Sofia Papakosta presents her new body of work in the solo exhibition “Things to hold” at the Zouboulakis Gallery. She is exhibiting works created with water-soluble graphite and oil pastels on paper.

The works center on the concept of memory, or, as the French philosopher Henri Bergson would describe it in his work Matter and Memory, as a “‘set of images’ that I call the universe.” In this context, the artist’s personal photographic archive serves as the space where memory is organized, reinterpreted, and given visual form. The artist notes: “The process of creating these paintings is inspired by a personal digital archive of photographs that is constantly growing, as I take photos almost every day. This led me to reflect on why such an archive might have meaning.”

This reflection on how such an archive acquires meaning serves as the catalyst for this exhibition.

With her own personal style and design expertise, Papakosta begins her new series by reimagining the image. The photographic subject is gradually deconstructed through a process of trial and error. The original material is recomposed until the artist settles on what remains. And this is the trace that remains. Often hazy yet decisive, memory is rendered through the tones of black and white, creating an atmosphere that hints at something specific. The use of graphite and oil pastel overlays creates a subtle sense of fragility and transparency, as if a veil were enveloping the object of her interest.

Bodies touching one another, bodies sprouting from one another and growing, bodies at a distance. Images focused and redesigned through a tactile process of layering, in which elements are constantly covered and revealed, to the point where only a minimal reference to the image “remains.” What ultimately remains, and where do all those things go that do not seem to remain?

Her works serve as a reminder of both permanence and transience, respectively.

A Short Bio: 

Sofia Papakosta (b. 1985, Nicosia, Cyprus) is a graduate of the School of Fine Arts at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and holds a master’s degree (MA) in Sequential Design & Illustration from the University of Brighton. She has held three solo exhibitions and one cross-disciplinary exhibition in Greece and Cyprus, and has presented her work in over 20 group exhibitions at museums and independent venues internationally, including: the 17th Biennale of Young Artists in Milan (2015), the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki, the Bouzianis Museum in Athens, and the Mykonos Biennale 2021, among others. She lives and works in Athens. The exhibition “Things to hold” is her second solo exhibition at the Zouboulakis Gallery.

Exhibition Duration: 17 September– 10 October 2026

Zoumboulakis Galleries, Kolonaki Square  20

Opening Hours: Tue., Thur. & Fri. 11.00 -20.00

Wed. & St. 11.00 –15.00

Sundays & Mondays closed