© Angelina Stavela 

The first Creative Assembly of Transformative Territories will take place at the Tavros site from March 6 to 9, 2025, as the culmination of the workshops and initiatives of the Vanishing Landscapes project. The event will bring together artists, researchers, and local communities for an immersive exploration of the Aitoliko lagoon, often referred to as the “Venice of Greece.” Hosted at the Centre of Engraving Arts – Vasso Katraki Museum, this gathering is the culmination of a two-year research project inspired by the late artist Vasso Katraki. Through exhibitions, workshops, performances, and discussions, the event seeks to reimagine the role of art in addressing ecological and social transformations.

Vanishing Landscapes takes as its starting point the work of Vasso Katraki, whose early prints captured the daily struggles and fishing practices of the Aitoliko lagoon’s communities. Her artistic journey led her from documenting local life to politically charged works opposing authoritarian rule. Today, her attention to place and social justice resonates in a world marked by climate crises and environmental degradation. The gathering in Aitoliko echoes her commitment by critically engaging with the human and more-than-human forces shaping the lagoon’s future.

The event invites participants to experience the unique micro-geographies of the region—where fresh and saltwater intertwine, and biodiversity thrives in delicate balance. Aitoliko’s history is interwoven with myth, economic shifts, and environmental changes. The lagoon is not a pristine wilderness but a co-created landscape, shaped by generations of human and non-human actors. Industrial pollution, climate change, and past development policies have left visible marks, raising urgent questions about conservation and resilience in an era of radical transformation.

The Centre of Engraving Arts – Vasso Katraki Museum serves as both an anchor and a point of departure for the gathering. Through its exhibitions and site-specific interventions, the event rethinks the function of an arts institution embedded in its environment. Can a museum be more than a repository of the past? Can it act as a living space for reflection and action on pressing ecological concerns?

Throughout the four days, visitors will encounter site-responsive works such as Skylarking (Long Play), a sound installation by Nuno da Luz that immerses audiences in the lagoon’s sonic landscape, and People Descended from Trees and Deer, a three-day engraving workshop led by Yiannis Papadopoulos. Roundtable discussions with artists, architects, and local fishermen will foster dialogue on the transformations affecting Aitoliko. Film screenings, participatory performances, and boat rides with fishermen will further deepen the exploration of this complex and evolving site.

Through its multidisciplinary approach, Vanishing Landscapes offers an opportunity to reconsider our relationship with land, water, and history. As participants engage with the lagoon’s evolving narratives, they contribute to a living archive of transformation—one that acknowledges both loss and regeneration. Can we envision a future where landscapes, institutions, and communities remain open, responsive, and interconnected? This gathering in Aitoliko seeks to explore just that.

Programme Overview

Thursday, March 6, 2025

• 09:00 – 20:00 | Museum exhibition open
• 09:00 – 20:00 | Skylarking (Long Play), sound installation by Nuno da Luz
• 10:00 – 19:00 | People Descended from Trees and Deer, engraving workshop (Day 1)
• 20:00 – 22:00 | Introduction to Vanishing Landscapes & film screening with Cinema Fulgor

Friday, March 7, 2025

• 09:00 – 20:00 | Museum exhibition open
• 09:00 – 20:00 | Skylarking (Long Play), sound installation by Nuno da Luz
• 09:00 – 17:00 | People Descended from Trees and Deer, engraving workshop (Day 2)
• 18:00 – 19:30 | Fireplace Gathering: On Vanishing Landscapes, roundtable discussion
• 20:00 – 22:00 | Outdoor film screening with Cinema Fulgor

Saturday, March 8, 2025

• 09:00 – 20:00 | Museum exhibition open
• 09:00 – 20:00 | Skylarking (Long Play), sound installation by Nuno da Luz
• 09:00 – 10:00 | Skylarking (Short Play), participatory performance
• 11:00 – 18:00 | People Descended from Trees and Deer, engraving workshop (Day 3)
• 11:00 – 12:30 | A Stone’s Gaze, theatre workshop for children
• 12:00 – 13:30 | Guided tour of Vasso Katraki’s work
• 16:00 – 17:00 | Boat ride with local fishermen
• 18:00 – 19:00 | A Place Like You and Me: Composing Stories for Transregional Liminality, screening lecture performance
• 20:00 – 22:00 | Film screening & discussion

Sunday, March 9, 2025

• 09:00 – 18:00 | Museum exhibition open
• 09:00 – 18:00 | Skylarking (Long Play), sound installation by Nuno da Luz
• 09:00 – 10:00 | Skylarking (Short Play), participatory performance
• 11:00 – 12:30 | A Stone’s Gaze, theatre workshop for children
• 12:00 – 13:00 | People Descended from Trees and Deer, open studio session
• 13:00 – 15:00 | Collective lunch with the Women’s Association of Aitoliko
• Image crédit : © Angelina Stavela

Read more at the partner’s website : https://tavros.space/