Exhibition Examines 'Thresholds of Life'

Most of us do it many times a day—passing over a threshold from one space to another. At times, though, this movement can have fateful consequences and serve as a metaphor for a major life change. An image of a threshold can evoke departure, exile, incarceration, liberation, hospitality, or shelter, to name just a few examples. On 19 October at 20:30, the exhibition ‘Thresholds of Life’ begins with an opening party in the Lobby of Almyra. To prepare the exhibition, artist Yiannis Sakellis invited people all over Cyprus to send him life stories along with pictures of them crossing thresholds. He then distributed the texts and images to 45 visual artists throughout the island and asked them to create works of art based on the materials. These works are presented in the exhibition. The show thus expands the notion of a group exhibition by engaging artists, audiences, and fellow citizens in a creative collaboration. Half of the proceeds from sales of the works will be donated to charities that help the homeless and displaced, further broadening the impact of the effort. The exhibition is being held in collaboration with the Kimonos Art Center, which offers public workshops in Pafos on such visual arts techniques as drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, animation, and video art. It is also part of the official 2019 celebration of ‘Third Paradise’, a global effort to find a balance between nature and artifice in human culture led by the Italian artist Michelangelo Pistoletto's ‘Cittadellarte’ Foundation. ‘Thresholds of Life’ continues through 11 November.