one piece of cloth – an “invented” emblem

algorithmic design archive tradition

The project investigates the construction of Greek national identity through the symbolic language of flags and national costumes, exploring how memory, history, and myth are interwoven into invented traditions. Inspired by the Flags of Freedom collection of the National Historical Museum and the Costume Museum of the Lyceum Club of Greek Women, the project reimagines symbols and motifs from revolutionary flags and national costumes. Through digital processing, symbols from 45 different flags were transcribed into binary patterns, and an algorithm identified common elements, creating a new emblem. This motif, embroidered in gold thread using traditional Byzantine techniques, was integrated into a patchwork of fabric remnants from iconic garments like the fustanella and the Amalia dress, emblematic of Greece’s transition to nationhood.

The work includes a flag and a video essay documenting the artistic process, emphasizing the interplay between archival material, cultural heritage, and creative reinterpretation. The flag operates as a space of memory, unifying fragments of history and material culture into a new symbolic surface that reflects both the multiplicity of past identities and the constructed nature of national narratives.

The project raises critical questions about the role of cultural symbols in shaping collective memory and identity. It examines how traditions are invented, standardized, and transformed into tools of historical and ideological continuity. By incorporating remnants of garments once associated with rural life, revolution, and statehood, the project bridges the personal with the collective, making the past tangible in the present.

Through its self-referential methodology, the work highlights the fluidity of identity construction, The flag that was created constitutes a place of memory, a new framework in which highlights the fluidity of identity construction. Its intention is a negotiation of historical consciousness.

Artistic research, texts, video editing: Maria Varela

Narration: Yiota Argyropoulou

Camerawork, Photography: Aggeliki Hatzi

Music: Vassilis Moschas (Polygrains)

Sound recording: Nikolas Konstantinou

English subtitles: Penny Saccopoulou-Valtazanou

 

The project was a commission of the Museum of  the history of Greek Costume – Lykeion ton Hellinidon.

photographs: Studio Kominis

Revolting Bodies II exhibition photos: Panos Kokkinias, © ATOPOS cvc

  • exhibition

    Mediterranean: Inventions and representations, Mucem, Marseille, France (2024) || Statecraft,EMST – National Museum of Contemporary Art, Athens (2022) || Revolting Bodies, Atopos, Athens, Greece (2021) || 1821-2021. ΜΥΡΙΑ ΟΣΑ [γ]ραμμένα εν πανίον (2021)

  • curator

    Tania Veliskou // Alexis Fidetzis

  • production

    Museum of the history of the Greek Costume - Lykeion ton Hellinidon.

  • venue

    Museum of the history of the Greek Costume - Lykeion ton Hellinidon // Atopos CVC

  • year

    2020

  • acknowledgements

    National Historical Museum Athens Greece, Traditional Costume Workshop Megara Angelos Theodossiou Nikos Sotiriou, Zoe Kona, Thanos Eleftherakos

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