Three salty weeks come to an end: On Sunday, December 22, 2024, from 4 to 7 pm, we warmly invite you to ATOPOS cvc (Salaminos 72, Athens) for the Open Day of the International Artist Residency of the Office of Hydrocommons.
Discover works-in-progress and discuss with Mathilde Rouiller, Emily Sarsam, and Annalisa Zegna, exploring the concept of hypersalinity through a multidisciplinary and artistic approach. We look forward to sharing with you the experience of three 'salty' weeks!
The program draws inspiration from pivotal moments in Earth's history, such as the Messinian Salinity Crisis. Tectonic movements caused the Strait of Gibraltar to close, leading to the evaporation of water in the Mediterranean Sea and leaving behind extensive salt deposits. These thick salt layers are evidence of the dramatic environmental changes that occurred during this period, which are still studied today. What if the Mediterranean, as a geographical positioning and critical space, were to undergo a similar event today? Additionally, salt serves as a powerful metaphor for our "salty" times, full of interdependent environmental and social challenges. This residency will offer an opportunity to explore the symbolic, poetic, and transformative dimensions of salt. This interdisciplinary and interartistic research will include contributions from researchers, scientists, and fellow artists, while also providing time for personal research under the direction of Eleni Riga.
A few information about our residents:
Mathilde Rouiller is a dancer and performance researcher whose work focuses on landscapes and the ecology of gestures. She explores the movements of living organisms and their interactions with abiotic elements like light and water, creating performances, choreographies, stagings and installations that bring attention to the fluid relationship between body and environment. Mathilde’s background includes studies at La Sorbonne, EHESS Paris, Columbia University, and Sciences Po Paris. From 2022 to 2024, she held residencies at Maison Artagon (Paris, France), Flux Laboratory, and Alkinois (Athens, Greece), as well as at La Madeleine in collaboration with Alice Guittard (Arles, France). There, she presented the development stages of her first solo performance, Fuir les Saumons. In 2024, she exhibited at Chapelle 14 and Thalie Foundation.
Emily Sarsam, an artist, researcher, and cultural programmer whose work spans composition, voice, poetry, performance, and publishing. Based between Tunis and Vienna, Emily’s research and artistic practice focus on commoning practices in rural and agricultural contexts, examining the impacts of colonialism and extractivism on food, farming, and local cosmologies. Emily is a co-founder of Broudou, a research collective and publication dedicated to the future of food in Tunisia, and is part of Mouhit, an artist residency in Tunis where she supports programming and mentoring. She is also a PhD candidate at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna.
Annalisa Zegna is an artist, researcher and cultural practitioner who works with visual and performative languages, focusing on collective experiences and collaborative practices. She develops artistic projects related to multiple ecologies, landscapes and human-nonhuman interconnections, with a strong interest in exploring and hybridizing personal and collective imaginaries. She is co-founder and collaborator of Spazio HYDRO, an independent cultural space in Biella where she co-curates the public programme Fluviale, and works as Research and Production Coordinator of UNIDEE Residency Programs of Fondazione Pistoletto. She attended the Master PACS Performing Arts and Community Spaces (Rome, IT), Visual Arts at IUAV University (Venice, IT), and Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts (Turin, IT).
Bodies Floating into the Land
The Office of Hydrocommons and ATOPOS UNBOUND presented Bodies Floating into the Land at the Temple of Poseidon and Amphitrite, Tinos, on July 17-18, 2023, as part of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture’s "All of Greece, One Culture" program. Curated by Eleni Riga, and created by Despina Charitonidi, Mihalis Kalkanis, and Despina Sanida-Krezia, this powerful performance explores biodiversity in the Mediterranean and the impact of climate change on all living organisms. In the Mediterranean, invasive species like lionfish and purple jellyfish travel vast distances via ship ballasts, disrupting local ecosystems—a phenomenon known as Lessepsian migration. Through this performance, we reflect on the vulnerability of all 'bodies of water' and the urgent need for planetary healing. Inspired by Poseidon, worshiped on Tinos as a healer, this event delivers a message of hope in the face of environmental challenges. 🌊 Dancers-Performers: Leda Diochnou, Eirini Georgiou, Elton Petri, Thanos Ragousis, Foteini Stamatopoulou, Stefanos Tsogkas. Photos & video by Alexandra Masmanidi with George Athanasiou.
Wet Heart Exhibition
Participants: Ileana Arnaoutou and Ismene King, Despina Charitonidi, Eleni Mylonas, Maria Nikiforaki
Duration: 22.03–01.07.2023
Venue: ATOPOS cvc, 72 Salaminos St, Metaxourgio, Athens, Greece
ATOPOS cvc, the host institution of the Office of Hydrocommons for 2022–2024 through #OccupyAtopos, is located at 72 Salaminos Street in the Athenian neighborhood of Metaxourgio. The building is a typical example of an Athenian townhouse built in 1912 in the Beaux-Arts/Neoclassical style. There is a well in the middle of the courtyard that l became the “Wet Heart” of the Office of Hydrocommons – it gave the name to the eponymous group show – and was used as a dramaturgical element for the exhibition.
Wells have been used in literature, poetry, mythology, and folk tales to symbolize a subconscious world, the depths of human emotion, self-discovery or/and a quest for truth and wisdom. They are magical places as well as places of divination. Resonating with this, the well was a unique topos within ATOPOS (a word meaning non-place, paradoxical, or unclassifiable in Greek) to introduce ideas related to posthuman feminist philosophy and hydrofeminism in particular.
From the positionality of the Mediterranean South, the artists Ileana Arnaoutou and Ismene King, Despina Charitonidi, Eleni Mylonas, Maria Nikiforaki who participated in the exhibition Wet Heart investigate problems such as water scarcity, the deterioration of the natural environment due to industrial, touristic, and military activities, and the pollution of waters due to plastics and microplastics. Aided by scientific consultants, the five visual artists reflect on the impact of the above onto vulnerable human and non-human lives.
International Artist Residency
The Office of Hydrocommons serves as a dynamic hub for international artists to explore the profound environmental and social transformations related to water and the human body. Our residency program fosters a space for living, working, and interdisciplinary collaboration, addressing the complex challenges of the Mediterranean Sea.
Camille Pradon is a French artist who explores the history of sponges and the communities of sponge divers along the Mediterranean shores of Greece, France, and Tunisia. Her work Sol Absolu delves into the intricate connections, exchanges, and movements of people, marine life, and languages in these regions. Pradon focuses on sponges as vessels of memory and symbols of porous exchanges, highlighting their deep interactions with sponge-diving communities. In December 2023, she was an artist-in-residence, visiting both Athens and Heraklion, Crete, to continue her research with the marine biologist Thanos Dailianis at the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR). She presented her cross-disciplinary project Sol Absolu on December 4, 2023, at the Institut français de Grèce, in conversation with curator Eleni Riga. Pradon continued her profound journey of exploration and creation in Kalymnos, supported by ATOPOS cvc, ADAGP’s Dotation Recherche, and the International Mobility Program of the City of Rouen. She was invited for a residency in ceramics at the House of France in Rhodes, in collaboration with the Institut français de Grèce, and is planning a series of exhibitions for 2025-2026.
Maëlle Gross, a Swiss visual artist of Greek descent, explores themes of ecology and mythology through feminist science fiction and spirituality, with a particular focus on caves in Greece. In a spirit of care, the Office of Hydrocommons partnered with the organization Pro Helvetia to ensure Gross could be accompanied by her daughter and partner, providing her with the necessary space and time to expand her research. During a public event, we discussed the model of artist-parent residencies and the importance of creating conditions to support mother artists in particular. Furthermore, Gross and her family traveled by train, boat, and car, thereby reducing the ecological impact of their transport.
Lily Consuelo Saporta Tagiuri – an American-Spanish artist and designer of Greek, Italian, and Mexican descent – collaborated with the Greek botanist, agronomist, and food technologist Manos Bazanis to research native edible plants such as Crithmum maritimum (crimson), Hymenonema graecum (andralida), Elytrigia sartorii (Aegean sand couch grass), Origanum microphyllum (antonaida), and Brassica nigra (wild cabbage), which grow in water-deficient environments and are affected by salinity. Around the garden they developed at ATOPOS cvc, they hosted a series of foraging events where participants had the chance to taste these plants and learn to identify them. Following this residency, Consuelo Saporta Tagiuri and Bazanis have collaborated on a new performative tasting commissioned by the Office of Hydrocommons and scheduled on July 7, 2024. This event aspires to create a temporary democracy of waters, fish, and fishermen at Ichthioskala, the fish port in Keratsini, Attica, within the framework of the Athens Epidaurus Festival, following an invitation from the Municipal Theatre of Piraeus.
Lily Consuelo Saporta Tagiuri’s residency was supported financially by the European Union as part of the Culture Moves Europe mobility scheme implemented by Goethe-Institut. (The views expressed therein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union.)
In collaboration with Avtonomi Akadimia, and alluding to the claims of ecofeminist struggles, the Office of Hydrocommons hosted Kasia Wojcik, a Berlin-based German artist of Polish descent, whose practice focuses on issues of immigration and commons. In June 2023, along with Avtonomi Akadimia, Eleni Tsamadia, Amazigh Labidi, and George Anagnosotopoulos, she led a public assembly on creating a nomadic constitution. At first glance, the idea of a nomadic constitution seems contradictory. Constitutions are typically seen as a cornerstone of nation-states. Therefore, nothing is more alien to traditional constitutionalism than the idea of a normative instrument that integrates and recognizes the political aspirations of undocumented groups of people.
Kasia Wojcik’s participation was supported by Fonds Darstellende Künste with funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media in the framework of NEUSTART KULTUR, by the Goethe-Institut, and the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung.
In August and September 2024, we welcome French artist Chloé Royer, who will explore the symbolic figure of the jellyfish, representing both marine life and mythological significance. In December 2024, through the Europe Moves Culture Host program, three international art professionals – Mathilde Rouiller, Emily Sarsam, and Annalisa Zegna – will join a residency focused on the theme of hypersalinity, examining it both as an environmental condition and a conceptual framework. This residency will delve into critical, interconnected ecological and feminist issues, as well as themes of social justice and food sovereignty.
The Office of Hydrocommons International Artist Residency is a fluid structure, with an ongoing and evolving list of participants who continually enrich the collaborative and interdisciplinary nature of the program.
Public Program
The creation of the site-specific sculpture A Conservation of Water-Writings by Ileana Arnaoutou and Ismene King was fueled by encounters around the well. The Office of Hydrocommons hosted a diverse array of public events between March and July 2023 to explore the multifaceted politics and significance of water. This program included performances, screenings, discussions, walks, and workshops, bringing together artists, scientists, athletes, and activists for interdisciplinary collaborations. The program continues as fluid and dynamic as water. The list of participants and collaborators is updated as the program unfolds. Event Participants George Alexopoulos, George Anagnostopoulos, Manos Bazanis, Panos Charalambous, Despina Charitonidi, Larry Cool, Leda Diochnou, Olga Evangelidou, Catriona Gallagher, Eirini Georgiou, Maëlle Gross, Hariklia Hari (Microgeographies), Mihalis Kalkanis, Eleni Kaskarika, Angelos Krallis, Rika Krithara, Amazigh Labidi, James Lane, Giannis Nikolaou, Giorgis Noukakis, Nefeli Papaioannou, Elton Petri, Thanos Ragousis, Irene Ragusini, Despina Sanida-Krezia, Lily Consuelo Saporta Tagiuri, Foteini Stamatopoulou, Joulia Strauss, Maria Theodorou, Eleni Tsamadia, Stefanos Tsogkas, Margarita Tsomou, Eleni Tzirtzilaki, Martha Vounatsi, Kasia Wojcik, among others
About us
The Office of Hydrocommons, curatorial platform and production office delves deeply into critical issues affecting the Mediterranean Sea and addresses these issues on a planetary scale through international participants and allies.
“Hydroresearchers” and “eco-visionaries” from various fields – ranging from the arts, marine biology, and agronomy to urbanism, sports, and activism – tackle challenges such as the sound pollution from seismic surveys, militarization of the Aegean Sea, deterioration of underwater caves, the pervasive pollution from plastics and microplastics due to touristic activities, invasion of alien species, extinction of marine sponges, resurgence of jellyfish and hypersalinity. These environmental challenges are examined in relation to the body – both human and non-human – viewing these entities as integral actors within multispecies collectives.
Conceived and curated by Eleni Riga, The Office of Hydrocommons was initiated through a commission by Vassilis Zidianakis, Artistic Director of @atoposcvc, within the framework of #OccupyAtopos. The platform continues its aquatic journey, forging new and enduring partnerships along the way. Contact us to collaborate on your next artistic project, hire us to produce your hydrofeminist project!
Partners & sponsors 2022-24: Hellenic Ministry of Culture, “All of Greece, One Culture”, Region of Crete, the G. & Α. Mamidakis Foundation, Athens Epidaurus Festival, Municipal Theatre of Piraeus, Municipality of Chania, Municipality of Apokoronas, Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, Fonds Darstellende Künste, Goethe-Institut, Institut Français de Grèce, Onassis AiR, ΙCOM.