ARC – Art Revisited Collective, in collaboration with Art Curators Iason Kaerofylas & Paris Kapralos and with 25 visual artists from Greece and abroad, invite you to visit the exhibition “New Symbols: The Wonderful Mistake” and to honour us with your presence at the opening on Thursday 5 March, 19:00–22:00.
The exhibition takes place physically in Athens at Chili Art Gallery (13–15 Dimofontos Str., Thiseio, Athens) and simultaneously online, in collaboration with ARTgrID.
The exhibition explores the role of the “mistake” as a creative approach to the imposition of any form of “normality”, as an act of artistic innovation and open interpretation in contemporary art — a process that generates the new visual symbols of our time.
Visitors will encounter works of painting, sculpture, art objects, textile/fiber art, constructions, and installations, making the exhibition a distinctive experience.
As noted, among other points, in the curatorial text: “Contemporary art constantly redefines its boundaries, seeking alternative ways of signifying reality. The use of error, chance and unpredictable process is not merely a methodological innovation; it transforms into a tool of profound theoretical and social significance.
Inconsistency, rupture or deviation from the predesigned rule no longer function as signs of failure, but as occasions for the emergence of new symbolic systems whose meaning is never entirely fixed. Art employs these unpredictable elements to shape a field in which interpretation is not singular but open, inviting the viewer to an inward reading of the work. The abstract or non-representational language of many contemporary works does not exclude symbolic function; on the contrary, it shifts it from the iconographically recognisable towards the energetically or conceptually suggestive.
The contemporary tendency towards a new symbolism — not as the reproduction of symbols with established meanings, but as the dynamic production of symbolic fields through indeterminacy — connects art more deeply with the viewer’s inner experience and with the need for new meanings in a time of crisis for the old ones. For this very reason, such works can reflect the complexity of the social body and grasp the fragile nature of meaning in the late modern era. Perhaps therein lies their deeper political and ethical function: to teach the value of uncertainty and to reintroduce the space of error as a field of creative and social evolution.“
Participating artists: Dia Manesi, Iosif Terzopoulos, Yana Liubarska, Georgios Kaleas, Olga Barmazi, Kykeon, Maria Genitsariou, Giannis Antonakis, Eleni Tsotsorou, Tasos Tsolakian, Pela Kalogirou, Konstantinos Glavinas, Angeliki Ravtopoulou, Konstantina Maliarou, Theofanis Christidis, Theodora Kapetan Lambrou, Christos Koulis, Chryssa Teliou, Maro Stathopoulou, Aphrodite Pangalou, Sosi Vakoula Gkika, Elpida Papanikolaou, Danae Dimoutziki, Anastasia Chania, Flora Tsiplakidi.
A bilingual (Greek–English) commemorative catalogue-book has been published for the exhibition and is available free of charge to all visitors.
Opening Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 11:00–18:00, Thursday 12:00–19:00, Saturday 11:00–15:00. Closed Monday & Sunday.
The exhibition runs from Thursday 5 to Saturday 14 March 2026.
Instagram
#newsymbolsart
Facebook
@artgrid.gr
About ARC – Art Revisited Collective & the “New Symbols” initiative
ARC – Art Revisited Collective is a collective founded in May 2018 by visual artists and Athens-based art curator Paris Kapralos, including members from across Greece. The collective is independent and self-funded. It presents a wide range of activities, organises its own exhibitions, participates in international events and collaborates at times with other groups, collectives, curators, venues and artists from across the arts worldwide. All genres and styles of art are represented within the collective. Most members had already established significant individual artistic trajectories prior to forming this collective platform. Through it, they join forces in common projects and respond — each in their own way, individually and collectively — to the challenges of the times. Further information: https://artgrid.gr/arcgreece/
New Symbols
New Symbols is a project resulting from a dialogue between art curators Paris Kapralos and Iason Kaerofylas with members of the collective. At the end of the 19th century, Symbolism spread across Europe as an antidote to the perceived banality of Realism. Symbolism drew from the imaginary, opened pathways to existential quests and engaged with philosophical themes, aiming at the viewer’s poetic and mystical participation. From then on, the visual arts generated allegories revealed through symbols and enriched with conceptual content.
“As part of our project, we seek the new idiom of art that will allow it to address our era effectively, uniting forces from every field of art and human thought. Today, as in the past, art is called upon to make yet another leap: to foster reflection, to produce new allegories, offering the world the New Symbols of our time,” the collective states. Discover more on the initiative’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/neasymbola
About ARTgrID
ARTgrID is a company systematically engaged in the promotion of high-quality visual art, primarily through a digital services platform, as well as through the organisation of physical events and collaborations with various stakeholders in the arts (curators, venues, art dealers, investment advisors, specialised legal professionals, etc.). Its online platform https://artgrid.gr offers services including the organisation of physical and online exhibitions, symposia and visual art projects, as well as the creation, hosting and promotion of artists’ websites. Information: https://artgrid.gr
About Chili Art Gallery
Chili Art Gallery was founded in 2010 and is located in Thiseio, next to the “Melina” Cultural Centre of the Municipality of Athens, just steps away from the vibrant district of Gazi. It is a cultural venue where art enthusiasts and the wider public can engage with all forms of Contemporary Art. Painting, sculpture, collage/compositions, installations/constructions, printmaking and photography are presented on a monthly basis through solo and group exhibitions and events. Information: https://chiliart.gr
Photography Sponsor
Studio Kotsireas | https://www.studiokotsireas.com
