Platforms Project 2018: Independent International Art Fair

The sixth edition of the independent art fair Platforms Project 2018 will be held on May 17-20, 2018, at the “Nikos Kessanlis” Exhibition Hall of the Athens School of Fine Arts (ASFA), featuring a rich and multidimensional programme of lectures, videos and performances by the participating teams. The project’s purpose is to present the work of young creators from the independent arts scene, and also to function as an “incubator” for young artists, a site where experimentation, research and the structure of artistic identity is a perpetual quest.

Platforms Project

Parallel to the main events of the Platforms Project, a series of workshops, presentations, performances and discussions will take place. During the six years spanning its history so far, Platforms Project has formed a global network of independent artistic groups and spaces, in direct communication with one another. At this point, the project has evolved into a visual community with its own unique energy, promoting new ideas and providing alternative artists with the space and time they cannot find elsewhere, to express themselves and communicate with each other.

Following last year’s successful edition “Platforms Project – Independent Art Fair 2017”, featuring 42 platforms from 17 countries, that gave thousands of viewers the opportunity to come in contact with the independent arts scene and artists’ groups, Platforms Project 2018 will be the largest meeting of collectives/platforms, compared to all previous years. After receiving hundreds of applications from 24 countries at the open call made via internet, Platforms Project 2018 will feature 56 platforms from 17 countries, 41 cities,with more than 600 artists, giving it a truly international character.

The schedule features a rich programme of artistic performances, combining several different elements, from theatre and dance to audiovisual and musical pieces. Some of the platforms-artists groups taking part include:

AC Institute, (USA), AKA x UAS (Canada), ALISN & Darling Pearls & Co (UK), ARTIA GALLERY (Greece), Bcademie (Netherlands), BEASTON Projects (UK), Candyland ( Sweden), Come alone do not call cops (Greece & France), CUBE ART EDITIONS (Greece), Fragment S (Sweden), Fronteer (UK), International Fine Arts Consortium / IFAC Arts (USA), Ormston House (Ireland), ROSALUX (Germany), space52 (Greece), THE M{}ESUM (Germany), THE MILENA PRINCIPLE (Belgium), transformer (USA), VITAL SPACE (Greece), YAFCA [Yearn to Abstract Form Cube Analysis] (Greece) and many more.

Events parallel to the project

On May 19-20, a two-day conference is organised by the Greek section of the International Association of Art Critics (AICA Hellas) titled “Promotion Mechanisms for Young Artists”. The seminar will try to investigate and shed light on the difficulties faced by young artists when they try to present their work in Greece, achieve a level of recognition for their art and participate in the international scene. The sub-topics addressed will be: “Interconnections of teaching at the Schools of Fine Art with the wider social artistic environment”, “New theorists’ and curators’ view of promoting and integrating young artists in the contemporary environment” and “The need to create institutions for the development and promotion of young artists in Greece”.

During the Platforms Project 2018 exhibition, some workshops at the Athens School of Fine Arts will be open, presenting works by the students. A series of other artistic projects are also organised parallel to the main event.

The “WEDO Art Projects” team will present the collective artwork-installation “GIVING”, created with the participation of more than 150 people – artists, ASFA students and members of the ASFA teaching staff. The exhibition will begin on May 17, and the next day the works will be auctioned to raise money for the Centre for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind (KEAT).

The Platforms Project also presents four exhibitions which are the result of the global network created through its collaborations for the past six years. On May 18, the group exhibition “Sublime and Repress” will take place; curated by Alexander Mood, it features selected works by 10 artists. The title and theme of the exhibition, Sublime and Repress, is inspired by the book Civilisation and Its Discontents, written in 1929 by Sigmund Freud, where he examines the conflict between individual desires and the expectations of society – the fundamental discord between civilisation and the individual. On the same day, Andreas Marti will present his solo exhibition, “What comes around goes around”, an installation mirroring our social structures, where limits are placed on freedom and individuality to preserve systems.

On May 19, the group exhibition “RNOP – HELLENIKON Assemblage no.7” will take place, showcasing the work of eight artsists. It will be curated by artist Dr. Billy Gruner, invited by the IS-projects network to launch the newly established West Projects International Associates or West PI through the exhibition. Also, Jenn E Norton will present her solo exhibition, “Doldrums”, an installation using video, projected images and 3D models in order to study the concept of information transition through the use of light.