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Visual artist PASHIAS visits the archaeological collection of the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, to initiate a study on artefacts ranging from the Neolithic to the Late Roman period, and specifically the amphorae, housed in the Cyprus wing. PASHIAS brings forth a parallel connection between the human body and the clay body. A spherical volume as the belly, side handles as arms, a narrow neck and a mouth. The parallel associations move beyond imagery and visual parameters, equating the body and the amphora with universal vessels - carrying, safekeeping and spilling substances, materiality, ideas, experiences and cultural values.
On Saturday morning, 2nd of March, PASHIAS presents the live performance “KUZA” commissioned by the Cultural Section of the Cyprus High Commission, exhibiting the live body next to, near and in conversation with the antiquity vitrines and the museum’s architectural features. In Cypriot dialect, the vase or jar used to carry liquids is referred to as the ‘kuza’ (κούζα), most likely derived from the ancient Greek ‘kivi’ (κύβη) meaning head. PASHIAS’ skull transforms into a clay artefact, a fragmented vessel, a piece of our history that can only be complete once connected to the rest of the human body. Standing and resting, strong and fragile, withstanding the passage of time and withered.
The live performance “KUZA”, part of PASHIAS’ long-standing research into museological collections, brings forth the significance of Cyprus’ heritage, reconnecting historical evidence with the present. This artistic research has taken part at Musée des Augustins for the “Festival Ιnternational d'Art de Toulouse” (2014), the archaeological collection of the Acropolis Museum for “PAS - Performance Art Studies” (2015), the archaeological collection of George & Nefeli Giabra Pierides at Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation (2017), the Christophoros Savva artwork collection at State Gallery of Contemporary Cypriot Art (2018), the Michalis Michaeledes artwork collection at A. G. Leventis Gallery (2020) and the archives of Phivos Stavrides Foundation - Larnaca Archives (2021).
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The practice of Greek Cypriot visual artist PASHIAS is grounded in the field of performance art, installation and photography. By establishing the artist’s body as primary material for creation, PASHIAS sets up a ‘situation’ or environment, in which an audience is invited to initiate a process of action and re-action. Based on the relationship of a unit towards an ensemble, in a similar manner to how an individual is ‘received’ or ‘perceived’ within a social setting, the artist’s body is dismantled into a set of pieces, physical parts, habits or ideas, and then physically and conceptually reshaped by the ‘stance’ of audience members. Through the artist's on-going research into social constructs (body + gender), cultural consumption (body + food), competitive spectacles (body + sports) and historical artefacts (body + exhibit), PASHIAS ultimately sets out to investigate alternative modes of presence, communication and co-existence. At these meeting points, the body in action inevitably becomes a political body, aware and responsible for its ‘time’ and ‘place’. PASHIAS has graduated from Goldsmiths University (BA) and Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design (MA) in London, whilst presenting solo exhibitions in Cyprus and Greece, and participating in group exhibitions and international festivals in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Russia, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Sweden, Bulgaria, Turkey, Belgium, Canada and Brazil. In 2013, PASHIAS co-founded epitelesis - Performance Art Foundation as an international platform for the support of cultural activities, has been engaged in curating exhibitions and series of events on the relationship of live action to other artistic practices, and has been working as an educator/lecturer through various academic programs
http://pashias.art
Performance Advisor & Curator of Ancient Mediterranean - Fitzwilliam Museum: Dr. Anastasia Christophilopoulou; Cultural Counsellor of Cyprus High Commission: Marios Theocharous
More Info: www.pashias.art/kuza - www.culturalchc.co.uk
The Fitzwilliam Museum, Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1RB
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