This piece of work Aegis was featured as part of Athens Laundry-Bougada, a project curated by Theodora Malamou 29/10 - 22/12/2020

The name of this work derives from the Aegis in ancient Greek mythology, a device worn by Athena and Zeus as a shield. It relates well to ideas of clothing as a form of protection and the parasol motif represents shelter and has the form of an armoury shield.

Athens Laundry-Bougada

Artists: Maria Varela, Marina Velisioti, The Callas, Marilia Kolibiri, Sofia Kouloukouri, Eleanor Lines, Theodora Malamou, Irini Bachlitzanaki, Iris Plaitakis.

It is forbidden to hang clothing, bedding and related items in public and private areas, except for the interiors of balconies and roofs of buildings.   DECISION 1023/2/37-κε/1996 

In 2005 in a neglected area of East London two tourists were photographing laundry hanging out to dry, enthusiastically discussing how it reminded them of Naples. A few years later the newly elected mayor of a town in the south of France prohibited the hanging of laundry during the day for aesthetic reasons. In Athens, hanging laundry on the outsides of balconies is not allowed by police ordinance. 

In the less photogenic, multicultural parts of the city center, however, the buildings' facades are covered with laundry that characteristically ignores any regulation. Far from the picturesque attraction of a touristic bougada, these clothes lines take over windows and balconies in every possible way, silently providing information about their owners and often becoming the reason for dispute.

In June 2020 the project Athens Laundry-Bougada began a documentation of these characteristic images in the neighborhoods around Victoria square, from Larissa station to Agios Pavlos, Attiki square, Agios Panteleimonas to the outskirts of Kypseli.  

As part of its second act, it presents Bougada, an art project in which nine artists have their artworks photographed like laundry on balconies in the area, creating a series of ephemeral installations that – sometimes in a vivid or humorous manner, other times discreetly and quietly- come into an unexpected dialogue with their surroundings. All of the photos together form the documentation of an unofficial open-air exhibition that will be viewed as a whole on the project's social media pages. The photographs will be posted on a weekly basis each Thursday on Facebook and Instagram, starting on Thursday, October 29. 

Curator: Theodora Malamou