Mary Reid Kelley and Patrick Kelley

EΜΣΤ presnts the first presentation in Greece of the work of Mary Reid Kelley and Patrick Kelley, known for their distinctive, irreverent, witty and humorous films, which conjoin painting, poetry, caricature and satire. As part of the What If Women Ruled the World? cycle, the duo present their work The Rape of Europa (2021).

A contemporary take on Titian’s Renaissance masterpiece of the same name, where Europa is given agency, voice and attitude – the work is a deliberate contrast to Titian’s objectified, passive depiction. Liberating Europa from a subservient and silent role that she has long been forced to play in art and literature, here she becomes a naughty, often foul-mouthed polemical advocate and spokeswoman for women’s rights.

The film Rape of Europa takes as its point of departure in the Roman myth, whereby Europa – the Phoenician princess and mother of King Minos of Crete – was abducted by Jupiter, the king of the gods, who masqueraded in the form of friendly bull. Having gained her trust, he raped her and the children she bore him became the founders of the European continent.