Keita

KEITA is a new work by visual artist Alexandros Simopoulos created in collaboration with the Døcumatism and launched at the Municipal Market of Kypseli in June 2024.

A sunset from Gaza, Palestine co-exists with the portrait of Keita, who after leaving Ivory Coast, arrived in Greece as an unaccompanied refugee and then worked for several years in the Market area as a mediator for those who left after him.

This commission was a collaboration between Counterpoints Greece and Døcumatism forming part of Refugee Week Greece 2024 and its theme of “Our Home”.

 The work, taking the form of a mural, was created through a participatory process involving young people from Kypseli, reflecting the values of dialogue and meaningful exchange. The work is the result of an ongoing collaboration with Døcumatism and is based on their research project ‘The Afrogreeks’.

This work is centered around the portrait of Keita Alassane, who came to Greece from the Ivory Coast as an unaccompanied minor. Keita worked for many years as a supporter and advocate in the Municipal Market, helping many people and minors who came after him. The realistic depiction of Keita’s portrait sits opposite a seemingly incompatible element –  the sunset on a beach in Gaza, Palestine. The interplay of the two images creates a space that invites us on one hand to dream and immerse ourselves in the comfort of a beautiful landscape, while also urging us to reflect and engage deeper with the reality of many peoples and communities facing displacement and conflict.

This artwork is linked to a series of events that took place on June 20th, 2024, World Refugee Day, in Kypseli Municipal Market. The opening event, featuring a discussion around the “ENHANCING THE VOICES” report, organized by the Greek Council for Refugees and the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung.

The discussion was followed by a screening of works which, through different research and artistic approaches, negotiate nuances of ‘home’ as the place of living, homeland and identity.

Migration, nostalgia, loss as a consequences of war or climate crisis, belonging and coexistence within local communities are some of the issues presented through the works of Døcumatism, Forensic Architecture, Menelaos Karamaghiolis, Latent Community, Samir Karahoda, Georges Salameh and Fjorida Cenaj.

Image © Alexandra Masmanidi