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A new exhibition opening in Athens is offering visitors a closer look at the lasting impact of division on Europe’s last divided capital, Nicosia, and the resilience of its residents.
The Sector 2: Nicosia exhibition opened Tuesday at the former Public Tobacco Factory of the Hellenic Parliament, a venue chosen for its symbolic connection to Cyprus and its turbulent history. “The exhibition goes beyond the borders of Cyprus and touches on European concerns about memory, trauma, and the need to build bridges in times of polarization such as today,” Deputy Minister of Culture Vasiliki Kassianidou said at the opening.
The exhibition uses photographs, archival documents, oral testimonies, and contemporary art to explore the Green Line, which has split Nicosia since 1963. According to Kassianidou, the display provides a modern, experiential way to understand how the city’s division has shaped daily life and its urban landscape for decades.
Hellenic Parliament President Nikitas Kaklamanis described the Green Line as more than a physical boundary. “It is the closed doors and sealed windows, the families that were separated, the properties abandoned, the memories left hanging,” he said. “But it is also the endurance, perseverance, and dignity of the people who learned to live with trauma without giving up hope.”
Kaklamanis added that he will visit Cyprus on March 20, calling it “a symbolic gesture to show that our peoples, through our Parliaments, are also in full support and solidarity.”
Ambassador of Cyprus to Greece, Stavros Avgoustides, noted that the exhibition turns memory into a bridge, not a wall. “Sector 2: Nicosia invites us to see memory as freedom and peace, concepts that take on even greater importance in an international environment full of challenges,” he said.
The exhibition, which runs in Athens from March 11 to May 24, has been redesigned to fit the Tobacco Factory space while preserving its historical and experiential narrative. A parallel exhibition continues in Nicosia until June 17 at the Leventis Municipal Museum.
Speeches at the opening were also delivered by the Mayor of Nicosia, Charalambos Prountzos, and the President of the A.G. Leventis Foundation, Anastasios P. Leventis, emphasizing the collaborative and symbolic nature of the project, which forms part of the Cultural Programme of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU 2026.
