What role can jokes and folk traditions have in contemporary art? Over the past fifteen years Spyros Aggelopoulos has explored different elements of folk culture in his work as an artist and performer. In a conversation with Julia Secklehner, recorded on 20 May 2023, he discusses the role of the jester in truth-telling and the freedom we can all find in theatricality. As Spyros notes, in 1922-3 hundreds of thousands of individuals caught up in the Greco-Turkish War and population exchange experienced a disorientating palimpsest of identities: Turks who found themselves on the “wrong” side of a border were forced to move to the “right” side, sent “home” as Turks, yet ostracized by their new community as “Greeks”. The same happened in reverse to those on the other side.

In his current project Karagiozis in Asia Minor the (Greek) Karagiozis goes off to war, never to return. Instead the (Turkish) Karagöz “returns”, disguised as Karagiozis. It is only on Halloween, when everyone is disguised, that “Karagiozis” can appear as himself, revealed and yet disguised. “It’s a double, triple identity game, ” Spyros observes, “It’s a trick, it’s a joke. The play itself is a trick.” This is a story without resolution: nothing comes to a neat and tidy end. “It’s really important for this specific play not to have a resolution. At the end nothing changes. Time is not linear, especially for [Karagöz/Karagiozis]. It has a lot of humourous sketches, but the play is a tragedy.” An ardent admirer of Buster Keaton, Spyros is fascinated with Holy Fools, con-artists, scammers and jesters. Karagiozis in Asia Minor exploits this figure’s privileged position as truth-teller:

A jester can tell you the truth that you don’t want to hear about yourself, about your soldiers, about the things that you did. When a puppet says it, you will hear it. You will laugh when you hear it, but when you go home, you will think about it.

Spyros Aggelopoulos (b.1979, Greece) is a graduate of the Athens School of Fine Art, the Arts Academy in Venice and Studio4 in Los Angeles. His work has been exhibited in the ‘Mind the Fact Festival’ (online, 2020), ‘Friends Non-Show’ (Dio Horia Gallery, Athens, 2020), ‘Pai o Palios o Chronos’ (online, 2020), Art Fair EXPO Chicago (2019) and Donut Factory (Dio Horia Gallery, Mykonos, 2019). His work has been featured in ArtForum, The Guardian, Chicago Tribune and Art News among other cultural media. He lives and works in Athens, Greece.

Episode 34 – Karagöz/Karagiozis

Podcasts are published by TLP for the purpose of encouraging informed debate on the legacies of the events surrounding the Lausanne Conference. The views expressed by participants do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of TLP, its partners, convenors or members.

MAIN IMAGE COURTESY SPYROS AGGELOPOULOS