mezedes on the ilissos — a parasitic dinner


dinner, sound installation
2022

A collaboration with Lena Violetta Leitner. Many thanks to Anastassia Papadima and Giorgos Tsiongas.

Can a meaningful exchange become an artwork? Vienna-based artist Lena Violetta Leitner and I met in Athens, where, over the course of a few weeks, we spoke about parasites, the city’s hidden rivers, our experiences working in the cultural sector, and what it means to be a foreigner here. Throughout our conversations, mezedes, Greek appetizers, were a constant presence.

At one point, we wondered: could these shared meals themselves become an artwork? This question led us to organise a “parasitic” dinner at a special location—the nearly dried-up Ilissos river. We were joined by local Athenians, whom we served a six-course menu composed of questions, reflections, associations, and quotes from interviews with scientists and philosophers, alongside our favourite mezedes.

The project was presented as a sound installation at State of Concept in Athens, as part of the event Where is the river?




Photos of the dinner, the invitation, the menu, and the sound-installation. Photos courtesy of Lena Violetta Leitner and Frederiek Simons.


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I am a textile artist, researcher, and writer based in Amsterdam. Through my work runs a tangible thread spun from questions about materials, patterns, hierarchies, histories and traditions.

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© Frederiek Simons, 2024