The triptych of photogravure prints presented here brings together traditional printmaking techniques and existential enquiry with considerable precision, strongly recalling the chiaroscuro of film noir and early silent cinema. Conceived as an ontological narrative of memory, mortality and transformation, the composition speaks to our deep-seated impulse to venture into the unknown.
In Say Cheese (2025), a grid divided into six panels presents textured white silhouettes in stark contrast with a deep black void. A vertical sequence of three closely positioned profiles or masks runs through the composition. This mystical trinity, a timeless witness, is a recurring motif in Alexia’s practice and introduces us to her ritualistic visual language.
Is the grid a compartmentalisation of time? Of memory? Are we witnessing the divide between a primordial understanding of the human form and the idealised proportions of ancient Greek sculpture? The work suggests either an evolution or an endless cycle of human existence unfolding beneath the vigilant gaze of eternity.
In Sailing (2026), a large vessel occupies the centre of the composition, suspended within a field marked by scratch-like striations and traces of graphite. Inside the boat sits an imposing sculptural head with hollow eyes, surrounded by a group of smaller, amorphous forms resembling skulls or fetuses.
The work draws on ancient Greek mythology, evoking Charon’s boat and the passage of souls across the River Styx. It becomes a cosmic vessel of memory and mortality. The rough incisions of the background contrast with the smooth, almost reassuring forms of the central figure, bringing into focus the tension between earthly chaos and the quiet, ritualistic process of transformation.
In Fig Tree (2025), a barren, rugged landscape – an island or mountain peak – lies beneath a darkened sky. A large, spectral white head hangs in the upper-left section of the composition, luminous yet clouded, leaving a trail of light behind it. The heavy grain and motion blur recall early analogue photography, as though capturing a fleeting, otherworldly phenomenon.
The print depicts the culmination of an existential journey: the passage from physical mortality to spiritual transcendence. The suspended, blurred profile operates as a contemporary memento mori, freed from the rigid confines embodied by the landscape behind it. It is a dissolution of form into light and the unknown, both ominous and literal.
Alexia Triantafyllou (b. 1995) is an artist and printmaker based in Zurich. She graduated from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Her practice focuses primarily on printmaking, incorporating lithography, photography and digital elements. She also works across sculpture, scenography and animation.
Influenced by silent cinema and classical proportions, her dramatic visual language draws on ancient Greek mythology and Orthodox iconography to address existential themes. Her distinctive motif of three silhouetted figures functions as a timeless symbol of memory, mortality and transformation, bringing classical tradition into dialogue with contemporary enquiry.
Text by Silvia Laurelli