ART CITIES:Athens- Sofia Stevi

Sofia Stevi, Untitled (Detail), 2016, Mixed media on canvas, Courtesy The Breeder-AthensReturning in Athens from a few years in London, Sofia Stevi co-founded Fokidos 21, an artist-led project space in Athens and began inviting artists from abroad to stay and produce exhibitions in the apartment where she had grown up. Her solo exhibition entitled “Lizzie & Laura” is on presentation at The Breeder Gallery.

By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: The Breeder Gallery Archive

Pleasure and eroticism live in Sofia Stevi’s Abstractions. In her new series of paintings the artist draws inspiration from the poem “The Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti that has many readings. Since the ‘70s, critics have tended to view as an expression of Rossetti’s proto-feminist and homosexual politics. Some critics suggest the poem is about feminine sexuality and its relation to Victorian social mores. In addition to its clear allusions to Adam and Eve, forbidden fruit, and temptation, there is much in the poem that seems overtly sexual. The protagonists are two sisters, Lizzie and Laura, who also lend their names to the exhibition’s title. In the poem Laura and Lizzie, hear the sounds of the goblin fruit market from their house. At first they try to ignore the enticing calls of the goblin men, but eventually Laura decides to go out and see what’s happening. Lizzie warns her not to, but Laura is too curious. The goblin men offer her their fruit, and Laura thinks it looks tasty. She doesn’t have any money, but the goblins offer to take a piece of her golden hair instead. So Laura gives up some of her hair, gorges herself on goblin fruit, and heads on home to her sister. But after eating all that goblin fruit, Laura starts to waste away. Lizzie gets worried and decides to go down to the market to see what’s what. The goblin men try to tempt her the way they tempted Laura, but Lizzie stands firm. The goblin men turn violent and try to stuff fruit in Lizzie’s mouth, but she squeezes her mouth shut, so they just end up getting juice all over her. She manages to save her sister by running home and asking Laura to “Hug me, kiss me, suck my juices / Squeezed from goblin fruits for you/For your sake I have braved the glen / And had to do with goblin merchant men” Laura’s cure, implemented by her sucking the juices from Lizzie’s face, is somewhat baffling, the reader is left confused as to what actually cured her, the residual juices or her sister’s love. Using this poem as a starting point, Stevi presents a narrative, which revolves around woman as a presence in a society full of taboos and conventions, emphasizing on her body and the erotic and sexual aspects that have been inextricably connected to it. Stevi uses ink on untreated fabric, thus complimenting the unique artistic language she has created, which comprises mainly of appropriated symbols transformed into an alphabet of their own. Through their repetitive use, these shapes eventually lose their initial meaning and become abstract figures, existing outside time and space. Also on presentation is a book of drawings made in preparation of the paintings as a more direct interpretation of the poem.

Info: The BreederGallery, 45 Iasonos Street, Athens, Duration 109/1-18/2/17, Days & Hours: Tue-Fri 12:00-20:00, Sat 12:00-18:00, http://thebreedersystem.com

Sofia Stevi, Untitled (Detail), 2016, Mixed media on canvas, Courtesy The Breeder-Athens
Sofia Stevi, Untitled (Detail), 2016, Mixed media on canvas, Courtesy The Breeder-Athens

 

 

Sofia Stevi, Untitled (Detail), 2016, Mixed media on canvas, Courtesy The Breeder-Athens
Sofia Stevi, Untitled (Detail), 2016, Mixed media on canvas, Courtesy The Breeder-Athens