The Fumes of Mars by Katerina Angelopoulou: Presentation and Q&A

'A large wildfire has a very distinctive sound. No one can tell you unless they have been in one. It is a sound that can haunt you…' 

The Fumes of Mars is a book investigating the 2018 Mati wildfire near Athens — one of the deadliest in recorded history. On 23 July 2018 wildfires swept through Mati, Greece, 30 kilometres from Athens. Over 100 lives were lost and victims were left to fight for survival alone. Artist Katerina Angelopoulou survived the fire, fleeing with her three-year-old child.  

The book acts as a counter-archive — a forensic and deeply personal investigation into how official narratives of catastrophe are constructed and enforced. It brings together Angelopoulou's photographs taken during and after the disaster, survivor testimonies, aerial maps marking where each victim died, weather reports, CCTV footage and personal artefacts recovered from the ruins: jewellery, books, glasses. The work challenges the official narrative, one that persists and blames residents and victims. 

Its structure is non-linear, mirroring how trauma fractures narrative, fragmentary, refusing easy resolution. Though rooted in a specific catastrophe, the work speaks to something universal: the failure of institutions, the invisibility of survivors, and the struggle for accountability in an era of compounding climate catastrophe. 

The artist will be in conversation with publisher Stuart Smith (GOST Books). A Q&A will follow the presentation.