Activity E-Book – Creative at home, Nitra Gallery (Athens, Greece)
At the beginning of the lockdown, the cultural activity seemed to be dormant. The art, however, must be creative. The Nitra Gallery, following that “rule”, invited its collaborating artists to contribute to creating activities for kids who stayed at home. The ultimate goal was to collect all the activities in an online book, so kids not only stay imaginative but also familiarize themselves with contemporary artists, learn techniques and create their own works with the help of their parents.
Background
Nitra Gallery is the continuation of Atrion (founded in 1994). When Atrion turned to Nitra in 2013, under the initiative of Aliki Tsirliagkou, it moved to a new location at the center of the city’s arts community in the roman agora neighborhood. Since then, the Gallery has played an important role in presenting Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki. In 2017, Nitra opened a second space in Kolonaki, Athens. During the years of their operation, the two venues have actively promoted Contemporary Art. The exhibition program presents emerging and established Greek and international artists who work with a wide range of practices, from painting to mixed and digital media. In addition to the two venues, the Gallery engages with a wide range of off-site projects and initiatives in order to facilitate the artistic discourse.
Nitra aims to facilitate the communication of the artistic practice to different audiences. Therefore, she aspires to be a place that brings positive experiences to all people entering the gallery: collectors, art professionals, enthusiasts, and artists.
Description
The invitation of the Nitra gallery was addressed to the collaborating artists asking them to suggest an activity related to the art for kids who stayed at home during the lockdown.
These activities included painting, collage and experimenting with weird techniques of all kinds that kids could create with their parents. From the moment that the lockdown was made globally, all the participating artists were from Greece, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Turkey and the US.
Objectives:
- keep having collaboration with artists during the period that the gallery was closed
- to bring artists in contact
- to familiarize youth with contemporary art
- to show the benefits of art in difficult times like that of the pandemic
In order to implement this project, each of the 18 artists who participated, was invited to create their own page for the e-book. It’s needed to mention that artists who decided to be part of this project worked as volunteers. The gallery collected all the pages, giving them the corresponding book format so that it could be posted.
The e-book is available in Greek and English on the Nitra’s gallery website and can be downloaded by anyone for free. The participants were mainly children from Greece, but from other countries too.
Impact
Through this project, the gallery achieved its goal of staying active in a period that no physical presence was allowed in the space. Furthermore, the gallery managed to collaborate with artists who have a different perspective of contemporary art and express it through their works.
On the other hand, the public had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the contemporary art scene in a different way. In addition, the young audience had the chance to feel an integral part of contemporary art.
In the end, the public was invited to post his creations in social media, using the #nitragallery, so to be promoted and keep the interest of the followers.
Interpretation
The Nitra gallery using the motto “Stay home, stay creative“ had the idea to keep people active through contemporary art, during the quarantine. The gallery emphasized introducing children to the art, so invited artists who wanted to be part of that art project.
References
- https://www.nitragallery.com
- https://www.nitragallery.com/ng/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/nitra_gallery_art_activity_ebook_2020.pdf
Author
Header photograph
Photo by Emily Wade on Unsplash
