“The Niche”, printed document with Mitsakis’ drawings, images of the building and related actions, 24x16 cm, 8th Gymnasium, Athens, 2017 - (design by VIER5)


In 1916, the Nomikos estate in Patissia opened the first open-air school for children suffering from first stages of tuberculosis. In the same area a few years later, the 8th Public Gymnasium was built. In the courtyard of the school, an open-walled chapel was designed by architect Nicholaos Mitsakis. This chapel gave the opportunity to all students, passersby and members of the community to coexist collectively in the courtyard and take part to the rituals. In 1937, the interior walls of the chapel were painted by Spyros Papaloukas. During the German invasion, the chapel was occupied and its walls were whitewashed, while in the 1950s the open side was covered by a wall. The project aims to contribute to the restoration of the chapel to its original form and to collectively activate the residents of the neighborhood, the students, the school’s administration, the church, the Municipality of Athens, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture. Printed material of Mitsakis’ drawings, collective actions around the project, the history of the building and related gestures are being added in an ongoing publication commissioned by documenta 14.