2017-Trans-Allegoria - Trans-allegoria

Curated by Lydia Andrioti

The exhibition entitled “Trans-allegoria // in between words visuals and their opposites” aims to generate discussions about art’s ability to enhance the understanding for our condition, up to the point where words, visuals and actions can be transformed to their opposites during their destruction or re-creation. Our intent is to showcase the multiple ways an allegory can be transformed when in the appropriate context, and our effort, to use the multifunctional prefix Trans- akin to the fine strings that bound opposites together, as it can be used to change the meaning of all words.

Trans-,

A loan from Latin, in modern culture it communicates meanings such as across, beyond, through, changing thoroughly, transverse as well as the misalignment of one's gender identity with its own biological sex assigned at birth. It has various notable scientific applications such as in Astronomy where it denotes something further from the Sun than a given Planet, or in Medicine where it communicates its original meanings as well as a pair of identical atoms under specific circumstances.

Allegory,

A loan from Greek  αλληγορία (allegoría) = "veiled language, figurative," which comes from both ἄλλος (allos) = "another, different" and  αγορεύω (agoreuo) = "to harangue, to speak in the assembly" Allegories have been widely used throughout history in all forms of art as they function as representations of abstract, conceptual or spiritual meanings through concrete or material forms. They can illustrate complex ideas and concepts in ways that are comprehensible to its viewers, readers, listeners or participants.