the city talks back

Stefania Gyftopoulou + Mara Petra + Curing the Limbo

Athens Tessellation II

Athens Tessellation II

Confinement and social distancing were considered by national authorities as an effective way to get this extraordinary global health crisis under control. In this context, ‘home’ appears as a shelter of relative security, a place of warmth and peace and as a substitute for increasingly inaccessible public spaces. But which homes?

In a new film based on the mapping project presented as part of Assembly 1, contributors of different nationalities and ethnicities open the doors to their homes, allowing us to engage with stories that lie hidden within Athenian apartments and neighborhoods. Architects Stefania Gyftopoulou and Mara Petra in collaboration with Stelios Oikonomidis, Maria Pesli, and Christos Pieridis, artists and art facilitators in Curing the Limbo audiovisual workshops, narrate the voice of the city through the works of refugee artists.

In order of appearance:

Opening titles song “Gole Sangam”: Sourena Dinashi
New House, new start video: Bibiche Makilutila Matondo.
Photostory I: Kambiz Isakhani Spiritual song and Passing
Time video: Nancy Ngoyo
Photostory II: Mohammad Yousef Abduirahim
Aïcha song: Christian Nzouathom Junia
Photostory III: Mohamed Tayeb
Total Confinement video: Christian Kikebula
Photostory IV: Αhmad Askaryzadeh
“I am a creep” song: Alireza Babaie, Karimi Arab Ebrahim, Christian Nzouathom Junia, Sourena Dinashi

Video editing: Stelios Oikonomidis, Maria Pesli and Christos Pieridis

All works were created during the online photography, video, and music workshops of Curing the Limbo, throughout the first lockdown due to Covid – 19 measures, in spring 2020. Except for the final song, “Creep”, which was recorded right after the measures ended.

Curing the Limbo (2018-2021) is a European pilot program of the City of Athens implemented with the strategic partnership of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (UoA), the Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the Athens Development and Destination Management Agency (ADDMA). This project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund through the Urban Innovative Actions (UIA) initiative.