Emilia Bouriti, visual artist, performance artist, and the visionary behind the international program “Amoli,” A Collective Project in the Rural, Post-Industrial, Multicultural Community of Aspropyrgos, presents AMOLI II, which will take place from July to December 2020. It is a continuation of AMOLI I, which was held last year with great participation.
The word “Amoli” is used by the farmers of Aspropyrgos and refers to the rural irrigation ditch that carries water to nourish the crops.
The first action of the AMOLI II program is “Rural Imprints II,” supported by the Organization for Culture and Development NEON.
Through a series of site-specific performances, participatory actions involving the local population, and outdoor screenings, the project highlights the rural and multicultural elements within a participatory framework where artists, farmers, migrants, and the wider public co-create an experiential, collective, artistic work that takes place in the fields of Aspropyrgos.
Taking into serious consideration the pandemic caused by the coronavirus – COVID-19, the Amoli program will present its actions in full compliance with the safety measures defined by law, while part of the activities will be presented online.
The program will begin on July 17, 2020, with the work “Aspropyrgos Rural Imprints II – The Arvanite Culture,” which consists of a participatory project, a performance, and a film screening.
The work explores the relationship of Arvanite farmers with the land, cultivation, their personal stories, and the memories of the place, while the participatory action of the residents involves testimonies and songs of the farmers and the unique bond they have developed with the rural land in the area of Agia Marina.
The date of July 17 was chosen for the presentation of the work, as Aspropyrgos is closely connected to the celebration of Agia Marina, which takes place at the humble chapel bearing her name.
Visual artist Emilia Bouriti, influenced by the coronavirus pandemic, shapes the theme and presentation of the work by taking as a reference point the history of the area of Agia Marina, as this location was known during the dark period of the leprosy pandemic as a place of deposition – abandonment of lepers.
The artist performs a ritual, purifying performance, in which participants are invited, through the “safety” measures against coronavirus, to perform their own purification ritual.
The work builds a bridge between the current realities shaped by the coronavirus pandemic and the testimonies of residents about past epidemics in rural Aspropyrgos. The testimonies of the residents stem from the family and historical memories of the area.
A key element of the work is the positivity and strength of life that emerges!
The film screening – Arvanite Culture trailer
August 2, 2020
On August 2, the work “Aspropyrgos Rural Imprints II – The Pontic Culture” is presented in the airport neighborhood, EMAK 1, in the area of Gorytsa, Aspropyrgos. The work also consists of a participatory action, a ritual performance, and a film screening. The film screening presents the community’s participatory actions within the “Amoli” project, highlighting the vitality of Pontic culture through food, testimonies of uprooting and resettlement of the community in Greece, music, and songs from Pontus.
The community’s participatory action includes the testimonies of Pontians and songs connected to memories of serious contagious diseases such as Tsiχotka, Vrasa, Tsoumam, from the time when the participants or their ancestors lived in the former Soviet republics.
The power of community art, as well as the belief in life, conveys a message of solidarity, historical memory, and optimism in the face of pandemic times.
The work “Aspropyrgos Rural Imprints II,” taking the coronavirus as a starting point, invites us to reconsider our relationship with the land and human connections, while using contemporary art as a vehicle to generate forces that resist all forms of stagnation and fear. The message the work conveys is that “Art, creativity, as well as truth–knowledge, liberate.”
The film screening – Pontic Culture trailer
International Collaborations
The project “Amoli II” is carried out in collaboration with the Municipality of Aspropyrgos and its Cultural Center, the Laboratory of Soft Energy Applications & Environmental Protection, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, University of West Attica, the University of Ploiesti, the Pantheon Sorbonne (Research Group), University of France (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne), the 3rd Painting Workshop of the Athens School of Fine Arts (ASFA), the Agricultural Association of Aspropyrgos, Comunitatea Elena Prahova-Ploiesti, the Twinning Association of the cities of Aspropyrgos and Ploiesti, Romania, as well as higher education institutions and primary and secondary schools of the Thriasio region.
The project “Amoli II” is rooted in Emilia Bouriti’s ongoing research titled “Post-Industrial Rural Pathways,” which she has been conducting since 2016 in the area of Aspropyrgos.
Emilia Bouriti is a visual artist and performance artist with a significant academic teaching career, having taught Performance at higher education institutions in Greece and abroad. Her artistic work has been successfully presented in international events. She is the founder of the Syn+Ergasia Art Platform, which aims to promote visual arts, interdisciplinary projects, and participatory actions, as well as cross-disciplinary and educational programs on an international level.
USEFUL INFORMATION
Participation in the project will be by reservation, and the number of seats is limited. Attendees will be seated and may bring their own chair or cushion if they wish.
Free entrance – Registration required at the following numbers: +30 210 5577191 & +30 6970 383229
Participants are advised to wear comfortable clothing and shoes. Start time: 20:30
Walking Route to the Chapel of Agia Marina
Starting point: 1st General High School of Aspropyrgos. Time: 19:30
Transportation To and From the Event Venues
METRO: Disembark at Agia Marina Station and then take bus line 866, Agia Marina Station – Aspropyrgos (get off at Town Hall stop).
Municipal bus departs at 20:00 from the Aspropyrgos Town Hall to the event venues and returns afterward.
Participatory Project | Performance | Film Screening
July 17, 2020: The Arvanite Culture – Agia Marina area – Thanasis Serepas Farm
August 2, 2020: The Pontic Culture – EMAK 1 Gorytsa area – Eleni Brembou Farm
Start time: 20:30
In collaboration with the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Aspropyrgos
With the support of the Organization for Culture and Development NEON
July 17: The Arvanite Culture – Thanasis Serepas Farm, Agia Marina, Aspropyrgos
August 2: The Pontic Culture – Eleni Brembou Farm, Gorytsa, Aspropyrgos
