Latent Community: AVATO
Latent Community’s long-term research seeks to gain a deeper understanding of the real and imagined routes that shaped Avato, the home to a long-standing black community, formed during the Ottoman Empire. The audiovisual research is an attempt to explore conflicts of racial, class, and cultural identities, as well as the colonial trajectories between the Ottoman and Western slave trades. In the research, Latent Community will utilize the moving image as a performative tool to examine Avato’s microstories and the ethics of representation between the visible and non-visible.
AVATO is an ongoing interdisciplinary research project initiated in 2019 by visual artists and filmmakers Latent Community (Sotiris Tsiganos & Ionian Bisai). This project delves into the real and imagined routes that have shaped Avato, a secluded town in the regional unit of Xanthi, Greece, which has been home to a longstanding Black community. Avato’s history is intricately woven with the complexities of the Ottoman slave trade, forced displacement during the Ottoman Empire, and both Western and non-Western colonialism. Making a profound exploration of cultural belonging, historical ownership, and racial justice, the project uncovers the silenced narratives of Avato’s marginalized community.
Avato (Άβατο), meaning “no-go zone,” is the name of a remote Greek town where a predominantly Muslim community of African descent has resided for over two centuries. The community consists of descendants of those forcibly moved during the Ottoman slave trade, facing the challenge of tracing their origins due to historical disruptions. Despite being Greek citizens, the community living in this borderland remains unrecognized by the state, symbolizing broader issues of social marginalization and cultural erasure.
AVATO employs the moving image as a relational tool to delve into the micro-histories of the community while exploring the ethics of representation. The project investigates Avato through its missing history, narrative gaps, and archives, examining the intersection of racial, class, and cultural identities within the context of the Ottoman slave trade and contemporary Europe. The artists utilize personal experiences and stories as a lens, juxtaposing the personal and political spheres in the delicate balance between nonfiction and fiction.
Onassis AiR provided a platform for critical reflection on narrative strategies, filling in the missing pieces of Avato’s story. Throughout the project, the artists grappled with the ethical dimensions of representation, questioning how film practices could challenge existing perceptions of marginalized communities. With the aid of the Tailor-made Residency, the artists extended their fieldwork, revisiting the remote place to meet with the community again and collaboratively produce new original material. The research culminated in an experimental visual diary, presented through photographic series and an experimental film serving as field notes. This polyphonic narrative captures the essence of everyday life in Avato, emphasizing the urgency of the research and sparking dialogues about the role of art in community engagement. By delving into Avato’s community history, the project not only illuminates the community’s struggle for recognition but also underscores broader issues of cultural erasure, racial injustice, and the state’s slow violence.
