IYP X Outset Greece
Pavilion of Greece at the 60th International Art Exhibition La Biennale di Venezia, Xirómero/Dryland
Curated by: Panos Giannikopoulos
Xirómero/Dryland,which is representing Greece at the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, is an interdisciplinary collective work. It consists of a piece of agricultural irrigation equipment that synchronizes the installation’s sound, video and lighting in real time. The artists investigate the experience of a village festival by following its course from the village square all the way to the outskirts and surrounding land.
More specifically, they draw their inspiration from the experience of the panigyria -local festivals- of mainland Greece, Thessaly and the area of Xirómero, in Western Greece, which lends the work its title.
The artists behind the work refer to water as a prism —a way of seeing and thinking—focusing on its scarcity or abundance, on how it is needed or wasted, as well as on its social connotations. The exhaustion of resources is linked here to physical and financial exhaustion. The work navigates the political potential of sound and music, and the impact of technology on rural landscapes and cultural diversity.
The project and its presentation in Venice have been funded by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture. EMΣT / National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens is the commissioner of Greece’s national participation and in charge of planning, production and promotion. Panos Giannikopoulos is the curator of the Pavilion of Greece.
