PCAI is delighted to announce the opening of the VR installation Oedipus in Search of Colonus by Loukia Alavanou on October 10, 2023. The installation, supported by PCAI, represented Greece at the 59th Venice Art Biennale and it is coming to the Exhibition Hall -1 of Onassis Stegi.
A 15-minute film shot with 360° VR technology and members of the Roma community from Nea Zoi in Aspropyrgos of Western Attica, in the roles of a cast of actors who follow in the traces of OedipusDocumentary, fiction, drone flights, slapstick, video clips inspired by the trans-Balkan pop culture of contemporary Roma artists, sophisticated pranks, VR technology, hemispherical domes, and hybrid posture chairs—inspired by the architect of modernist utopia Takis Zenetos—comprise Loukia Alavanou’s installation “Oedipus in Search of Colonus.”
With her installation, Loukia Alavanou invites the audience to a journey through time, with a plot revolving around the themes of aging and death, human dignity and universal freedom, and permeated by our current societal reality, immigration, displacement, minorities, and human rights. Within a theatrical atmosphere, the visitors of the installation are led to the specially formulated hemispherical domes, inside of which are the hybrid posture chairs—a cross between an office chair and an anatomical TV recliner chair—that, due to their ergonomic design, allow the visitors to experience the 360° spectrum of the film unrestrained. In addition, the sound design of the VR film is directional and, like the image, is responsive to the movements of the visitors, culminating in an unparalleled experience.
The installation’s presentation at the 59th Venice Art Biennale, curated by Heinz Peter Schwerfel, was realized with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, powered by the Onassis Foundation, and implemented by the National Gallery, as well as the further support of the Greek Film Center, NEON Organization, the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, and OUTSET.
More information: www.onassis.org/whats-on/oedipus-in-search-of-colonus
Image: Loukia Alavanou, “On the Way to Colonus.” VR360. Produced by VRS. © Loukia Alavanou, 2021.
Activity aligned with Goals 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 16, 17
