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Curriculum Vitae
Irini (Irene) Athanassakis (ΕΙΡΗΝΗ ΑΘΑΝΑΣΑΚΗ)

*1968, greek and austrian nationalities

lives in Paris since 2014 after staying in Berlin, Vienna, Prague, London et Athens.

My artistic-research work includes images, words, objects and theoretical writings published and shown mostly in Germany, Austria, France and Greece. Questions on how to live together are evolving around the topics of life, love and oiko-nomia (eco-nomics and eco-logics of life and for life).

Artistic (sculpture et transmedia art at the University of Applied Arts,Vienna, Austria), philosophical (doctoral studies in history of art and philosophy, Vienna, Austria) and econmic training (european business schools in Reutlingen (D) and London (GB))  led to the emulation of research around images, signs, words and objects that surround us in a ludico-sémiotic manner, concentrating mostly on questions of the economy - oikonomia as ways of living together.

Before my artistic training, I worked as financial auditor for KPMG in Vienna, Paris and Berlin (1990-1994). After graduating at the University of Applied Arts 1999 on „The Possible and the Uncertain“ I taught as  researcher in the Institute of Design (Prof. Alison Clarke/ Prof. Paolo Piva) at the University of Applied Arts Vienna (De-Sign - Über Zeichen und Dinge – about everyday signs and objects 2001-2004). I pursued my doctoral research on financial shares as images et objects of culture (and belief) „Die Aktie als Bild“, and obtained my PhD with distinction, in 2007 (published 2008 by Springer Vienna/New York).
Since then I have been working on bonds and obligations. With Thomas Macho, I initiated the conférence and the book „BONDS. Schuld, Schulden und andere Verbindlichkeiten“ (Bonds. Debt, guilt and other liabilities), a cooperation of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin (D). I am currently working on a Post-Doc Project on „Bonds in Real and in Fiction“ with the Humboldt-University of Berlin (D) and/ or the Kunstuniversität Linz (A). The debt of life or rather the gift of life and love are discussed in relation to financial arrangements and other contracts.