OYSTER EATERS

(Solo Show) 

Curated by Tenia Menegaki

APODEC Gallery

April 12 – May 15 / 2024

Thessaloniki

OYSTER EATERS

In the heart of a small, peaceful lake nestled deep in the lap of towering mountains, there was a community unlike any other. They were the Oyster Eaters, a tribe whose existence revolved around eating black Oysters. Life for the Oyster Eaters was simple, without purpose or meaning and was enriched by hard work in the lake they inhabited. They lived in huts built on stilts that rose above the muddy waters and their existence was intertwined with the ebb and flow of the waters that sustained them. Their days passed slowly, diving into the depths and harvesting the coveted black Oysters.

Every morning, as the sun began to peek above the horizon, the Oyster Eaters gathered on the shores while their faces illuminated by the faint light of dawn. With practiced hands, they opened the rough Oysters, revealing the glistening treasures within. Each Oyster was eaten with reverence, as if it held the key to unlocking the mysteries of the universe. These mystical shellfish seem to hold within them not only food, but a whole world of psychedelic experiences.

Every night, the Oyster Eaters gathered around the communal fires eating Oysters and interpreting the visions and experiences they were given. With each juicy bite, they felt themselves drifting further away from the constraints of reality, opening up new possibilities of vision beyond comprehension. These experiences not only provided an escape from the hardships of their daily lives, but also served as a catalyst for their creativity and spiritual growth.

These individuals had long delved into the mystical properties of Oysters, believing that their consumption could unlock portals to other dimensions and realms beyond the mundane. Of course, this ritual was not just about nutrition. It was a gateway to the psychedelic depths of their consciousness. In the throes of their visionary experiences, they communicated with ancient spirits and gained deep insights into the mysteries of existence. Some had become lost in the labyrinth of their own minds, unable to return to the physical realm, and others had experienced visions so profound that they struggled to distinguish reality from illusion.

It is so common that once a year, during the great full moon, the Oyster Eaters set out on a sacred journey. They would gather at the edge of the rocky shore where the water met the land and partake in a feast of freshly Oysters. As they consumed the salty delicacies, they entered a state of ecstasis, guided by the whispers of the lake. So, beneath the moonlit skies, they continued their mystical journey, forever seeking the elusive balance between enlightenment and madness, guided by the wisdom that lay within the humble shell.

But their practices were not harmless. Eating raw Mussels carried the risk of disease and many foreigners warned against it. However, the Oyster Eaters remained undaunted, believing that the rewards far outweighed the risks. To foreigners, Oyster Eaters were considered primitive, their rituals dismissed as dangerous and irrational. However, within their tight-knit community, they were revered for their bravery and insight.

In their crude kitchens, they prepared meals infused with the essence of Mussels. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were accompanied by the intoxicating flavors of their precious delicacy. Oyster soups, stir-fries and tofu, sauces, pastas, drinks, etc approve that they found endless ways to incorporate the mystical shellfish into every aspect of their lives. It seems that eating Oysters was not just a culinary experience for them, but a mystical practice with unique transformative effects.

For Oyster Eaters, the act of eating Oysters was a rebellion against the constraints of civilization, a return to their primal roots. Embracing the raw, raw and untamed, they found release from the mundane trappings of Modern life. [1]

_{[[1] The text was written by Dimitris Fragakis with the help of the chatGTP application using as material all his diary notes and thoughts, on the fictional story of the ”Oyster Eaters”.}

To the road Non-existence: Thoughts on the occasion of the solo exhibition of Dimitris Fragakis “Oyster Eaters”.

It is probably necessary for the visitor to have this novelistic imaginative narrative of a few paragraphs compiled by the Artist, enriched mainly with landscape scenes, customary traditions, psycho-physical analyzes and anecdotes, for a smooth introduction to the thematic exhibition. Thus, it will be easier to approach the rich, strange and complex story that Dimitris Fragakis composed and presents in his fourth solo exhibition entitled “Oyster Eaters”.

The “Oyster Eaters” are a cycle of painting works on paper, based on and refers to a phobia of many people related to the handling, consumption, and management of Oysters (mainly the black-blue mussels also called Mytilus Edulis / Dithyra) throughout the history of the human species, but more specifically, from the moment he integrated them into his food culture. Oysters are renowned for their rich nutritional value when consumed sparingly, while they carry a high risk of food poisoning that can even result in death, if and when consumed from water areas that are polluted, environmentally burdened or consumed after poor maintenance and seniority. Since prehistoric times, man has been confronted with this heterogeneous existence.

”I can’t eat Oysters, I only paint them, often from nature.

But sometimes, I draw people,

  to eat them with gluttony.” [2]

The first works of the “Oyster Eaters” series were created by D.F in the period 2019 – 2021 with a sense of humor and self-mockery towards the human species and its weaknesses. The imaginative narratives that appear within the painting textures of the works focus mainly on the systematic consumption and overconsumption of Oysters present it as a special, uniquely unrepeatable, exceptionally qualitative and often intensely traumatic experience.

According to the ancient Aristotelian theory of the Four Fluids, the Health of human existence depends on the balance of the four basic fluids in the body: blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile. Black bile is associated with melancholy and sadness in ancient medicine and philosophy, while it is formally identified with the Oyster of the story of the Oyster Eaters, since it is used as an organ that can pour fluids that affect the moods of the Mind and body.

Oysters, are seen many times in the works of the series, to be consumed whole and others transformed: in solid, in liquid, but also in gaseous form. It is implied that they were internalized in a familiar or other somewhat more divine way, making a mark on the multiple and unpredictable ramifications of the modern way of life.

For Dimitris Fragakis, the Oysters is a powerful symbol of sensitivity and at the same time of asceticism, with its almond-shaped hard shell, its ‘velvety’ physiology inside and its isolated rocky life, confirming this meaningfully.

“I have never stopped believing that whoever eats Mussels, sooner or later,

he will face his personal demons,

passing through his most terrifying visions.’’

The story of the Oyster Eaters, present a state of Man, which is undisturbed by social and environmental events and free from the influence of space and time. In this interpretation, Oyster Eaters represent a way of thinking or a state of being, which is free from the stress and anxiety of life. There, the Mind is at peace, with the body living its absolute non-existence.

In any case, eating Oysters promises to be the ‘pill’ you need to reach where you can’t, where you will overcome the fear of real Life, now being guided towards the gates of personal Bliss.

”There are people who eat Oysters raw, alive,

shocking them with fresh lemon juice,

thereby confirming their vitality.

I know some of them personally.”

_{[2] All phrases in quotation marks that separate the sections of the text are from diary notes of Dimitris Fragakis.}