A (X) table(s) is a series of 4 videos from the bodies of work Chez Naussicaa that revisits the definition of ξενία (xenia) in the light of the current refugee situation in Greece while actualizing the practice of Ancient Greek hospitality and French Savoir-Vivre in contemporary society. In this reciprocal relation, the host has to show respect to the guest by providing him/her with food, drink, bath and gifts and treating him/her as if potentially a disguised divinity without never asking any question about his/her identity. In return, the guest has to show respect to the host by being courteous and, when ready, reveal his/her identity and share his/her story.

 

For this project, the artist recreates the ancient guest-host relationship by inviting in a traditional Greek home, small groups of Greek locals, refugees and expats to share anonymously a home-made dinner, reactualizing along the way the guest-host relationship described in the Odyssey. The human interactions and personal stories that unfolded during each meal acted as the starting point for the artist to create a multimedia body of works exploring the revealing of the Self and relationship with the Other. She looked at the way identity shifted within the framework of the dinner thru the simple and genuine human interactions that spontaneously and organically occurred.

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The series of four video works that use the unedited uncut footage taken from four different tables during different dinner performances to explore the physical interactions and non-verbal communication that occur between the strangers/guests of the table.  Starting with one video in the first piece À (1) table(s), the artist starts superposing a second in À (2) table(s), a third in À (3) table(s), and ultimately a fourth in À (4) table(s). The body of works explores how the same gestures, patterns and rituals keep on repeating among strangers within a table but also between the tables themselves. The layered videos take on different days during different performances seem to continuously respond and interact with each other as all guest were part of one single table.

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