How to change a place without changing it
A long walk through time, to trace the many hidden layers of the city of Elefsina was the foundation for the second edition of SPARK that took place from 14th to 18th of June, 2023, at the 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture The topic? What placemaking in the performing arts is, what it entails, and how can all the stakeholders of a place be involved.
Image courtesy of Circostrada Network
Elefsina is located 21 kms away from Athens, the capital of Greece: it is a city of contradictions, a city of many faces, and a city of many layers, which cannot easily be discovered at a glance. On the one hand, one of the 5 most important Greek cities of antiquity, rich in heritage and ancient history. On the other hand, a modern city that was heavily industrialized in the 60s and 70s, and a home to a shipyard, essentially a place where destroyed and polluted ships are brought to 'die'. These hidden layers constitute the foundation upon which the participants of the workshop, artists in the public space, architects, programmers, researchers and academics coming from all corners of Europe, were invited to collectively reflect on the topic of 'placemaking in the performing arts'. In a few words, placemaking can mean giving signification to a place, by involving all the stakeholders to that place, human and non-human. Going on long walks through time and space, engaging in workshops, presentations, and an actual placemaking example, the participants were welcome to express their viewpoints and concerns, and to consider the future of placemaking in the performing arts by evaluating the sustainability of this specific example taking it to a larger scale, as well as the dangers and potential first steps to its development.
Dive in the topic on the blog of Circostrada!