Narrative Biography/ May 2013

Τhe artistic group EN FLO, (En Florini) was established in the winter of 2011. It is comprised of students, graduates and professors from the Department of Visual and Applied Arts in Florina University of Western Macedonia, in order to present their actions at main cultural events in Greece and all around Europe.

Their first participation was among the parallel actions of the International Art Fair ART ATHINA 2011 with two art events: 

1. «BANK_ART_NOTES». Each En Flo member-counterfeiter printed and distributed their own artistic money to the public. Visitors chose the banknote they liked the most and it was printed on a small press machine by members of En Flo group. The goal was making a correlation between:  money –value,  money –social recognition, money – identity, money– state, money –Europe, money- financial crisis, money – art. When visitors left they took with them an authentic printmaking banknote.

2. «IMPRIMATUR». The action took place using engraving and printing methods.  By rolling oversized inked printing cylinders on the corridors of the Art Fair they printed words, pictograms and symbols on paper spread throughout the area. Those statements are related to their concerns about contemporary art and the current social situation. The printing  results of those thoughts have a flow that become a base-canvas of the next set of actions. Visitors were invited to respond, react, undo, comment or delete the words as they see fit, by using big rubber stamps with new words or symbols that they choose.  By making layers of words, images, views, and symbols, a visual dialogue takes place on the long path of printed paper.

Other actions of the En Flo:

 3rd International Streer Theater Festival (June 31-July 4, 2011). That was the second participation of the group and their first time in public space. It lasted three days and took place at Syntagma and Kotzia Square in Athens. There En Flo met people and printed banknotes with them.

Two day interaction with people and installation at PARAPERA multi purpose art space at Acharnon Str., in collaboration with Technohoros (July 2011). That was the third action of the group in Athens. It was intended to visualize and tell the story of a laundry. The result was a laundry line of underwear hung with printed banknotes left to dry.

The Collectors of the Last Day (September 24-September 25, 2011) This was the fourth participation-exhibition of the group. It took place in the Municipal Gallery of Athens during the exhibition of George Economou Collection. Taking inspiration from the  original paintings of the collection, the En Flo members engraved in linoleum new works of art. Then the engraved linoleum was cut in smaller pieces, and the submultiples were printed. In this way the first work of art was lost and a new one was formed from the smaller pieces.

 BANK_ART_NOTES with tail (November 10, 2011). En Flo participated in the group exhibition Small Gardens of Happiness that took place at the Art Foundation (TAF gallery) located at Monastiraki area in Athens. En Flo printed their own artistic banknotes which were freely distributed to the visitors. In this way the group tries to symbolicly break into a person’s most secret paradise.

 Τhe Εn Flo Bench (December 21, 2011). A very different bench was set up this time at the main market of Florina. Full of inspiration and with lots of fun the En Flo had engraved their banknotes in linoleum. Then in two small press machines set up in the main market of the city, the members of the group printed and distributed freely, artistic banknotes to the citizens of Florina. Resulting correlations of:  money –value, money –social recognition, money – identity, money– state, money – europe, money- financial crisis, money – art. 

Winter Festival in the Edge of Town (December 23, 2011). Since everyone became rich at Florina two days ago, we decided to burn the money on the 23 of December. The fire at Oniron str. started from the enormous sculpture of a banknote made by Filippos Kalamaras. The fire spreads and the performance begun. What a shame for the money. Everything was on fire and the snow was full of stars from the star-fireworks made by En Flo.

«What a shame for the money», Night of Museums, House of Friends of Art in Florina,Contemporary Art Museum in Florina, (Μay 18, 2012). Trying tο find ways to    understand the operation of a museum, the En Flo group declared «Money as a shame» by reprinting their banknotes and some «Florinia». They distributed their money this time to support the Contemporay Art Museum of Florina.

     The Art of Printmaking in North Greece, part 2, Artis Causa Gallery (June 6-June 28, 2012). The En Flo participated to the students exhibition of the printmaking class of the Department of Fine Arts with artist books of their banknotes and video of their actions

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«It’s the Political Economy, Stupid”, Εxhibition at Τhessaloniki Centre of Contemporary Art (June 27, 2012). This time the En Flo exchanged their banknotes with the dreams of the visitors. After the confession of a dream, the visitors could take some banknotes from En Flo. This desperate act of irony depicted the concept of converting everything into a product and guided the sarcastic and radical anti-capitalist thinking for the action "What a shame, so many dreams for  money". 

Printed Potatoes, Athens Print Fest 2012- International Engraving and Printmaking Festival, Municipal Gallery of Athens, Avdi Sq. Metaxurgio (Septemeber 28, 2012). The En Flo group participated with actions refering to potatoes or using potato as the main material.  Their members collaborated with the visitors, making stamps with letters and symbols made of potatoes then printed together images and messages creating a big “Potato-Art” event in the area.

Solanum Tuberosum, Camp Point  (December 2012). Potatoes, or “Solanum tuberosum”, it’s the simple and humble food of poor people but also an important ingredient of the “haute-cuisine”. In Greece potatoes gave birth to the first “small revolution” against all those who wanted to profiteer at the expense of farmers, but also to the people who were finding their pockets empty after buying the basic food for survival. This time the En Flo group follows the paths of these experiences and acts according to their own paths giving to the potatoes a new meaning.

En Flo proposal for ART ATHINA 2013 «Sisi-phus». This year’s proposal has to do with the mythical narrative of the Sisyphean effort. This particular theme, very topical today, motivates En Flo which tries to be very sensitive to social and existential issues and to question the human condition by starting a dialogue with the public using any art skills and materials they have.