Borders: On the ground, on the map, in the mind
Encounters with borders on Europe's far edges with writers Garrett Carr, Kapka Kassabova, ex-soldier Frank Ledwidge and artist Nikolas Ventourakis. They talk to Anne McElvoy.
Garrett Carr travelled by foot and canoe along Ireland's border. Kapka Kassabova journeyed to what she calls "the edge of Europe". Frank Ledwidge's army career took him to the Balkans, Afghanistan and Iraq, Nikolas Ventourakis is fascinated by how to capture the abstract notion of borders in photographs. They talk to Anne McElvoy about the essence of edges, notions of the other and the challenges of invisible borders which come and go like the smile of the Cheshire Cat.
The Rule of the Land: Walking Ireland's Border by Garrett Carr looks at a landscape which has hosted smugglers, kings, runaways, soldiers, peacemakers, protesters and terrorists
Border: A journey to the Edge of Europe, Kapka Kassabova explores the rich human history in the wild borderlands of Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece.
Nikolas Ventourakis Project: Defining Lines
Frank Ledwidge barrister, writer, Losing Small Wars and Investment in Blood
Producer: Jacqueline Smith
Last on
![]()
Podcast: Free Thinking - Borders: On the ground, on the map, in the mind
Download this programme as an Arts & Ideas podcast.
Motocross and Radars by Nikolas Ventourakis ©

From the project "Defining Lines” by Nikolas Ventourakis, taken from the areas in and around the Sovereign Base Area of Akrotiri in Cyprus.
Motocross and Radars - 2015
120cm x 150 cm - C-Type Print, Framed, Anti-Reflective Glass
Point of intersection between civilian life and military presence well within the BSA.
Cyprus - UK Border (Screen Grab 003) by Nicholas Ventourakis ©

From the project "Defining Lines”
Image: Cyprus - UK Border (Screen Grab 003)
2016
Various Sizes (4meter x 8 meter)
Billboard Paper
Pasted on wall
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Interviewed Guest | Garrett Carr |
| Interviewed Guest | Kapka Kassabova |
| Interviewed Guest | Frank Ledwidge |
| Interviewed Guest | Nikolas Ventourakis |
| Presenter | Anne McElvoy |
| Producer | Jacqueline Smith |
Broadcast
- Thu 2 Feb 201722:00BBC Radio 3
Featured in...
![]()
Arts
Creativity, performance, debate
![]()
Belonging, Home, Borders & National Identity—Free Thinking
Discussions/interviews: Slavoj Žižek, Xinran, Ivan Klíma, Claudia Rankine, Pankaj Mishra






