Helidon Gjergji's 'Searching for Art' at COD Tirana

Helidon Gjergji's exhibition 'Searching for Art' runs until March 5, 2022, at the COD Centre for Openness and Dialogue in Tirana, Albania. Curated by Santa Nastro, the show is located in the lobby of the Prime Minister's office, a space designed to open institutions to citizens. Gjergji, born in Tirana and based in New York, has exhibited at the 52nd Venice Biennale, the 8th Manifesta in Murcia, the first Tirana Biennial, and the 12th Venice Architecture Biennale, as well as at the New Museum, Museo Madre, and Chelsea Art Museum. The exhibition explores thought mechanisms and internet influence, questioning reality versus fiction, truth versus falsehood, and art versus image. Works include the story of 'Eugene the Egg'—a 2019 image by Chris Godfrey that gained 5 million followers and 55 million likes—and 'How to make a painting?', where Gjergji asks Google questions like 'What is not a masterpiece?', yielding surprising answers: Michelangelo's 'Last Judgment' contains a cat, and Munch's 'The Scream' becomes an avocado.