Review:Masking

“Masking” a highly compelling exhibition is currently on view at Zoumboulakis Galleries. Curated by Katerina Nikolaou, the show tackles the concept of vulnerability across existential, social, and political spectrums. Through a comprehensive theoretical framework, the curator clarifies that the selected artworks were not chosen based on the physical “fragility” of their materials but rather by the artists’ research inquiries and a desire to forge fertile visual correlations.

By Valia Katsimpa
Photo: Valia Katsimpa’s Archive

The curatorial approach commences with a work of pivotal importance to the exhibition “Masking”: Panagiotis Kefalas’s “In the beginning all the world was America I”. This piece introduces the term “Masking” through the oppression individuals endure within work environments and the sense of despair and alienation induced by the need to conform to societal expectations. The works of Stefanos Rokos navigate similar conceptual territory, employing a more cinematic logic yet conveying the same intention of highlighting a snapshot that reflects an inherent inability for meaningful communication within a perpetually fluctuating world.

As the viewer moves forward, the exhibition unfolds across a diverse array of mediums and approaches. One of the most intimate pieces on display is the work of Elli Antoniou, which focuses on an obsessive return to the same landscape as a process of renegotiating the self. The fluidity of the drawing and the sculptural quality of the forms, which alter depending on the viewer’s position within the space, activate an introspective perspective for comprehending the artwork.

Finally, Nefeli Papadimouli’s “Idiot”, deliberately positioned almost at the center of the exhibition, appears to be in constant dialogue with the surrounding artworks. It operates as a profound commentary poised between existence and non-existence, urging us to reconcile with our own vulnerability. The absence of the physical body—with the garment standing suspended—symbolizes the consequences of losing fragments of ourselves in an attempt to camouflage our authentic emotions on the altar of social survival.

Participating Artists: Elli Antoniou, Giorgos Avgeros, Xenofon Bitsikas, Kostas Christopoulos, Marina Genadieva, Panagiotis Kefalas, Marilena Kranioti, Malvina Panagiotidi, Nefeli Papadimouli, Stefanos Rokos, Kostis Velonis.

Photo: Elli Antoniou, To Vouno, 2024, Stainless steel, 59,5×45 cm, © tElli Antoniou,  Courtesy of Cob Gallery, Photo: © & Courtesy Valia Katsimpa

Info: Curator: Katerina Nikolaou, Zoumboulakis Gallery, 20 Kolonaki Square, Athens, Greece, Duration: 23/4-23/5/2026, Days & Hours: Tue & Thu-Fri 11:00 -20:00, Wed. & Sat. 11:00 –15:00, https://zoumboulakisgallery.gr/