NCU News
Events: January 2026
'Palimpsest of Memory' - exhibition
The Faculty of Fine Arts invites you to a solo exhibition by Szymon Pruciak, an interdisciplinary artist and lecturer at the American University of Cyprus. The opening of ‘Palimpsest of Memory’ will take place on 11 December at 12:00 noon at Gallery 9.39 (Szosa Bydgoska 50/56).
In 1878, British photographer John Thomson captured Cyprus through a colonial lens, giving the island a picturesque and ‘semi-oriental’ character. The ‘Palimpsest of Memory’ project revisits these photographs, using artificial intelligence to explore how machines inherit and reproduce this way of seeing. Generative artificial intelligence recreates Thomson's scenes from within, imagining perspectives that correspond to the imperial camera. The resulting images are realised using historical 19th-century photographic methods, combining digital speculation with the earliest chemistry of photography.
The project draws on Walter Benjamin's reflections on mechanical reproduction and analyses them for the algorithmic age, in which images are created from data rather than light. In dialogue with Edward Said, Donna Haraway and Karen Barad, the work treats vision as a shared, entangled act of man and machine. It encourages viewers to re-examine how technologies of vision shape history — and to imagine a future in which the very act of looking becomes an ethical practice.
The exhibition will be open until the end of January 2026.
Szymon Pruciak is a visual artist and lecturer at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at the American University of Cyprus. He works with photography, film and video, using both historical photographic techniques and new media. His works have been presented at dozens of group and solo exhibitions in Europe, the Americas and Asia. Some of his works are also part of the French National Collection.
Mystery Friend #4 - Mystery Quiz Show
The Amicus Foundation UNC invites you to a meeting in the "Mystery Friend" series, which will take place on January 15 at 5:00 p.m. at the Copernican Integration Centre. The theme of the event will be "Mystery Quiz Show".
"Mystery Friend" is a series of monthly integration meetings full of surprises. Each meeting is a new challenge and a chance to develop in an atmosphere of intercultural exchange and social education. It will provide you with great fun and unforgettable experiences, while teaching you how to cooperate and integrate in a multicultural environment. Their goal is to integrate the entire academic community - students from abroad are welcome.
Join a team quiz where knowledge, cleverness, and teamwork all matter. Mysterious riddles and unexpected clues await, adding a thrilling twist to the competition.
Admission to the event is free, and all necessary materials will be provided on site. Due to the limited number of places, registration is required. You can submit your application using the form available on the Amicus Foundation website.
The project is part of the YUFE 2030 initiative.