This work is part of my wider engagement focused on abandoned places and the connection between space and historical memory.
“Nicosia International Airport” is such a place. A painful symbol of division and a part of the island’s turbulent history, the airport was the site of long and bloody battles. It ceased to operate after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. These days it’s not accessible to the public, as it is located in the United Nations-patrolled “buffer zone” and is used by the world body as the headquarters of its peacekeeping force on the island. Memory is linked to places, while history to events, and Pierre Nora talks about the interaction that leads to their mutual definition.On the other hand, Robert Ginsberg talks about ruins and their aesthetics, explaining that their beauty is not only in themselves but also in what is hiding inside of them.Through this work, I tried to transport viewers to the past and enable them to understand the historical context of the place and its symbolism, as the perpetuation of the dividing status quo will leave it vulnerable to the disastrous passage of time and a permanent of the division of the island. [35ο 09’00’’Ν033ο16’38’’Ε] [ΙΑΤΑ: NIC – ICAO: LCNC]
About Dimitris Sideridis
Dimitris Sideridis was born in Istanbul, Turkey in November 1970. He studied architectural design at AKTO College of Arts and Design. He has been an active photographer since 1992.He has attended seminars, conferences and lectures with many distinguished photographers and with Greek Reporters’ Society.He has also attended art, history of art, photography classes on studio techniques, advertising photography and applied photography at Athens Art Studio, as well as workshops regarding Photography at the Department of Art and Applied Arts of the School of Arts of the University of Western Macedonia, in Greece.
He was awarded a scholarship twice at the New School Athens Photography. In 2012 he formed a photography team composed of other photographers called RIGMA and he has been an active member in several other photography groups. At the same year, Onassis Cultural Center has chosen one of his photographs to be viewed at the Foundation’s facade.He has been an active member of DOC4LIFE a multimedia press agency since 2013. He has also been a freelance photojournalist for Al Jazeera Media Network (Qatar), covering social issues and news.
He has been collaborating since 2016 with the production company Visual Suspect (Honk Kong), with EFSYN newspaper/web (Greece). From 2017 with CNN Travel (USA) and PRO-TV (Qatar) as a Photo Manager, from 2018. He has curated and participated in many exhibitions in Greece and abroad. In December 2016 he moved to Doha, Qatar.
