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+ 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 (Jonian Bisai, Sotiris Tsiganos, Albania, Greece, 2020, 25min) 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.

PUBLIC PROGRAMME

Wednesday, 18 September 2024, 19:00 | Exhibition opening in Greek

The director of ASKI, Manos Avgeridis, the associate director of SNFPHI, Dimitris Antoniou, and the co-curators of the exhibition, Pati Vardhami and Ilirida Musaraj, will address a short greeting. There will be traditional Albanian food with the kind contribution of the Association of Albanian Women in Greece.

Friday, 20 September 2024, 19:00 | Film screening and Discussion in Greek
How do we speak of border violence?
Speakers: Ionian Bisai & Sotiris Tsigkanos (Latent Community), Olga Lafazani (post-doc researcher, Humboldt University Berlin), Stefanos Levidis (researcher and visual practitioner), Niovi Zarampouka-Chatzimanou (curator, co-director of Counterpoints Greece), Pati Vardhami (curator and critical theorist).

A discussion on the occasion of the film screening Otranto (Jonian Bisai, Sotiris Tsiganos, 2020, 25min) with live interpretation in Greek Sign Language by Polyvios Kosmatos.

Monday, 23 September 2024, 19:00 | Discussion in Greek
The “honourable” 2004. From the heights of Europe to racist violence?
Speakers: Giorgos Chalkias (sports editor), Giannis Gkolfinopoulos (assistant professor, Panteion University), Nancy Papathanasiou (scientific director & co-founder at Orlando LGBT+), Ervin Shehu (activist, former member of Forum of Albanian Migrants), Kostis Karpozilos (historian).

Wednesday, 25 September, 19:00 | Discussion in Greek
Something that will remain. Migration and contemporary archives
Sebene Isete (founder of migratory oral history project  “Our stories”), Valbona Hystuna (founding member of Association of Albanian Migrants “Mother Tereza” in Greece), ΙIirida Musaraj (coordinator of the Archive of Albanian Migration), Penelope Papailias (associate professor of Social Anthropology, University of Thessaly), Stathis Pavlopoulos (historian, scientific coordinator of ASKI).