Georgia from Paralimni mapped Famagusta from the memories of refugees

An original and at the same time innovative exhibition of maps of Famagusta is presented at the Cultural Center of the occupied Famagusta in Deryneia by the architect from Paralimni, Georgia Klefti.

This is not a conventional mapping of the city of Famagusta on maps, but a mapping of "mind maps" of the occupied Vasilevousa by its displaced residents themselves, who through personal testimonies and memories captured their city as they perceive it and as they remember it.

As she explains speaking to Famagusta.News, the initial stage of the research was the collection of "mental maps" of Famagusta, drawn by the refugees themselves or people who had direct contact with the city. The mapping of the city concerns the collective as well as the personal memory of everyone, 49 years after its violent abandonment.

The attempt to visualize the memory gives the opportunity to see the city through an original way and to explore the importance and correlation of its various points.

Also, this research is a way of archiving and remembering the stories of refugees. The stories and memories of the inhabitants must be a key driver of a city's planning, so that these "mind maps" can be an important tool for the future planning of Famagusta.

 

What does the report include?

The exhibition includes thirty "mind maps" collected by people who lived in the city, aged 55 to 80 years. The exhibition is accompanied by audio-visual material from the interview of Filippo Giapani, visual artist and sculptor, which was taken for the needs of the research. The video is edited by Konstantinos Koumis.

Where did the idea come from?

Georgia's source of inspiration was a remarkable person and academic, Dr. Nausicaa Pezzoni who was lucky enough, as she mentions, to have as a mentor at the Polytechnic of Milan where she had supervised her thesis. Dr. Nausicaa uses in its research the methodology of "mind maps", based on the extensive research of urban planner Kevin Lynch. Her aim is the mapping of European cities by immigrants to investigate how this "transient population" perceives the city where they live.

As she reports, as soon as she presented her research, her thoughts went directly to the city of Famagusta. Her grandfather often used to draw the streets and the different districts of the area to explain to her his daily life in the city he loved so much. These formed the foundations of the research.

The Georgia Thief

Georgia Klefti is 27 years old and comes from Paralimni. He studied Architecture at the University of Edinburgh and then worked for two years in architectural offices in Cyprus and Spain. This July she graduated from the Polytechnic of Milan where she completed her two-year master's degree in both Architecture and Urban Planning.

Through her research she hopes to create a mapping archive and eventually exceed 100 maps in total to perform extensive statistical analysis. She states that she believes that her generation has a duty to be informed and also to ensure the memory of the history of the past. Finally, he hopes, as he says, to be able to live in a free and reunited island without divisions and rivalries.

The exhibition

Opening of the exhibition: July 27, 2023, time 18:00 – 21:00

Exhibition duration: July 28, 2023 – August 11, 2023

Opening hours: Monday – Saturday: 7:30 – 15:30

At the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Famagusta, the architectural exhibition "FAMAGUSTA M(IN)D MAPS" is presented, which presents the results of the research project of the diploma of the architect Georgia Kleftis (MA Architecture and Urban Design, Politecnico di Milano). The exhibition is curated by visual artist and art curator Despina Petridou. The exhibition is held with the support of the Municipality of Famagusta, the Cyprus Youth Organization and the Politecnico di Milano University.

This exhibition presents a series of 'mind maps', created, collected and analyzed during the thesis entitled: The Mnemonic Spatial Dimensions of an Abandoned Border City: The Case Study of Famagusta, as part of an MA in Architecture and Urban Planning. The thesis specifically explores how the refugees of Famagusta can "map" the city based on personal and collective memory, after forty-nine years of absence from their city. As part of this extensive research, refugees aged fifty-five to eighty, were interviewed and asked to draw their own map, visualizing their memory and experiences of space and place, as well as the emotions associated with it. These "inner landscapes of the mind" were then analyzed to draw conclusions about how cities and places are interpreted through a personalized context, influenced by an individual's political and social background, personal memory and trauma.

Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/famagustamindmaps/

Facebook Event: https://fb.me/e/4xeLOhLlK

Sponsors: ONEK, Municipality of Famagusta, Hatzigiorki Mills

Sponsors: Municipality of Paralimni, Municipality of Ayia Napa, Polytechnic University of Milan

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