Central image: George Sfakianakis

She is described by design lovers and creators, among them Kostas Lampridis, as an up-and-coming artist. Polina Miliou, having studied at the School of Architecture of NTUA and worked as a designer at Willo Perron and Associates -among other offices in Los Angeles-, is overwhelming the media with her playful and monolithic creations. The raw material is something very simple, the papier-mâché that covers the outside of a wooden frame, but it can inspire the construction of unique sculptural and at the same time functional objects. For her, each object is a distinct character, and it seems that a lot of time and thought has been put into its "shaping".

The Greek audience had the opportunity to see up close (and touch) the objects that constitute Polina's newest collection entitled "KYKLOS", at the Carwan Gallery in Piraeus from September 1 to October 29, 2022. This is the first solo exhibition of a Greek female creator in the most beloved gallery of contemporary design in Athens, which operates under the direction of Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte and Quentin Moyse. She stays true to her use of papier mâché, only this time the pulp is made of trash that Polina collected from the Cycladic coasts. These are merged with objects that she finds in flea markets, showing a special preference for archetypal chairs, and the result is these organic monochrome forms, referring to the different positions and tones that the warm Cycladic sun goes through during the day, hence the name KYKLOS (meaning cycle in Greek).

We had a chat with Polina Miliou and the Carwan Gallery to hear their impressions after the completion of this successful exhibition.

Photo: George Sfakianakis

You describe your inspiration as an amalgamation of early Cycladic “abstract” sculptures and the contemporary pop culture of animation and video games. How does this fusion translate into your objects?

My handcrafting methods are often translated into vague, anthropomorphic and zoomorphic forms resulting from references to Cycladic art, but also primitivism or Mediterranean anonymous architecture. These figures exude a sense of life as if they represent entities, and ultimately the whole process of creation resembles the construction of a fictional world constituted from original characters. To create these characters I often draw elements from pop culture and gaming figures, which give identity to the forms but also bring them into the present.

Irotile. Photo: George Sfakianakis

Can you elaborate on the exhibition’s concept?

The idea for the exhibition came from two works that I had made a year before, from two traditional chairs that had been found in my possession. I started with traditional or popular furniture, with their shared, main characteristic being that they were unwanted or neglected. I followed the logic of upcycling, i.e. recycling materials and objects that are humble and undervalued, to which I then attribute a new unexpected future that they would not have had otherwise. The very materials I use, such as paper or polyurethane foam, also enter into this process of reconsidering their original value.

Allele Chairs. Photo: George Sfakianakis

How hard was this undertaking for a new designer like yourself?

It was a series of projects created within just three months, a short time period considering the number of works and the handcrafting techniques I follow. But I entered this world almost obsessively during those months. The decisions I made were quick and resulted from my constant and personal contact with the initial objects.

Nefi. Photo: George Sfakianakis

How did the audience react and how was their feedback?

It was very pleasant to see the audience's interaction with the objects. Almost every visitor sought contact and spent more time than I would have initially expected in an exhibition space. There was a sense of performance, I saw people posing with the objects, naming them or choosing which "character" represented them. A frequent comment was how alive they looked, as if they were set up to perform a show.

Koutsoboli. Photo: George Sfakianakis

Tell us your plans for the future.

I am currently experimenting with more complex forms and functions that can result from joining existing furniture. I am also exploring traditional materials, such as wicker, knitting or fabric. I'm very interested to see them juxtaposed with the papier-mâché.

Heart Chair. Photo: George Sfakianakis

We sincerely thank Polina Miliou and Carwan Gallery.

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