‘We Need the Voice of Artists’ Koniordou Says at ‘documenta 14’ Kassel Launch

Fridericianum Museum, Kassel © Mathias Voelzke

“Today, more than ever, we desperately need the voices of artists,” said Greek Culture Minister Lydia Koniordou, who is in the German city of Kassel for the launch of the documenta 14 exhibition there on June 10.

“We need the voices that will awaken our spirit, focusing on what we do not know, highlighting what we cannot see in our everyday life,” Koniordou said as a panelist addressing thousands of journalists attending the press conference this week.

“In Greece, artists, despite the crisis or because of it, raised their voices over the sad consequences of the austerity measures that have affected us all. By any means available and with minimal financial assistance, they managed to express ideas, pose questions, examine the concerns of a society facing such a great challenge,” the minister added.

Documenta 14 officially kicks off on June 10 at more than 30 different Kassel locations featuring the work of some 160 artists from across the globe. As in Athens, documenta 14 in Kassel will run for 100 days.

The Greek capital hosting its part of the “documenta 14: Learning from Athens” show at more than 40 venues. The show opened in Athens on April 8 and will wrap up on July 16.

“The great lesson to be gained from documenta 14 is that there are no teachers who can teach us how to live,” said the show’s artistic director Adam Szymczyk, concluding with the show’s slogan: “The journey has just begun”.

Meanwhile, as the “documenta 14” show continues in Athens, part of the collection of the EMST National Museum of Contemporary Art in the Greek capital has traveled to Kassel.