in a word untitled #1, 2004, marble, 193.5 x 71.5 x 3 cm; Un(truth), 2019, reflective vinyl, 578 x 358.5 cm. Installation view at Campbelltown Arts Centre; photo courtesy of the C-A-C.
EUGENIA RASKOPOULOS is exhibiting a newly commissioned work in OK Democracy, We Need To Talk at Campbelltown Arts Centre (C-A-C), alongside an existing work.
OK Democracy, We Need to Talk is a conversation and a provocation that suggests an ambition for change through the exploration of how democracy is performed in its current state. Reflecting on the current state of democracy in Australia and around the world, the exhibition presents an open discussion about democracy and its future – or potentially – its demise.
Raskopoulos worked with journalist Peter Greste on her new work Un(truth), which focuses on journalists who have lost their lives in search of democracy and freedom of speech. Mirrored letters run down the gallery wall, forming the names of 54 journalists who were killed in 2018. This work is paired with an older piece, In a word, a marble slab inscribed with the word DEMOCRACY in Ancient Greek. The marble sits on the floor as if dropped from above and suggests a broken or unstable system. "I equate democracy with a sense of freedom, a sense of equality, but I feel neither of these are accurate descriptions of democracy in this day," Raskopoulos said.
The exhibition continues until 31 July.