Aristide Antonas. Urban Protocols
Schweizerisches Architekturmuseum, Basel
March 2015 to May 2015
The exhibition is dedicated to the work of Greek architect and philosopher Aristide Antonas (*1963, Athens). It focuses on his “Urban Protocols”, strategies for upgrading public space in Athens.
Existing, simple urban materials serve as building elements for these primarily speculative projects. Combined with a carefully selected programme, the result is architecture with a ready-made character, based on the participation of the local population. This is an example of new ways of engaging with the city of Athens in the face of the economic and sovereign debt crisis that has been ongoing since 2009. To communicate his ideas and projects, Aristide Antonas skillfully moves between the genres of architecture, art, philosophy, and literature: texts, drawings, atmospheric collages, and photomontages, mostly in black and white, serve both as carriers and communicators of his thoughts.
With this exhibition, the Swiss Architecture Museum is breaking new ground, for despite its innovative power and rich tradition, contemporary Greek architecture has received little attention in museums and hardly any academic reflection.