Live performance by visual artist PASHIAS featuring Aggelika Gana
Tuesday, 9th of June, 13:00
Campanile (Front Square) - Trinity College Dublin
Public forum
Wednesday, 10th of June, 19:00
Old Anatomy Lecture Theatre (Chemistry Building Ground Floor) - Old Anatomy Museum
Program includes:
Introduction by Dr. Giorgos Papantoniou
Panel featuring Prof. Carmel O'Sullivan, Prof. Chrstine E. Morris, Evi Numen, PASHIAS, Aggelika Gana
Performance screening
Under the auspices of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, the project “Fostering Cypriot and Greek Studies in Ireland”, and the network “Unlocking Sacred Landscapes”, in collaboration with Dr. Giorgos Papantoniou and Prof. Christine E. Morris, on the occasion of celebrating 30 years of Cypriot Studies at Trinity College Dublin, during the closure of the Cyprus Presidency of the European Union Council 2026, as Ireland assumes the Presidency.
The event series “DIVA” focuses on the art of performance, as framed by academic research, bringing forth the significance of Cyprus’ cultural heritage and reconnecting historical evidence with current social urgencies.
By identifying Cyprus as a sanctuary to the female divine, exemplified in the statue "Aphrodite of Soloi", the goddess can be approached as an emblem of beauty and eroticism, fertility and care, strength and resilience. Her versatile character directly reflects the multifaceted cultural identity of Cyprus, connecting it with regions in the Eastern Mediterranean, such as the Levantine Astarte or Egyptian Hathor, the Hellenistic "Aphrodite of Milos", and the Renaissance-era Venus of Botticelli. Via the Cypriot Goddess image, the island is diachronically manifested as a crossroads and a connecting bridge of cultures, as fertile ground for dialogue between countries and communities.
Arriving in Dublin, internationally acclaimed visual artist PASHIAS, widely known for his research exploring the relationship between human body, historical artefacts and mythological narratives, approaches the "Aphrodite of Soloi" - presented and reproduced without the bodily parts that would enable her to move, act and react - as means for understanding contemporary contingencies. Beyond the societal persistence of assigning binary characteristics to each gender, the artist’s body and the body of Aggelika Gana are publicly exhibited together on a raised pedestal. Framed by the arch of Trinity College’s bell tower - one of Dublin’s most iconic landmarks - the performance signifies again an in-between threshold of crossings.
In a child-like game, through their stillness and interaction, the figures complete, reshape and contrast with the paradigm of Aphrodite, and with their own social positioning. An evolving live sculpture projects a set of corporeal images that challenge notions of gender, status and socially-bound relationships. By blurring the divisions between creator and artefact, author and narrative, "DIVA" signals the significance of coexistence and unity - from the island of Cyprus to the island of Ireland at the two edges of Europe, and from Ireland to the world.
About PASHIAS and his performance methodology "Body + Exhibit": Since 2014, visual artist PASHIAS has been developing a methodology that utilizes artistic research and focuses on the art of performance, to reveal the potential of museological spaces as catalysts for dialogue, empathy and social transformation. Centred on the human body, the artist draws on material culture, mythology and lived experiences, to trace the wealth of anthropocentric images, actions and devices embedded in our histories. Initiating collaborations with archaeologists, academics and cultural practitioners, PASHIAS unfolds the interpretive dimensions of relevance held by exhibits and artefacts, engaging audiences with alternative modes of viewership. His research results into live performances, exhibitions and installations, whilst designing lectures, talks and workshops that employ the methodology’s findings as educational tools for public engagement. "Body + Exhibit" includes his collaborations with the Musée des Augustins (2014), the Acropolis Museum (2015), the Benaki Museum (2016), the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation (2017), the Phoivos Stavrides Foundation - Larnaca Archives (2021), the Fitzwilliam Museum (2024), and the British Museum (2026).
About Dr. Giorgos Papantoniou, Prof. Christine Morris and the research network "Unlocking Sacred Landscapes": Giorgos Papantoniou is Assistant Professor in Ancient Visual and Material Culture, and Christine E. Morris is the Andrew A. David Professor in Greek Archaeology and History. Based at the Department of Classics of Trinity College Dublin, both share research interests in ancient Cyprus, the archaeology of religion, and various approaches to embodiment and gender in antiquity, producing publications and events on the receptions and commodifications of Cypriot Aphrodite. Founded in 2014 and coordinated by Dr. Giorgos Papantoniou, "Unlocking Sacred Landscapes" is an interdisciplinary research network focused on the diachronic study of the temporality, spatiality and materiality of Mediterranean sacred landscapes, cultural heritage and the archaeology of wellbeing. Its activities are based on an Agreement of Collaboration between the University of Cyprus, Trinity College Dublin and the Institute for Mediterranean Studies (2014-21), funded by the Irish Research Council (2014-15), the German Research Foundation (2015-18), the European Regional Development Fund and the Republic of Cyprus through the Research and Innovation Foundation (2018-21).