MEET THE ARTIST

-Where are you from and how long have you lived in Berlin?

I am from Athens and I have lived in Berlin for almost two years now.

– Where is home?

The housing situation in Berlin doesn’t allow you to stay in one place for long. Especially if you have a part-time job, you don’t speak German and you don’t have a guarantor, it is highly unlikely to find a permanent house. I grew up with this feeling of security and permanence and now I have to deal with the temporality of life. Home used to be the spaces that I put some effort to organize and decorate. During the past two years, I have changed so many flats and I have reduced the number of my belongings to a bare minimum, because I know I will  move again and  I have no time to dedicate to decorating one space. So my standards have changed and home for me is any place that I sleep more than once.

My mobility between Athens and Berlin has changed as well. I used to visit Athens more regularly which is not the case anymore. When I do I still see friends and family but I have the constant feeling that I am a visitor. After a while I feel nostalgic for this place which indicates that the time has come for me to get back. In Berlin, I have a daily routine but I still have the excitement of discovering a new city. Even though there are places and people that i feel comfortable with, I am still a stranger.