In 2014, during a holiday at Zagorohoria, Rena Papaspyrou employed the frottage technique for a series of drawings from a stone-paved lane. That was the beginning for the artist to embark on processing the idea of stairs as the subject for a new series of works. At the same time, she collects reference pictures, which include the tiers of the Marathon lake dam and those of the ancient theatre of Argos, a narrow emergency staircase in the palace of Galerius in Thessaloniki, the illustration of Jacob’s Ladder in a manuscript from the library of Patmos Monastery. This time Papaspyrou did not need to go far (in search of derelict houses in the city) to find her material. The source for the “Climaxes” was at her feet, right outside the door of her flat in Pangrati. In this new series of works, the artist invites us to reflect on the experience symbolised by the architectural element of the staircase. Thus, she proposes a visual metaphor which suggests the need for a spiritual and imaginative way of experiencing everyday reality. With the support of Outset Greece.

Curator of the exhibition | Christoforos Marinos