video stills, etc.) with full details of the works (dimensions, technique, title, date, other information as appropriate, in Greek and English).

• Biographical details of the artist (maximum 100 words) in Greek and English.

• A text (maximum 150 words) describing or documenting the works, in Greek and English, signed by the author.

***NB:
It is important that participants comply with these specifications, for reasons of equality and propriety. Entries that do not meet these specifications (e.g. more than 5 works, unsigned or overlong texts or biographies) will not be accepted.

ADDRESS

Entries should be sent by post or courier only to:

Contemporary Art Center of Thessaloniki
Warehouse B1, Port
P.O. Box 10759
GR 541 10
Thessaloniki, Greece
T: 2310 593270

***NB:
Entries that are sent other than by post or courier will not be accepted.


For queries or further information, would you please contact the CACT using solely the following e-mail addresses:

domna@cact.gr (Domna Gounari)
areti@cact.gr (Areti Leopoulou)

From the CACT

Published: 31-01-2013
Presentations & a workshop at the CACT/SMCA!!