(to the stones) we lent you our breath and you whispered it back to the earth

Salamiou, Cyprus, (34°51’07.5”N 32°39’42.7”E), a terraced community enclosed by two rivers, resembling an island within an island. A chatter of stones is heard.

Tracing the rhythms of drystone building practices, an ancient communal practice of building without binding mortar, the exhibition proposes an operational chain of gathering, sorting and placing. Determined by the movement of bodies at work, primarily the hands, this chain establishes an intersection between ecology of the land and the commons of those inhabiting it. Echoing this shared labour, the pavilion is collectively put together by people with backgrounds in architecture, drystone building, curating, hospitality, and the arts as well as invited public participation.

Groups of hands gather stones into piles. Pause. A hand lifts a stone to an ear, [inaudible].

Tending to the dialectal concerns of the land, stones are reconfigured as carriers of utility, shifting the focus from what they “are” to what they “do” or “say”. The stones, embedded in their communities, carry relations of life-sustaining foodscapes, holding shared histories traced upon the land. 

Even we—the stones—quaked when we heard it. Whispers merge with the sound of moving hands and feet.

The eastern Mediterranean’s almost 10,000-year-old “Fertile Crescent”, arching from Persia, across Mesopotamia over the Levant, cultivated terraced foodscapes by interconnected communities. Cyprus shares this geography that determines history in the long duration. In the current Capitalocene, this region is witnessing not only late-industrial transformations that fracture communities and land through systems of value extraction, but also the disruption of these relations by colonial, genocidal and ecocidal violence that displaces people and militarises ecologies. Within this context, drystone practices preserve a way of opposing systems of dispossession and ecological degradation, defending instead a system of value rooted in collective care and fair access to the land.  

(To the Stones) we lent you our breath and you whispered it back to the earth.

The exhibition space invites visitors to engage with the sequential logic of the operational chain, each room reflecting a phase, contextualized through evolving stone structures and accompanying narratives. A publication by Fisherwomxn, offers a collage of thoughts which move beyond the space and boundaries of hegemonic architecture, leaking back into the realities that surround us.

The public is invited to join the team in setting up the final circular drystone structure on May 9 and 10, daily from 4–6pm. During the opening week, we will gather through a variety of engagements, including screenings, performative gestures, shared meals, and conversations. The full programme will be announced progressively on @10m3stones as we approach the opening. Activations will continue throughout the duration of the exhibition in Cyprus, returning this dialogue to the communities from which these knowledges are drawn.

The practices we share have been passed down to us through generations and living communities. Across time and space, we continue to build upon each other’s knowledge:

Architect, Researcher & Curator: Sevina Floridou; Drystone Artisans: Terract Salamiou (Argyris Panayiotou, Panayiotis Panayiotou); Project Coordinators & Co-Curators: Nicola Mitropoulou & Clara Zinecker; Architect, Researcher & Exhibition Murals: Aaron Gatt; Artists & Researchers: Fisherwomxn (Seta Astreou-Karides, Miriam Gatt, Ioulita Toumazi)

Sound Artist: Elena Savvidou; Lighting Design: Demetris Shammas; Fisherwomxn Film Collaborators: Keti Papadema, Andreas Anastasiades, Alexandra Astreou-Karides; Stools: Tradition Now (Artisan: Angelos Papatheocharous); Organisers of Activations in Cyprus: Odessa Warren, Reem Rizk, Marina Christodoulidou, Nicola Mitropoulou & Clara Zinecker

Production Coordinator: Julia Terzano; Production Support: Donatella Murtas; Stone Suppliers: Roberta and Pier Carlo Berchialla, A.L.P. Pietra di Langa Cortemilia; Technical Support: Dario Saveri, Demetris Kallasides; Hospitality: Terract Salamiou (Vasiliki P. Petropoulou); Exhibition Opening Dramaturgical Support: Dimitris Chimonas; Graphic Design: Miriam Gatt; Commissioner: Petros Dymiotis; Organised and Sponsored by: Cyprus Deputy Ministry of Culture—Department of Contemporary Culture; Sponsored by: Leventis Foundation, Medochemie Ltd

Opening hours: Tuesday–Sunday, May 10 to September 28, 11am–7pm. September 29 to November 23: 10am–6pm.