The Anogeia Weaving Center is hosting the exhibition Beyond the Loom through 25 October 2026. Conceived as a contemporary art exhibition in dialogue with the Center’s permanent exhibition, Genealogy in the Thread, it expands the narrative around weaving, from its historical and experiential dimensions to its contemporary artistic interpretations.
Curated by art historian Vicky Tsirou, the exhibition opened on 6 September as part of the 2nd Anifantho Festival and brings together works by five emerging artists: Maria-Eleftheria Kallergi, Valia Kapeletzi, Dimitra Konstantinidou, Eirini Xanthiti and Ermioni Syrogiannopoulou.
Taking thread, weaving, materiality, time, community, female identity and collective memory as points of departure, the participating artists approach weaving through different artistic media. Experimental and established techniques coexist, creating a space of encounter with the historical textiles already housed at the Center.
In her sculptural installation Mnimon, Ermioni Syrogiannopoulou draws on the mythological associations between weaving and the ancient Fates. Using rusted and galvanised wire, she incorporates subtle references to traditional textiles and rugs, while the repetition, tying and cutting of each wire transform weaving into a process of confronting time and the limits of the human body.
With the site-specific installation Enfolding, Valia Kapeletzi explores the relationship between movement and stillness. Five fabric panels arranged in an elliptical formation create an enclosed space, where transparency and apparent emptiness emerge as structural elements of the composition. In Interwoven, the artist creates a study of structure in fabric—a micro-sculpture composed of layered textile surfaces.
In her series The Whirr of the Shuttle, Eirini Xanthiti focuses on the significance of local materials and their inherent capacity to acquire broader references. Reed, a material closely associated with the Greek countryside and weaving, lies at the heart of her work. In the three sculptures, reeds coexist with threads that have been woven or rewoven using the traditional mitochteniasma technique, creating a cohesive web connecting body, time, memory and sound.
In her series Culture Travels: The Journey of Culture, Dimitra Konstantinidou focuses on the unique gesture of each weaver, the way she handles her tools and materials, and the knowledge transmitted through the very act of creation. The memory of the intergenerational ritual of initiation into the art of embroidery meets thread, needle, the traditional charcoal iron and decorative motifs.
In Ekdyma, Maria-Eleftheria Kallergi draws inspiration from what is discarded or left behind—material and emotional remnants, such as wool from sheep shearing or the memory of a grandmother’s hands knitting. Visually evoking a garment, an empty shell made of natural wool, the work is connected to the successive gestures involved in collecting, washing, spinning and weaving wool, as well as to the knowledge and memories passed down from one generation to the next.
A Dialogue Between Memory and Contemporary Creation
The presence of Beyond the Loom at the Anogeia Weaving Center takes on particular significance through its coexistence with Genealogy in the Thread, the Center’s permanent exhibition, which presents textiles from families in Anogeia and sheds light on their relationship with the place, the women who created them, the techniques and symbols they employ, and the stories they carry.
In the same space, traditional textiles from the previous century encounter works by young women artists. This coexistence creates a dialogue between different generations and different forms of creation, with weaving know-how serving as the starting point for a living cultural practice that continues to inspire contemporary artistic expression.
This encounter is closely connected to the mission of the Anogeia Weaving Center, which was established on the foundation of Anogeia’s deep relationship with the art of the loom, with a focus on preserving, studying and promoting weaving as a form of living cultural heritage.
At the heart of its activities are the research and documentation of historical textiles, techniques and oral testimonies, the education of younger generations, and the reactivation of valuable skills that have been passed down from generation to generation over decades. At the same time, through exhibitions, educational and research programmes, and collaborations, the Center expands the dialogue between weaving and the visual and applied arts, design and contemporary forms of creation.
Beyond the Loom represents another field of this encounter, allowing historical memory and contemporary creation to coexist within the same space and to shape new ways of understanding weaving today.
The exhibition forms part of the programme of the 2nd Anifantho Festival, held in Anogeia as part of the parallel Women initiative of the 2026 Crete Festival, co-organised with the Region of Crete, the Autonomous Equality Office of the Region of Crete and the Municipality of Anogeia.
Until 25 October 2026
