Urban Secret Garden Photography Project | 2010 - 2020

Lia Nalbantidou

The Urban Secret Garden photography project is about wandering, loss, memory and the search for home. Photographing started in 2010, as an improvisation, in the course of aimless morning walks. All contemporary photographs were taken in Thessaloniki in the dawn of the Greek depression.... “In that house, every morning the bugler announced to us the dawning of the new day and every dusk he lowered the flag, leading us to the slumber of childhood... I hear Dorothy assuring me There’s no place like home... The one whose pattern is lost. It was made to measure to remind me of the birthday party. I put on one of the flower print dresses hanging in a perfectly arranged row... That’s where I observe the seams connecting the pieces into a single garment that contains us....” (extract from The Seams essay). Contemporary photographs made with film and a 6X6 analog camera, vintage photographs digitally processed, color threads, embroidered French white linen, The Seams essay, digital printing, handcrafted boxes and folders are all important components of the artist’s photobook Urban Secret Garden - a trilogy book of photographs.

You can find the complete statement in the pdf link bellow.

Statement PDF

Urban Secret Garden Photography Project Information

SOLO EXHIBITIONS (2020 – 2019)

• 2020 Urban Secret Garden – a reading Ileana Tounta Contemporary Art Center – Athens The Seams audio installation was designed especially for the Athens exhibition. Text: Lia Nalbantidou & Sila Zamani | English Translation: Thalia Bisticas | Voices: Daphne Kalafati, Artemis Chalkidou & Mia Frimmer | Original music composition: Joe Bauer | Production: Mia Frimmer – Berlin

• 2019 Urban Secret Garden – a reading (A MIET/National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation Coproduction) Villa Kapandzi – Thessaloniki Press Release Gr

GROUP EXHIBITIONS (2020 – 2014)

• 2020 All together now Ileana Tounta Contemporary Art Center – Athens

• 2016 Ano Poli: A stroll in the city Municipal Art Gallery Villa Bianca, Thessaloniki

• 2014 LogosV - City Narratives Photobiennale – Museum of Byzantine Culture, Thessaloniki

• 2014 Tempus Ritualis Galerie am Körnerpark, Berlin

• 2014 Tempus Ritualis Contemporary Art Center, Thessaloniki

PHOTOBOOK EVENTS & RERPESENTATIONS IN NATIONAL, INT’L EXHIBITIONS & COLLECTIONS (2020 – 13)

• Athens Art Book Fair/2nd Edition (The Local Edition): Kypseli Municipal Market (Sep. 2020 – covid19 cancellation)

• Athens Art Book Fair / 1st Edition: Stoa Kairi (Sep. 2019)

• J.F.Costopoulos Foundation Art Library, Athens (2019 Acquisition)

• Artist’s Books for Everything ISBN: 978-3-946059-14-1 (cur. Dr. Anne Thurmann-Jajes) – Weserburg Museum of Modern Art Bremen (2019)

• Aspects of Balkan Artists’ Books (cur. T. Raptis) Photography Center of Thessaloniki – Art Thessaloniki Int’l Contemporary Fair HELEXPO/ 3rd Edition (Nov. 2018)

• Finissage: A Photobook Presentation European Culture Days Thessaloniki | The Facets of a City (cur. Dr. I.Siehe) Museum Europäischer Kulturen SMB, Berlin (Sep. 2018)

• Istanbul Photobook Festival / 3rd Edition: Selfpublishing representation – Istanbul (May 2018)

• Photographikos Omilos Kavalas: Photographs, Two books and One narration, Kavala (May 2018)

• Miss Read / 10th Edition: representation by Cube Art Editions, HKW – Berlin (May 2018)

• Int’l Book Fair Thessaloniki HELEXPO / 14th Edition: representation by Cube Art Editions (May 2018)

• Ileana Tounta Contamporary Art Center: a photobook representation, Athens (2018)

• Gulbenkian Art Library Collection, Lisbon (2018 Acquisition)

• Photography Center of Thessaloniki: Lia Nalbantidou presents her work, Café Bazaar, Thessaloniki (Dec. 2017)

• Feira do Livro de Fotografia de Lisboa / 8th Edition: Selfpublishing representation – Lisbon (Dec.2017)

• Photographiki Omada Komotinis: a photobook presentation, Komotini (December 2017)

• Art Thessaloniki Int’l Contemporary Fair HELEXPO / 2nd Edition: representation by Cube Art Editions (Nov. 2017)

• Local Stories (cur. N.Kassianou) exhibition, DL Gallery – Piraeus (Sep.2017)

• Artists’ Books Mini Market, Weserburg Museum of Modern Art – Bremen (July 2017)

• Artist’s books for Everything exhibition (cur. Dr. Anne Thurmann-Jajes) – Weserburg Museum of Modern Art Bremen (July 2017)

• Center for Artists’ Publications – Weserburg Museum of Modern Art – Bremen (2017 Acquisition)

• Miss Read / 9th Edition – Offstage public platform: a photobook presentation HKW – Berlin (July 2017)

• Miss Read / 9th Edition: representation by Cube Art Editions, Haus der Kulturen der Welt – Berlin (July 2017)

• Benaki Museum – Photographic Archives Collection (2017 Acquisition)

• Athens Photofestival / 10th Edition – Benaki Museum | Pireos St. Annexe exhibition – Athens (June 2017)

• Int’l Book Fair Thessaloniki HELEXPO / 13th Edition: representation by Cube Art Editions (April 2017)

• Studio Marangoni Library – Florence (2017 Acquisition)

• FOTOGANG / 3rd Edition – Studio Marangoni, Florence (Feb. 2017)

• Helliniki Photographiki Etairia Kritis: a photobook presentation Herakleion (December 2016)

• Fiebre Photobook Fair / 4th Edition: Selfpublishing representation – Matadero|Casa Del Lector, Madrid, Spain (December 2016)

• Encontros da Imagem / 25th Edition - Photobook Market Shortlist, Braga – Portugal (Sep.2016)

• Art Athina / 21st Edition: representation by Cube Art Editions – Athens (May 2016)

• Ano Poli: A stroll in the city (No 3) ISBN: 978-960-12-2194-6 (Cur. Hercules Papaioannou) – University Studio Press – Thessaloniki (2014)

• Fotobookfestival Kassel / 6th Edition: Dummy Shortlist, documenta-Halle, Kassel (Oct. 2013)

• PhotoIreland Foundation Collection Dublin (July 2013)

For further information, check in the PDF