With its rich history, Athens remains a magnet to Danish artists and scholars. In 2015, funding from the New Carlsberg Foundation, among other sources, enabled the Danish Institute at Athens (DIA) to offer accommodation to 29 artists and 12 scholars.
DIA is an independent institution with the purpose of promoting research, education and cultural studies related to Greek and Mediterranean archaeology, history, language, literature, visual arts, architecture and cultural traditions.
DIA’s director, Kristina Winther-Jacobsen, comments,
‘This was a hugely diverse group of artists and scholars, who benefitted from their stay here in very different ways. They enriched DIA, and we were delighted to be able to welcome them. Their stays at the institute resulted in both tangible and less tangible outcomes, including concerts, exhibitions and publications in Greece, Denmark or other places entirely.’
Among the art projects was Elisabeth Molin’s Light Intervention, which uses photography to create new interpretive perspectives on Greece’s cultural heritage. Vibeke Jerichau, who also works with photography, returned to DIA to work on a project pertaining to the relationship between the human body and urban space in various cultural settings.
‘It’s our clear impression that these stays are very important for the beneficiaries. In 2016 we are going to continue to strive to preserve the fruitful academic and cultural environment for Danish scholars and artists that has been created here in Athens,’ says Kristina Winther-Jacobsen.