SPOLIA 44
Byzantine closure slab relief with a banded lozenge flanked by four large rosettes and a banded cross with five smallrosettes in the middle, Little Metropolis of Athens.
This exhibition presents multi-layered paper squeezes by Nora Okka, depicting crosses, symbols of infinity and inscriptions of the Little Metropolis of Athens.
At the core of her work is an innovative expansion of the epigrapher’s traditional “squeeze” technique, historically used to copy inscriptions for scholarly translation. She transforms this archival method into a multi-layered material process. Through successive paper impressions that capture relief sculpture in depth and texture, she merges inscription tracing with sculptural casting logic. Applied to the spolia of the Little Metropolis of Athens, this technique elevates fragments into dynamic, modular compositions. The resulting works can be rearranged, juxtaposed, and closely examined—allowing viewers to experience architectural memory as something tactile, living, and continually reconfigured.
A key institutional reference point is the Inscriptiones Graecae collection at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. Since the 19th century, squeezes (paper impressions) of ancient Greek inscriptions have been systematically collected and studied there.
Presented by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, this exhibition is organized and initiated with the support of the Schwarz Foundation.
Location
Foyer der Akademie der Wissenschaften Berlin
Unter den Linden 8, 10117 Berlin
- Wednesday, June 24
Antiquity Under Pressure Continuity Through Change and the European Narrative
- Keynote lecture: Dr Cristina RuggeroAntiquitatum Thesaurus
- Prof. Dr Horst BredekampΑrt Ηistorian, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
- Dr Martin MaischbergerDirector of the Collection of Antiquities, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
- Prof. Dr Lorenz Winkler-HoračekCurator of the Cast Collection of Classical Sculpture, Freie Universität Berlin
- Moderation: Dr Annette von StockhausenDepartment of Biblical Exegesis in Late Antiquity (BBAW)
