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Contested Desires

@contesteddesires

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D6:EU is an independent NGO based in Cyprus, developing opportunities for artists in Europe & the Eastern Mediterranean.

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Looking back with gratitude to the extraordinary people of Kalavasos, who generously offered their invaluable assistance in the form of knowledge, stories, workshops, practical help, treats, and even their own makeshift cocktails.

Thank you for your hospitality. Hopefully, we will have the opportunity to work together again.

📷: @andy.g_photography

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Throwback to Gaia Olea’s curated nature walk, exploring the herbs and plants she loves and treasures in the area. During her workshop, we learned how to create our own incense.

Although Gaia brought this beautiful craft from Africa, along with her deep knowledge of its wonderful flora, she continues to be amazed by the incredible abundance and diversity found right here, in Kalavasos.

📷: @andy.g_photography & @uniconvisuals

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A night of beauty for the ears. Through audiovisual performances by some of our resident artists, we immersed ourselves in their uniquely crafted acoustic environments, bringing to the surface all that they inspired us to imagine.

Featuring works by:

@emmidiately
@mihalisshammas
@marialuigiagioffre
@paul_stan_nataraj
@sumer_erek
@amaiamolinet
@boussadia66

📷: @uniconvisuals

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I had the pleasure of presenting ‘Gaggle’ in the village of Kalavasos, Cyprus.
Realised in collaboration with @paul_stan_nataraj & Mohamed B. Slama, who created the electrifying and special sound for the performance, and @amaiamolinet , who led a ritualistic procession from my performance to Paul’s.
The installation draws attention to the labour involved in producing, handling and moving materials on a large scale. Sugar becomes a metaphor for labour and mass production, connecting to the Kalavasos mines and the wider history of Cyprus, where sugar was once a major export to Europe.
Through the audience participation, filling, carrying and arranging the tea cups, the work brought the everyday into the industrial space of the Olive Mill.
A very special thank you to the people of Kalavasos who lent their tea cups and became part of the work. 🤍

More special thanks to @d6culture & @contesteddesires for the opportunity. 🩵

📸 1-7 @andy.g_photography
📸 8-10 @uniconvisuals
📸 11 @stephenmyle

XF2026 took place as part of @Contested Desires: Constructive Dialogues. #CDCD is co-funded by the @creative.eu programme of the @european.union and is implemented in partnership with:
@eccom_it @d6_eu_, @xarkis__ , @labonnebcn @herengracht401, @muhnac @MuseuNacional @museodellecivilta @proprogressione @bjcem_aisbl @museoegizio @creativecourt._ La Fabrique Art Studio

Associated Partners: @d6culture @larnaka2030 @cyprusuniversitytechnology @fondazionesbac @casa_arabe

In collaboration with: @nubuke_foundation @museodelamemoria RMCG - @uniofleicester

Xarkis Residency is also supported by the Deputy Ministry of Culture & the Community Council of Kalavasos @koinotikosymbouliokalabasou

© Xarkis

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What a way to celebrate the final international residency of @ContestedDesires. 💫

At the @xarkis__ Festival in Kalavasos, all 22 artists came together to share artistic research developed over three years and shaped by encounters with place, history and community.

It was a joy to see D6 artists @patrick_ziza and @paul_stan_nataraj presenting work alongside artists from across Europe, Africa and South America. Through residencies in Cyprus and beyond, they've built relationships, gained new perspectives and developed ideas that will continue to shape their work back home in the North of England.

We were also delighted to reconnect with @efuasutherland, @andreas_mallouris, @afroscope, @marialuigiagioffre and @elguendelman, who have been part of our residency programme in Newcastle.

Thank you to the @xarkis__ team and people of Kalavasos for this incredible opportunity for collaboration and cultural exchange.

As this chapter closes, we're celebrating the friendships and creative possibilities that will carry on long after the residency ends. Thank you to every artist who joined us on the journey. 💫

Contested Desires examines the impact of colonial legacies through artistic collaboration. Co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. In the UK we are grateful for support from @aceagrams, @heritagefunduk, @communityfoundationnortheast & Newcastle Council's Culture Investment Fund.

The programme is implemented in partnership with: @eccom_it @d6_eu_, @xarkis__ , @labonnebcn @herengracht401 @muhnac @museodellecivilta @proprogressione @bjcem_aisbl @museoegizio @creativecourt._, Fabrique Art Studio

Associated Partners: @d6culture @larnaka2030 @cyprusuniversitytechnology @fondazionesbac @casa_arabe

In collaboration with: @nubuke_foundation @museodelamemoria RMCG - @uniofleicester

Images from the Xarkis Festival taken by: Andreas Gregoras @andy.g_photography | Andrea Constantinide @uniconvisuals © Xarkis Artist Maria Luigia Gioffre stands with with her back to the camera facing an audience sat on chairs. She has one arm raised, the other behind her back. The Troodos mountains are in the background.

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A space where acts of care, memory, creativity and resilience were presented and explored. The narrow, picturesque streets of Kalavasos. A makeshift classroom that opened a window into the imagination of the village’s children. And so many other small, fleeting things we already find ourselves missing from our artists, and from the community we shared those 12 days with.

Featuring works by:

@efuasutherland
@elguendelman
@d_o_r_o_t_ttya
@andreas_mallouris
@akalais
@sumer_erek
@asa_sonjasdotter
@patrick_ziza

📷: @uniconvisuals

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We are happy to look back at the recent Xarkis Festival in Kalavasos, where the work of 23 artists came together in a vibrant programme of exhibitions, performances, encounters and exchanges.

As part of @contesteddesires , the festival offered an important space to share the outcomes of artistic research and residencies developed throughout the project.

A special thank you to the @xarkis__ team for bringing these works and encounters together, and to all the participating artists for their commitment and creativity.

We are especially happy to see the work of the artists who also spent time in residence in Amsterdam with us: @chrmndeheij , @sithabileartprojects , @marialuigiagioffre , @carlosnoronhafeio , @efuasutherland , @emmidiately and Mohammed. It has been wonderful to follow their journeys and now see the results of their work.

We are proud to have been part of this process and grateful for the conversations, collaborations and connections that continue to grow.

XF2026 took place as part of Contested Desires: Constructive Dialogues project. CDCD is co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union.
Xarkis Residency is also supported by the Deputy Ministry of Culture & the Community Council of Kalavasos.

Photo by
Andreas Gregoras @andy.g_photography
Andrea Constantinide @uniconvisuals
© Xarkis

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Moments within moments.

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Στιγμές μες στις στιγμές.

Featuring works by:
@amaiamolinet
@bonadyssou
@asa_sonjasdotter
@elguendelman
@andreas_mallouris
@sumer_erek
@gloria_oyarzabal
@nicolas_kyrillou
@koriconceptstore2024

📷: @andy.g_photography & @uniconvisuals

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🪐🫧🌪️🌀🎀
Still processing much of this.
Meanwhile, feeling grateful for the energies, minds, and hearts that came together for XF2026.

Featuring works and words by:

Emiddio Vasquez
@emmidiately
Thea Christoforou
@thea.christoforou
Jimmy Papamiltiades
Dorottya Martin
@d_o_r_o_t_ttya
Bona Dyssou
@bonadyssou
Simone Christoforou
@koriconceptstore2024
Åsa Sonjasdotter
@asa_sonjasdotter
Mathieu Devavry
@devavry
Gaia Olea
@gaiaolea
Maya Luhichi
@maya.louhichi
Lais Andrade
@akalais
Helen Chrysanthou
@helenchrisanthou
Patrick Ziza
@patrick_ziza

🌀

@xarkis__
@contesteddesires
@koinotikosymbouliokalabasou

📷 Andreas Gregoras @andy.g_photography + Andrea Constantinide @uniconvisuals

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A final, for now, thank you.

Thank you to everyone who travelled for hours, from different corners of the world, to participate and share with us.

Thank you to the local community of Kalavasos for being so attentive, generous and open, and for creating the conditions for collaborations to flourish.

To everyone who helped our artists expand and enrich their ideas through the stories they shared, the conversations they had, and the practical support they offered in Kalavasos, thank you.

And thank you to everyone who came, listened, took part, watched, and witnessed the work of 27 individuals who poured so much love into this.

Thank you all. Until next year. ❤️

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Ένα τελευταίο, για τώρα, ευχαριστώ.

Ευχαριστούμε όλους όσους ταξίδεψαν για ώρες, από διαφορετικές γωνιές του κόσμου, για να συμμετάσχουν και να μοιραστούν μαζί μας.

Ευχαριστούμε την τοπική κοινότητα της Καλαβασού για τη βοήθεια και τη γενναιοδωρία της, και που δημιούργησαν τις συνθήκες για να ανθίσουν σχέσεις και συνεργασίες.

Σε όλους όσοι βοήθησαν τους καλλιτέχνες μας να διευρύνουν και να εμπλουτίσουν τις ιδέες τους μέσα από τις ιστορίες που μοιράστηκαν, τις συζητήσεις που είχαν και την πρακτική υποστήριξη που τους προσέφεραν στην Καλαβασό, ένα μεγάλο ευχαριστώ.

Και ευχαριστούμε όλους όσοι ήρθαν, άκουσαν, με συμμετείχαν, παρακολούθησαν και που βίωσαν έργα 27 ανθρώπων γεμάτα αγάπη.

Σας ευχαριστούμε όλους. Τα λέμε σε έναν χρόνο.

📸: @andy.g_photography

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Much grateful for taking part in the Xarkis Festival Contested Desires – Constructive Dialogues in the village of Kalavasos, Cyprus, 11–13 September.

Much to learn, much to process…!

Thanks to the Kalavasos community for hosting us so generously, and to the participating artists for the interesting conversations.

Thanks to the Xarkis team for organising with such care, and to Christina Skarpari for connecting me with knowledgeable people in the region.

Special thanks to goat farmer Petros Petrou, herbalist and gardener Eftichios Varellas, and craftsperson Helen Christanthou for sharing their knowledge and insights. It has been really interesting to learn about your work. As an artist and smallholder, I learned that we share many concerns and challenges, even though our situations are in other ways different.

After the screening of my film Cultivating Abundance, Christanthou told us that some of the non-corporate grains seen in the film are grown on the northern side of Cyprus, but not in the south. This is one example among many of how cultivated plants are deeply embedded in, and part of, our social and political structures.

My participation in Xarkis took place as part of an initiative by Practice Matter/IASPIS, opening a dialogue between practitioners developing decentring, arts-based formats for local and rural organisation and community engagement, with a particular focus on the creation of commonalities, social and ecological regeneration, agriculture, land use and food relations, craft, and the role of trans-cultural and intergenerational knowledge production.

It has been a deeply encouraging stay. Heartfelt thanks to you all!

@xarkis__
@contesteddesires
@christina_skarpari_
@iaspis.se
@asa_sonjasdotter

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Night falls in Kalavasos.

Thank you to everyone who honored us with their presence. XF2026 is a wrap 🌠

📹 by Giorgos Athanasiou @mufatsa

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