Thalia Melissa took over the “Elefsina mon amour” exhibition design and won Merit at GRAIL Awards 2025. The exhibition design took its inspiration from the unique qualities of the venue, an industrial complex strongly connected to the city’s dense history that combines both ancient and contemporary aspects.
The industrial character of the Old Oil Mill Factory warehouses played a pivotal role in shaping the overall design aesthetics: the stone masonry walls and the exposed concrete structure with their intense textures were intentionally left visible as a reminder of the city’s industrial history. The venue itself became an exhibit serving as both the setting and the backdrop for the entire experience.
Taking into consideration the lack of exhibition infrastructure and the restrictions on wall suspensions the grid system had to become self supporting and the molded concrete bases were added therefor. Beyond their supporting role the concrete molds are a significant element that contributed to the whole design aesthetics. The use of concrete is also a reference to the city’s industrial history and the still active concrete factory.
Having these elements in the inventory the design evolved in forming various configurations – vertical panels, shelves, surfaces and bases – allowing flexibility to meet the exhibition’s diverse needs.
The final design was shaped up to a modular system of self supporting structures that were compatible with the building’s scale and served at the same time their essential functional purpose.
The dimensions and color of the metal grid were carefully chosen so that the structures are discreet, blending seamlessly with the background walls and underlining the contrast between the grid’s organized geometry and the rough texture of the stone masonry with the intention to highlight the architectural elements of the venue.
The objective was to create a simple, discrete design that does not compete with the unique character of the venue nor the artworks but is still recognizable as a design object.
The solo presentation of Aglaia Konrad’s work is supported by the Austrian Embassy in Athens.
2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture
With the support of the National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMΣT)
Plans
Models
Facts & Credits
Project title: Elefsina mon amour
Project type: Exhibition design
Architectural design: Thalia Melissa
Award: Merit
Participating artists: Katerina Apostolidou / Marianna Christofides / Anastasia Douka / Mahdi Fleifel / Marina Gioti / Igor Grubic / Aglaia Konrad / Natalia Manta / Adrian Paci / Serban Savu / Sphinxes (Manos Flessas & Ioanna Tsakalou) / Maria Tsagkari / Dimitris Tsoumplekas / Maarten Vanden Eynde / Vangelis Vlahos
Artistic director – curator: Katerina Gregos
Assistant curator: Dora Vasilakou
Lighting design: Sakis Birbilis
Research consultant (Elefsina): Yorgos Skianis
Production: Yorgos Efstathoulidis – Constructivist Exhibitions & Andie Chantzi
Project Coordination: Zoi Moutsokou – Directorate of Contemporary Art 2023 Eleusis, Anastasia Tsopelaki – architect
Photos: John Kouskoutis, Thalia Melissa
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