A bag full of telephone cards

What does an archive of migration in the making look like? What can be included in its collections, which stories do they speak of and which dilemmas emerge along the way? As part of a pilot project aimed at creating an archive of the Albanian migratory experience in Greece, the Contemporary Social History Archives (ASKI) and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Public Humanities Initiative (SNFPHI) at Columbia University present the exhibition A Bag Full of Telephone Cards on 18-28 September 2024 at TAVROS.

Approaching a round table at the center of the room, visitors will encounter a series of archival material, ranging from state documents, newspapers and audiovisual material to family photos, clothing items and objects, hence experiencing closely how an archive is formed. The table will operate simultaneously as a “muhabet” point, a meeting place for collective discussion, where visitors can bring their own memorabilia (photos, documentation, personal objects, etc.) to be integrated into the archive.

A binding thread that runs through the exhibition is made of the oral (hi)stories of the people. Histories brought to the fore by the migrants themselves: narrating their experiences and memories, their choices, dreams, ambitions, fears, obstacles and survival strategies in Greece. These oral histories simultaneously enable us to map a migratory period so close to us and yet so unknown. Through the migrants’ eyes, we can revisit Greece of the last 30 plus years; exploring its state policies, society and culture, labor conditions, solidarity, social struggles, racism and violence. Most importantly, they enable us to think about what currently defines them, away from narratives of success or failure.

The exhibition will present a series of public events that include a screening of Latent Community’s film Otranto followed by a discussion about border violence, as well as discussions around the 2004 severe attacks on Albanian migrants; collective memory and the making of migration archives. Through the public program and our daily presence at the exhibition space we are aiming to create a meeting place for dialogue and collaboration that will enhance the development of the archive and the formation of an open community around it.