The Network of Contemporary Culture Museums of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports introduces itself with its first official project, the digital exhibition under the title "Visualizing humanity", which is now available on the platform res.momus.gr (CLICK HERE). The exhibition hosts over 100 works of art by 62 artists from the permanent collections of the organizations participating in the Network -the National Gallery-Alexandros Soutsos Museum (EPMAS), the National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens (EMST) and the Metropolitan Organisation of Museums of Visual Arts of Thessaloniki (MOMus)- and is co-organized and curated by the art historians of all three collaborating institutions.
This project attempts to capture not only the global humanitarian and financial crisis that humanity has to face in the Covid-19 era, but also further unprecedented challenges related to growing economic inequalities, uncontrollable culture of fear, arbitrary restrictions on individual human freedoms and job insecurity. These challenges highlight the human rights’ debate as more relevant than ever, 70 years after the signing of the European Declaration of Human Rights.
The exhibition "Visualizing humanity" is focusing on the healing power of art that can overcome barriers such as language, culture and politics. Structured in three chapters, each of which includes works by all three participating organizations of the Network, this exhibition attempts to present directly or refer to images of courage and injustice, hope and despair, small or big successes and failures of humans to protect humans.
The chapter entitled “Animus Immortalis Est” raises the critical issue of human life’s value and dignity at a time when fundamentalism, fascism, religious extremism and terrorism threaten the humanitarian values on which post-World War II Europe was built.
The second chapter, entitled “Feels Like Home”, deals with the concept of “home” both literally and figuratively: globalization has turned millions of people from citizens to immigrants; the right to housing, social security and self-determination is more urgent than ever. What does "home" mean to each of us?
Finally, the chapter entitled “Climate Crisis” presents artworks that aim to demonstrate the major issue of climate change and its fatal, irreversible environmental, social and economic effects, already felt worldwide, questioning whether humanity intends and is able to correct its environmental mistakes.
Artists
Alexis Akrithakis, Dimitris Alithinos, Ziant Andar, Dimitris Antonitsis, Thanassis Apartis, Achilleas Apergis, Manolis Baboussis, Chronis Botsoglou, Andrea Bowers, Christina Calbari, Vlassis Caniaris, Tassos Christakis, Dionysis Christofilogiannis, Daniel (Panagopoulos), Michel François, Alexandros Georgiou, Apostolos Georgiou, Giorgos Gerontidis, Giorgos Gyparakis, Nikolaos Gyzis, Francisco Goya y Lucientes, Georgios Iakovidis, Orestis Kanellis, Vassos Kapandais, Vasso Katraki, Deborah Kelly & Tina Fiveash, Dimosthenis Kokkinidis, Lazaros Lameras, George Lappas, Andreas Lolis, Nikephoros Lytras, René Magritte, Memos (Agamemnon) Makris, Andrea Mantegna, Katerina Marouda, Carlos Motta, Lia Nalbantidou, Freya Najade, Solomon Nikritin, Chryssa Nikoleri, George Osodi, Yiannis Pantelidis, Thodoris Papadakis, Ilias Papailiakis, Leda Papaconstantinou, Rena Papaspyrou, Konstantinos Parthenis, Giannis Parmakelis, Liubov Popova, Jannis Psychopedis, Alexandros Psychoulis, Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, Omed Salehi, Santiago Sierra, Artemis Skeva, Sotiris Sorongas, Athena Tacha, Tassos (Anastasios Alevizos),Nikos Tranos, Costas Tsoklis, Georgios Vakirtzis, Giorgos Zongolopoulos
Network of Contemporary Culture Museums
The Network of Contemporary Culture Museums was established on the initiative of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture’s Directorate of Visual Arts, Architecture, Photography and Contemporary Culture Museums; it operates in the form of a collaborative platform with the participation of the supervised (by the Ministry) museum organizations of contemporary culture.
The idea was born due to the urgent need of our times -as well as the international museum practice of creating networks of synergies and collaborations- to save resources, find collaborative methods and tools, exchange know-hows and jointly promote the artworks that belong to the public collections of the state.
The digital exhibition "Visualizing humanity" is the first official project of the Network for which the National Gallery - Museum of Alexandros Soutsos, the National Museum of Contemporary Art and the Metropolitan Organization of Museums of Fine Arts of Thessaloniki altogether. It is a collective digital exhibition in which the largest museums of modern and contemporary art in Greece collaborated, in order to create a digital exhibition of an international character that functions as a major presentation of their permanent collections.
