philomena+
Euro, Dirham, Manat, Schilling or Franc: not only are they means of payment, but with their images and symbols they also narrate stories about a state or a confederation of states, construct identities and point to political realities. The exhibition "Markt-Marie” explores the design of banknotes and raises questions about representation, power relations and the interplay between politics and economics. In a participatory wall piece, Mustapha Akrim invites visitors to act like archaeologists by excavating facets of the contemporary history of money through the act of scraping - from the representation of the working class on the Moroccan dirham to the neo-colonial currency of the franc introduced in the Central African region. In a multimedia installation, Ryts Monet examines the design of the Euro banknotes, placing the focus on the figure of Europa portrayed in the watermark and silver thread of all Euro paper money. The portrait on the Euros is freely taken from a vase of 360 B.C., found in Taranto, which illustrates Europa with the bull. According to Greek mythology the phoenician princess of Europa was taken from what is now Lebanon and part of Syria to Crete by Zeus in the guise of a bull. In his analysis he draws a connection of this scene to the stock exchange buildings around the world and opens up questions on the historical and symbolic meaning of represented classical figures and architecture on banknotes.
Exhibition duration: 06.05. – 07.07.2023
Opening: 05.05.2023, 6 pm, with a performance by Chor 129
In the artist talk Ryts Monet gives some insights to the connection he draws between the taurus, the (Euro) banknotes and the architecture of the stock exchange building in his artworks exhibited in the exhibition „Markt-Marie“ (a show with Mustapha Akrim and Ryts Monet, curated by Aline Lenzhofer). In a playful manner objects such as a a copy of the film „The Planet of Apes“, a book about the story of Europa or a replicate of the bull statue in front of the New York stock exchange are handed to him to be talk about them.
philomena+ aims to connect artists and architects from the WANA region (West Asia and North Africa) with the local art community in Vienna and vice versa. The main purpose is to provide a platform for artists, intellectuals, researchers and the civil society for dialoguing, questioning, creating and building future collaborations. In addition philomena+ seeks to work with artists and architects, who originate from the WANA region, and have recently settled in Vienna or in Austria. philomena+ offers a first point of contact and support to find their feet in the new environment. Rather than focusing on a type art which centres around objects, philomena+ promotes art which focuses on individuals and life.