Representing Greece at the 59th Venice Biennale, artist Loukia Alavanou reconstructs an ancient drama to reflect contemporary events. The centerpiece of his exhibition Oedipus in search of Colone, hosted by Heinz Peter Schwerfel, is a 15-minute VR film that brings a nearly 2,500-year-old Sophocles drama into the present and tells the story through a combination of docufiction, music video, farce and technology. immersive. Notorious for his horrible deeds, Oedipus is banished from Thebes at the end of his life and comes to die in Colonus. For the first time in his tragic life, he goes against the will of the gods. Faced with their resistance, he chose Colone as a place of rest, a sacred place consecrated by the gods.
In Alavanou’s version, filmed in a Roma-inhabited slum, an off-screen chorus tells the story. All the roles are interpreted by Roma, amateur actors who give the story a grotesque side by their exaggerated acting. Their biggest problem is identical to that of old Oedipus. Like him, the Roma who now live west of Athens, in an area not far from Colone, are also struggling against their fate. Often deprived of any form of citizenship, these nomads are prevented by the Greek authorities from being able to choose a burial place close to their last place of residence.
This work is the first VR film shot in Greece that tells a coherent story. It was filmed using complex 360-degree technology, which allows the viewer to not only see but also use their head movements to experience the whole storyline of interior spaces and drone flights overhead. of the colony. The sound design is also directional and, like the image, it responds to the movements of the viewer.
Four hemispherical domes are installed in the pavilion. Each has room for three to five posture chairs, which are based on the designs of the utopian Greek architect Takis Zenetos, who died in 1977. The entire pavilion is kept in semi-darkness, creating an atmosphere à la both theatrical and mysterious that forms an island. thinking in the middle of the largest art exhibition in the world.
The project is funded by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports. The National Gallery of Greece has been appointed curator.
Artist: Loukia Alavanou
Conservative: Heinz Peter Schwerfel
Commissioner: National Gallery of Greece, Alexandros Soutsos Museum / Marina LambrakiPlaka
Architectural concept: AREA – Architecture Research Athens
Architectural design and installation: Korres Engineering
Sound Designer: Manolis Manousakis
Manufacturing Advisor: Christina Pigaki
Head of production: Olga Hatzidaki
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