XeniArtSpace presents a multifaceted artistic portrait of the island through memory, identity and personal experience
How many different stories can a place tell through art? XeniArtSpace turns its attention to contemporary Cypriot art with the exhibition “CHANNELLED: CYPRUS - Women Artists of the Island”, bringing into focus nine women artists connected to Cyprus. Through their works, personal experiences and artistic perspectives, the exhibition reveals different facets of the island’s identity, history and cultural memory.
The exhibition is the second chapter in XeniArtSpace CHANNELLED exhibition series, following the international exhibition “CHANNELLED: Women in Art Across Centuries”. This time, the focus shifts to Cypriot artistic creation and the diverse artistic approaches that shape the island’s contemporary visual landscape.
The official opening of the second exhibition in the CHANNELLED series was marked by an opening ceremony attended by Limassol Mayor Mr. Yiannis Armeftis, as well as invited guests from the worlds of art, culture and the media.
Cyprus Through Different Perspectives
“CHANNELLED: CYPRUS – Women Artists of the Island” does not seek to define a single or shared female aesthetic. Instead, it highlights the diversity and plurality of contemporary Cypriot artistic expression, allowing each artistic voice to retain its own distinct identity.
Through painting, sculpture, textiles and other artistic practices, the works serve as channels through which memory, identity, the body, nature, belonging and inner experience are expressed.
The artists move between the personal and the collective, memory and the present, the inner world and the reality that surrounds them. Together, their works form a multifaceted portrait of contemporary Cyprus, seen through different female perspectives.
When Experience Becomes Art
The title CHANNELLED refers to the idea of the artist as a conduit through which personal experience, memory, intuition and inner states acquire visual and material form.
In “CHANNELLED: CYPRUS – Women Artists of the Island,” this concept takes on particular significance, as the nine artists convey through their work not only their personal experiences, but also different interpretations of a place, a society and a shared cultural memory.
Cyprus is not presented as a single, unified narrative, but rather as a mosaic of personal stories, memories, identities and experiences.
Cyprus Is Many Stories, Woven Together
Xenia Kulbachevskaya, Collector and Founder of XeniArtSpace, said: “With the exhibition ‘CHANNELLED: CYPRUS – Women Artists of the Island,’ we wanted to give women artists the opportunity to tell their own story of Cyprus through their images, memories and personal experiences.
What moves me most is that every work has its own voice. Each artist sees the place differently and brings something of her own inner world into her work.
Perhaps this is ultimately the power of art: to make us look at a familiar place with new eyes. I hope visitors to the exhibition will discover something within these works that touches them personally — an image, a memory or a feeling that they will carry with them, a reflection of their own Cyprus.”
Opening the exhibition, Limassol Mayor Mr. Yiannis Armeftis said: “For the past two years, XeniArtSpace has made a significant contribution to enriching the cultural life of Limassol, as well as Cyprus more broadly.
The gallery, which bears the name of its pioneering founder, Xenia Kulbachevskaya, has presented ten exhibitions to date, all of a standard comparable to that of major museums and representing groundbreaking cultural initiatives for our country.”
XeniArtSpace: In Dialogue with Art
For XeniArtSpace, “CHANNELLED: CYPRUS – Women Artists of the Island” serves as a platform for artists, audiences and collectors to come together.
The works presented in the two exhibitions are available for acquisition, further strengthening the presence of contemporary Cypriot art in private and institutional collections.
Through a series of significant exhibitions, XeniArtSpace continues to provide a platform for artistic voices that contribute to shaping the contemporary identity of Cyprus, while strengthening the presence of contemporary Cypriot art within the wider international cultural landscape.
At the same time, the public has the opportunity to discover works by acclaimed artists whose art is held in the collections of major museums around the world, broadening their engagement with international art across different periods and artistic approaches.
PICTORIAL EXCERPTS: Two Generations, One Dialogue
Alongside “CHANNELLED: CYPRUS – Women Artists of the Island” the second exhibition space at XeniArtSpace presents “PICTORIAL EXCERPTS”, featuring works by Daphne Christoforou and her mother, Julia Astreou-Christoforou.
This more intimate presentation brings together two generations of women from the same family, exploring themes of heritage, memory, mythology and the transmission of an artistic language from one generation to the next.
Daphne Christoforou’s contemporary practice draws on mythology, symbolism, the body and personal experience, while the work of Julia Astreou-Christoforou introduces a different generation and another perspective on the memory of Cyprus.
Their works connect the past with the present, and personal history with the broader cultural memory of the island.
Info: XeniArtSpace
Located at Trilogy Plaza in Limassol, XeniArtSpace is a contemporary visual arts gallery where different approaches, ideas and cultural references come together, opening up new perspectives on art and the contemporary world. In its two years of creative presence, the gallery has hosted ten significant exhibitions, featuring Cypriot and international artists.
The name XeniArtSpace brings together three concepts: Xeni, Art and Space. The Greek word “xeni” (ξένη) refers to “a woman from another place” or “a stranger” and is connected to the ancient Greek concept of “xenia” (ξενία), the tradition of hospitality and welcoming others. At the same time, Xeni echoes the name of the gallery’s founder and collector, Xenia Kulbachevskaya.
These different meanings, xeni, art and space, come together in XeniArtSpace, expressing the vision of an open and welcoming space for art: a place of encounter, dialogue and exchange between people, cultures and different artistic worlds.
CHANNELLED: CYPRUS – Women Artists of the Island
XeniArtSpace
335, 28th October Avenue, Trilogy Plaza, Limassol
Open to the public:
Wednesday–Friday: 16:00–20:00
Saturday: 12:00–17:00
Admission: Free
Information: info@xeniartspace.com | +357 99980009
Instagram: @xeniartspace
