Rafika Saouis

I have studied acting and linguistics. I have been working as an actress, performer and a theater-maker in the political and documentary theater in Greece. In 2014, she created the company Zlap. Zlap's performances Notebooks of Crisis, Volume I and Notebook of Crisis, Volume II touring nationally and internationally. Since then I have created projects in the National Theater if Oslo, in Mexico, in NYC and in Berlin. I have been awarded with the ibsen scholarship and the NEON grant. My practice involves around the question what nationality, citizenship and belonging really means. I'm interested in creating interdisciplinary and multicultural platforms for permanent and transient residents, targeting to inclusion and breaking the stereotypes and barriers we are surrounded with.

In 2014 until 2016 I visited individually various first reception camps around the Mediterranean basin using the tools of art to create a daydreaming and revolutionary platform for unaccompanied refugee minors inside the camps. In 2015 together with fellow artists we documented around the camps in Athens who are the artists and created art residency programs outside of the camps to promote free accessibility where we were bringing together local transient, newcomers and international artists together. Today from this initiative a platform of artists around the world has been created called Blind Platform. In 2018 it was awarded by the European Union as an example of creating art platforms that promote an organic inclusion and agency. Here is the link of the platform where you may see photos of the first and second residency program.