PRESS RELEASE
TEMPORARY EXHIBITION IN THE SAME PLACE,
CYPRUS MUSEUM, 18.3 ‒ 10.9.2023
The Department of Antiquities, Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works, announces the opening of the exhibition “In the Same Place” by artist Katerina Attalidou. The exhibition is organised at the Cyprus Museum from the 18th of March until the 10th of September 2023. The opening event will take place on the 18th of March 2023 at 11:00 am with free entry for all.
Through a series of 86 watercolours the artist enters into a dialogue with the Cyprus Museum’s permanent collection. Her approach is emotional and sensitive as she is led by the archaeological exhibits to their places of origin. The exhibition title denotes, amongst other things, the coexistence of Attalidou’s watercolours with the selected exhibits in the Cyprus Museum, as well as her physical presence in the same place in which the archaeological objects were discovered.
Attalidou’s works, accompanied by her own thoughts on the places she has visited and captured with her art, unravel the natural, archaeological and historical dimensions of each place, reminding us how special and truly valuable the island’s natural elements are. The exhibition masterfully but delicately brings the landscape to the forefront, inviting us to consider how these unique natural, archaeological and historical surroundings have determined the course of the island’s history and how vital they are for studying and understanding past and present societies.
Troodos, the Akamas and Karpasia peninsulas, Ammochostos (Famagusta), Rizokarpaso, Leonarisso, Arnadi, Galinoporni, Ovgoros, Platani, Peristerona, Vitsada, Lefkonoiko, Afaneia, Bellapais, Kazafani, Klepini, Kythrea, Ampelikou, Keryneia, Lapithos, Akanthou, Larnakas tis Lapithou, Petra tou Limniti, Vouni, Agia Eirini, Filia, Mansoura, Pomos, Gialia, Polis Chrysochous, Kritou Marottou, Souskiou, Lempa, Kissonerga, Kourion, Erimi, Parekklisia, Mari, Maroni, Choirokoitia, Agia Varvara, Deneia Katydata, Egkomi, Arsos, Melousia, Tremetousia, Dromolaxia, Larnaka (ancient Kition), Pera Oreinis, Dali, Sotira, Paralimni...
Attalidou’s watercolours, each with a unique journey behind it, invite us to appreciate the aura of place. Her works to some extent bridge the ‘gap’ formed when an archaeological object is removed from its find-spot and is displayed in a museum exhibition space. The artist’s ‘places’ generously, but discreetly, offer the possibility of a very different museum experience, at the same time inviting us to move around our landscapes and observe the places around us. Her watercolours unfold the multiple layers and dimensions of each place, and their tangible and intangible qualities. Most importantly, they remind us of our island’s wholeness and indivisibility.
