Open Call for participation in the refugee and migrants integration “Face Forward…into my home”

Nicosia 2030, candidate city for European Capital of Culture, together with refugees and migrants who were forced to leave their homelands and rebuild their life in Cyprus, present the exhibition "Face Forward ...into my home" which includes photographic portraits and stories of migrants.

The portraits by Yiannis Kourtoglou, are the result of the integration program that Nicosia 2030 organised in collaboration with ΕΜΣΤ | National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens and the kind support of the UNHCR Country Office in Cyprus. The exhibition and the program are part of the Parallel Program of the 5th Nicosia International Festival.

The opening of both the 5th edition of Nicosia International Festival and the photography exhibition will be inaugurated by the Deputy Minister of Culture Dr Vasiliki Kassianidou on 10 October, at 19:00, at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre.

The program consisted of a series of workshops and was attended by refugees and migrants from Africa, Asia and the Middle East in the context of which participants were invited to share with their emotions, memories, hopes and aspirations inspired by artworks from the ΕΜΣΤ collection and the Cypriot collection of the State Art Gallery. These included artworks by Klitsa Antoniou, Christina Dimitriadis, Panos Kokkinias, Nikos Kouroussis, Lia Lapithi, Maria Loizidou, and Maria Tsangaris which are related to migration and other contemporary issues.

The program was initially designed and implemented by ΕΜΣΤ | National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens in 2017 in collaboration with the UNHCR in Greece. Since 2017, it has travelled to several cities in Greece and abroad. The idea - program implementation and the curation of the original exhibition - program belong to Marina Tsekou, Curator of Education ΕΜΣΤ and Giannis Vastardis, Photographer - Special Therapist (www.faceforward.gr).

In Cyprus the program was supported by the European Funds Unit of the Ministry of Interior, the Asylum Service of the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection, the Greek Embassy in Cyprus, the Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus, UNHCR Country Office in Cyprus, and the Social Welfare Services of the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare.

The exhibition will be open until 31 December 2024, Monday - Friday between 10:00-13:00 and one hour before each performance at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre.

Nicosia International Festival:

Co-Institutional sponsor: Ministry of Culture, Republic of Cyprus

Nicosia 2030's collaboration with the participants of the "Face Forward ...into my home" program does not cease with the opening of the exhibition but continues with a series of actions. These commence with an "AFRICAN FASHION PARTY" that will fill the Nicosia Municipal Theatre with African fashion immediately after the opening of the photographic exhibition. Nicosia residents of Cypriot and African descent will take over the stage of the theatre celebrating the creativity of their fellow countrymen/women fashion designers. The African Fashion Party is organized by Bridge of Hope Cy and supported by Costas Papaellinas Organization.