Mary Cox

Mary Cox works deal with the subject of unauthorized immigration in Greece. Because of its position as a border state in the European Union, Greece has received an ever growing influx of immigrants from many regions in the last few years. Once a completely homogeneous society, Greece is now struggling to accommodate people of different cultures. Mary Cox' own experience of being an outsider makes her sensitive to the experience of foreigners.

Mary Cox was born 1958 in USA. She lives and works in Vari, Greece. Her work deals with the subject of unauthorized immigration in Greece. Because of its position as a border state in the European Union, Greece has received an evergrowing influx of immigrants from many regions in the last few years. Once a completely homogeneous society, Greece is now struggling to accommodate people of different cultures, with all the strains that entails. Mary Cox'own experience of being an outsider throughout her life makes her sensitive to the experience of foreigners. She is moved by the tenacity of immigrants to the goal of a better life, and she is constantly amazed at how businesses are set up on the margins of society, providing an economic niche to destitute newcomers. In her work Mary Cox juxtaposes n photographic elements with hand-made marks in order to evoke ideas of the new versus the old, and the "real" versus the "ideal". In repetitive motifs from ancient Greek and Islamic art, she alludes to fallen great civilizations and the current destabilization of the status quo.

Collage and oil painting.