Art that grabs you by the guts

ART isn’t just paintings and sculptures. I’ve learned that through the course of my job over the past year, which has seen me traipsing around galleries and talking to artists of all shapes and sizes. However, I was caught by surprise last Saturday when I popped into the Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre, which is hosting the exhibition, Accidental Meetings. The exhibition aims to approach the contemporary reality of Cypriot Visual Arts but, living on a peculiar little island, as usual the politics sneak in. The exhibition is all about Cypriot artists, some older and some younger, expressing their feelings for the 30-year situation in Cyprus. And unfortunately, it’s not pretty, to be expected from something as serious as war and the trauma of division.

To be more exact, the whole feeling when entering the art centre is scary and eerie. Adding to that feeling is a siren heard in the background, a noise that evokes traumatic memories for anyone who has heard it for real. The ‘theme’ of the exhibition is very clear: the first piece of art I came upon was a six-metre barbeque. Naturally, there was no meat roasting but charcoal was overflowing and a TV set was set aside showing scenes of a barbeque event that took place recently in Nicosia. A scene that definitely represents Cypriots and Cyprus overall. However, one of the few pieces that did make me wonder and get goose pimples all over was ‘Delay’. It seems as though a kitchen table is set for a meal that never happened but as it is covered with a clear oilcloth, there probably is still some hope that it will take place. Adding to the irony is the fact that on the floor, dozens of newspapers are spread with front covers, all related to the war and Cyprus problem.

The Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre is huge and filled with smaller rooms with corridors and secret corners. It can be disturbing when you hear things and see things moving by themselves. As I walked around, I realised that most had to do with abandonment and anguish. But don’t get me wrong, there were colourful pieces as well, such as a four-metre pile of confetti collected from the carnival parade in Limassol. But any sense of relief was short-lived: moving away from the confetti I entered a bathroom that was left abandoned, with the wash basin and shower base covered in something that gave the impression of a plant of some kind. Scribbled on the floor were the words read: ‘Mi Casa Es Su Casa’ – my home is your home.

Different scenes of pain, history, past, present and future are the main features of each art piece. However, the whole exhibition is “to create a multifaceted mosaic constituting the contemporary Cypriot Visual Arts identity” and the goal is successfully completed with the artists determining for themselves the visual arts’ scene at a time when Cyprus is “acquiring greater and greater geo-political significance and interest and is becoming a nodal point for East-West dialogue.” More than 50 artists, both Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot have taken part in this exhibition seeking to record the status today, “aiming at constituting a nodal point for realisation andre-delineation.”

Whether it is pure desperation to determine what exactly comes from these 30 years of division or a space where energy can be released, the arts centre has turned into a haunted house, where only the brave can walk.

Darkness hides behind every corner and even religion comes into the picture. For those of you, who do scare easy, do not be tempted to experience ‘The Last Supper 30 years earlier’. Set in a dark room, a small staircase invites you towards a screeching sound caused by a see-saw. When you get to the top of the steps and look down, 12 wax figures of children are set on a table (which is the see-saw) and toys are scattered around the bottom of the room. There are more steps, which you can follow down and get out. If you are brave enough, take a look at the ‘Skipping Rope’ round the corner and follow the instructions.

The exhibition is brilliant and unlike anything I’ve seen before. The artists definitely manage to get the message through. War, invasion and division are not a pretty sight.

Accidental Meetings. Municipal Arts Centre Nicosia. Until July 31. Opening hours: Tuesday-Saturday 10am-3pm and 5-11pm; Sunday, 10am-4pm.