We Could be heroes

The Blender Gallery presents a different, multidimensional exhibition, the theme of which focuses on superheroes and comics. The exhibition consists of authentic comic books, artwork depicting superheroes and signed prints of some of the most famous comic designers of the world as well as audiovisual content. Comics are used to express ideas through images and are often combined with other visual information. They were originally placed horizontally in newspapers, magazines and other forms of publications. The first comic book appeared in the United States in 1933. Some of the main comic categories are Detective Comics and Action Comics. Comics are considered to be the 9th art, the most recent and impressive form of art of the 20th century.At the very beginning, comics were commentaries on daily routine topics. As time passed issues such as violence, sexuality, social class differences and parodies emerged in the themes depicted in comics. Year by year comic art became more and more commercial. Then Marvel Entertainment and DC were introduced to take their place, presenting superhero characters that are now famous all around the world such as Superman, Spiderman, Batman, Ironman, Wonder Woman, Hulk and many more. “We Could Be Heroes”, the title of the exhibition, emphasizes the importance of superheroes nowadays. A hero is a person who is admired for his courage, for his outstanding achievements and noble qualities. Whenever there is a problem/ challenge, heroes prevail through self-sacrifice. It’s a figure one looks up to and adapts his personality traits in order to become a better person. According to Cohen, a hero is an everyday human being, who has outstanding persistence and belief in doing good deeds. This is the role model on which most of the comic artists based their work. Humans have the need to feel protected and safe. That was one of the main reasons why superheroes were created; to make people feel that no matter what happens, there will always be someone to “save” them. The main goal of the exhibition is to surprise the visitors by transferring them to a different world – the world of comics, superheroes and marvels. “We could be heroes” is a polymorphic exhibition that will captivate the attention of the viewer. Immediacy- variety-amazement; these three characteristics perfectly describe the nature of the exhibition.The participating artists are: Kron, Konstantinos Patsios, Gabriel Tompalidis, Petros Christoulias, George Botsos and Zoe Pane. There will be artwork inspired by comics and superheroes. Some compositions consist vivid colors, whilst the black and white artwork reminds us of the old sketches.The audience will see superheroes through the eyes of each artist, with the various perspectives ranging – from Batman’s reinterpretation as Captain Bat to Spiderman’s relocation in a Renaissance environment. The Blender Gallery collaborating with Comicdom and Jemma Comics, in the context of this exhibition. The two institutions add many exciting layers to the exhibition’s curation. We could all be heroes. We can be heroes for our family, for our friends, for society. Heroes who are supportive and who are always by each other’s side. Heroes who protect, who listen and love. Despite our imperfections, we can all be heroes. Flaws, insecurities, fear represent the human side of super heroes. That is the core of humanity.
Curators: Iason Theofanidis, Marianna Mavroudi