In Athens, Austerity Makes Contemporary Art Palatable

Austerity measures have been bad for Greeks, but good for tourism, which shot up 28.8 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2014. Another beneficiary? Artists. Rent for studio space is significantly cheaper than in other European capitals, and the political and economic turmoil have provided plenty of artistic fodder — not to mention a frustrated, attentive audience. In the wake of these woes, artists, curators, critics and nonprofits are finding that contemporary art is having its moment in a city best known as the epicenter of the ancient world.

Iliana Fokianaki, an Athens-based curator and art critic, was considering a move to Paris in 2011 when businesses were shuttering, friends were losing their jobs and thousands took to the streets in protest. But rather than motivate her to head out of the country, this had the opposite effect. She stayed.

“I realized it would be much more useful to have an artistic platform in a city like Athens than another European city,” said Ms. Fokianaki, who in 2013 inaugurated State of Concept, a Greek nonprofit gallery that has a twofold mission to showcase artists through solo exhibitions and provide young graduates with free consultations. “The crisis kind of boosted our energy to do more things, rather than flee the country.”

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