CARRYING ON - LEFTOVERS

A solo show by visual artist Elena Demetria Chantzis at Salon Maudite project space in Munich during September 2023. The concept of the title and show “Carry On - Leftovers” starts from the personal need of the artist to carry on board her works for the show and the limitations that this comprise. It rises thoughts on what is allowed to carry on board on a plane and what not, the transportation conditions for animals, the transportation conditions for human’s luxury objects, the landscape and history as products for touristic consumption, colonial theft, environmental issues and the manufacturing and use of industrial products for the commodification of the indoor lifestyle of western societies. The word leftovers, recurrent to the artist’s work, here refers to both the process of carrying on board her works that didn’t show in her previous exhibitions and the use itself of leftover materials as painting surfaces. In this way, experiences and products from the past are gathered together in the present and given a new meaning. The works consist of a series of paintings on various surfaces, mainly on filters for domestic use such as color catcher papers, cooking hood filters, wall isolation filters, upholstery materials. The only paintings on canvas are used as scenography, overturning the importance and function of products for art practices and the ones for functional everyday household use. Apart from the paintings, a found photograph of the former Greek flying company Olympic Air at the former Airport of Athens (that now is under development for mainly private use) is the symbolic visual hint for the concept of the show. It also refers to the current accelerated economical, urban and therefore social transformation of the artist’s birth city Athens.