Eirini Karamouzi is Professor of Contemporary History at The American College of Greece and Associate Dean of Research and Innovation at the School of Liberal Arts and Science. She is also a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Sheffield. She is the author of Greece, the EEC and the Cold War: The Second Enlargement (2014), co-editor of The Balkans in the Cold War (2017) and Beyond the Euromissile Crisis: The Global histories of anti-nuclear activism (2024). Professor Karamouzi is also the principal investigator of the curating team for "Imagining Greece," an evolving research-based exhibition that explores how social, political, and cultural forces have shaped Greece's image as a tourist destination. Along with lead researchers and scientific and artistic Curators for Imagining Greece, Dr Stavros Alifragkis and Dr Emilia Athanasiou, professor Karamouzi spoke to Greek News Agenda* on the aspects of the Greek experience that "Imagining Greece" highlights for potential or past travelers, on the forces have shaped the global perception and image of Greece as an ideal place to visit, the major turning points in the modern history of Greek tourism and finally, on what the present and future holds for Greek tourism and on what constitutes a Southern European identity.

What is the central focus of the "Imagining Greece" project?  Why is the period between the end of World War II and the end of the Cold War significant for tourism?

‘Imagining Greece' is an evolving research-based exhibition that explores how social, political, and cultural forces have shaped Greece's image as a tourist destination. The exhibition brings together a rich diversity of archival materials on Greek tourism alongside first-hand accounts, presenting them on a single platform for the first time. It reveals the complex interplay of vision, ambitions, and expectations of those who established Greece as one of the world's most beloved destinations and shaped the image of the idyllic Greek summer. Over the course of these five decades, the conditions for the development of the Greek tourism industry were shaped through state policies and private initiatives, which at times functioned complementarily and at others antagonistically. In the early postwar decades, the state assumed a dominant role through the newly established Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO, 1951), which implemented a remarkably broad and multidimensional programme of tourism reconstruction. This included the formation of the institutional framework for regulating the market, the promotion of the country’s image abroad, the renovation of existing and the construction of new leisure infrastructure and facilities, the upgrading of archaeological sites, the modernisation and densification of transport networks, the establishment of festivals, cultural events, and local celebrations, and the broader cultivation of tourism awareness as a tool for revitalising the Greek periphery.

Spearheaded by the ‘XENIA’ programme, the GNTO embarked on an unprecedented, large-scale, and innovative —considering the capacities of the time— production of mostly in-house and self-managed projects, such as hotels, motels, tourist pavilions, roadside stations, car camps, border posts, organized beaches, marinas, and more, alongside the regulation of excursion frameworks and the cruise market. The objective was to establish modern standards for tourism infrastructure and services, which private actors —who entered the field relatively early— would adopt, though without necessarily being bound by the guidelines set forth by the state.

By the end of the period under examination, the GNTO had effectively concluded this phase of its activity with an equally ambitious programme aimed at showcasing Greece’s vernacular architecture through the retrofitting of traditional mansions to guesthouses, thereby transitioning into a more strategic and managerial role. Our exhibition celebrates the cherished legacy of these formative decades, during which the founding mythology of the Greek summer first began to take shape through early efforts at strategic planning.

What aspects of the Greek experience does "Imagining Greece" highlight for potential or past travelers? Can you tell us more on the underlying concept of the "voyage immobile par excellence”?

The exhibition emulates a visitor’s journey from fantasizing about Greece, then travelling and discovering the country to remembering what is left of the Greek holiday. How do these visitors perceive Greece? What pictures and expectations inspire their journey? How does their presence influence Greek society? In what ways do they transition from mere tourists to catalysts of modernity, shaping the local economy and culture? As they travel across the islands and mainland, what do they discover? How does the country’s ancient heritage resonate with the spirit of the times? And what do they remember of their adventures? Is it the keepsakes they collect, the breathtaking landscapes etched in their memories, or the people they meet along the way? ‘Imagining Greece’ explores these questions and more, bringing the traveler’s experience to life through a captivating photographic and audiovisual collection spanning five decades.

The expansion of tourism has long been intertwined with the proliferation of travel literature and, from the 1960s onward, the rise of the travel documentary. These narrative forms extend beyond guiding prospective travelers in planning or navigating their journeys. Instead, they also contribute to the enduring and increasingly popular tradition of armchair travel — a form of imaginative escape from the routines of everyday life, mediated through text, photography, and moving images.

In recent years, technological advancements and the growth of the digital humanities have transformed armchair tourism into a distinct and dynamic field, both as an entrepreneurial venture and a mode of artistic expression. Freed from the constraints of physical mobility — whether economic, logistical, or temporal — this type of tourism offers the pleasures of discovery and immersion without the necessity of travel.

Our exhibition draws upon this idea of the quasi-journey to Greece — not only as a tangible geographical space but also as a site of memory, imagination, and cultural projection. Through a curated selection of digital exhibits spanning approximately five decades, we chart the evolution of tourism and its visual and experiential narratives.

What political, social, and cultural forces have shaped the global perception and image of Greece as an ideal place to visit? What would you say were the major turning points in the modern history of Greek tourism?

Since the end of the Second World war, it's possible to observe the establishment of an integral part of Greece’s distinctive tourism ‘brand’- cultural tourism grounded in a widely shared appreciation of Greece’s ancient past and its myriad cultural legacies. The strength of these associations would play a major role in sustaining the remarkable growth of the Greek tourism industry for the remainder of the twentieth century and beyond. Innovations in air travel, package holidays and the popular use of the car however  revolutionised the market ushering in a period of mass tourism, with Greece marketing itself as a land of ‘sun, sea and sand’ to foreign audiences. All of these were happening as the country was modernizing its infrastructure, upgrading the road network and, more broadly, creating new opportunities to experience Greece’s unspoiled landscapes and historical sites through newly established leisure facilities that adhered to international standards while highlighting local architectural features. 

Aside from the GNTO, international tour operators were instrumental in introducing Greece to the wider world and attracting more visitors. Their contribution remains largely undocumented in recent scholarship. We hope that, as our exhibition evolves, further information on this subject will become available to the general public. Equally important, though less well known, was the critical role played by various clubs and organizations, such as the Hellenic Touring Club and the Automobile and Touring Club of Greece, which supported the GNTO in the micro-management of various aspects of tourism development. These ranged from the organization of festivals and local feasts, to the promotion of water sports, the operation of campsites, the publication of travel guidebooks and updated maps, and the maintenance of road and directional signage. Their micro-histories are closely interwoven with the evolution of tourism in Greece, particularly the rise of domestic tourism during the 1960s and 1970s. Another milestone, albeit not in a strictly chronological sense, was the involvement of the private sector —particularly banks— in the tourism industry. This led to a significant increase in serious stakeholders within the sector, marked by the arrival of international hotel chains in Greece and the emergence of domestic hotel groups, some of which remain active to this day.

How did the growth of tourism influence Greek society and its economy during the post-war and Cold War eras? It is often said that tourism is Greece’s ‘heavy industry’. Do you agree with that take and what are its implications?

Tourism has constantly been upward trending in the last decades. It started in 1950 with 33,000 visitors, skyrocketed to 5.271.000 in 1980 to reach 36 million tourists in 2024. Until 1990, Greece’s development in the tourism sector was the fastest in Europe. Tourism has become the country’s heavy industry with a contribution of almost 25 percent to GDP and employing more than 400.000 Greeks.Even in 1948 in the midst of the Greek civil war, the American Mission had identified tourism as a major source of foreign currency and an avenue for the country’s economic reconstruction. The implications of an over reliance on the Greek tourism product, is Greece’s vulnerability to the massive influx of tourists and how that affects the quality of life of the local population, and threatens the country’s landscape and traditions.

Greece’s destination branding has been based on “Sun, Sea & Sand” triptych as well on ancient sites and the country as the “Cradle of Western Civilization”. Do you see any other branding options opening up in the future? 

In an efforts to grow their country’s tourism sector, Greek stakeholders have grappled with the same conceptual schism between an imagined Hellas (a ‘romanticized spectre of a lost civilization’ built on ‘the desired relics of material culture’) that had become deeply embedded in the foreign imagination during the 19^th century, and a modern Greece, at once a ‘geographical space that hosted the material remnants of Hellas’ while being ‘inferior to it’ and a desirable destination for sun-worshipping travelers seeking respite from modernity. The demand for the ‘Greek summer’ remains unabated. Extending the tourist season has been a long-standing goal for the Greek tourist industry and since the 1970s Greece had branded itself as the land of all seasons but only recently has managed to achieve that. In a pursuit for a more sustainable tourism, there are calls for diversification of the tourist product, with alternative activities beyond the usual ‘sun and sea that will make Greece an all-year round European destination. 

Your current research project deals with the role of tourism and mobility in the construction of a Southern European identity. What are the components of a Southern European Identity, and how do tourism and mobility interplay with other factors that shape it?

The countries of Southern Europe are, for the most part, also Mediterranean countries, and this characteristic has significantly shaped their identities for centuries. Around the life-giving waters of this enclosed sea —Mare Nostrum, as the Romans called it— national identities gradually took shape, united by a common thread: the sea as an open route for trade, a bridge for cultural exchange, and, at times, a means of conquest through brute force. Southern European identity, as an intellectual construct, is by its very nature inextricably linked to the rich and densely layered cultural geography of the Mediterranean sunbelt, whose origins are lost in the depths of historical time. Enduring elements of the mythology of the Mediterranean have consistently included antiquities, the sun, and the coastlines —sometimes gentle, at other times dramatic— that have been immortalized in every form of art.

For the modern Greek state, the formation of its national identity is likewise inextricably linked to the emergence of modernity in the 19th and 20th centuries, as expressed through touring (e.g., the Grand Tour) and, later, tourism respectively. The geographical and cultural mobility of cosmopolitan Europeans and Americans  —bourgeois merchants, scientists, and artists from the elites of the 19th century and the interwar period, who, through their travels, paid homage to the ancestral civilization of ancient Greece— played a significant role in shaping the conditions and terms under which Greeks were reconstituted as a nation, a people, a country, and an idea(l). This same phenomenon also influenced the image of the West itself, whose model the Greeks continuously measured themselves against — while always casting a sidelong glance towards the alluring East.

In the postwar period, the Greek version of Southern European identity was significantly reshaped by tourism, a dynamic phenomenon that fueled social, economic, and cultural transformations in both urban centres and the periphery. The vast mobility generated by the massification of tourism established holidays as a democratic right to leisure time — not only for Northern Europeans, whose ‘exodus’ to the sun-drenched South and the Greek archipelago was experienced as restorative, but also for Greeks themselves, for whom contact with the traveler's ‘otherness’ became a form of education. In the case of Greece, as in other southern countries, the redefinition of national identity through tourism was filtered via the process of modernization. More specifically, the Greek state was restructured institutionally, politically, economically, socially, and culturally, with the aim of aligning the Greek standard ever more closely with that of Europe. Greece reinvents itself in order to promote its image both abroad and at home — a process broadly analogous to that of the 19th century, when the Western gaze largely shaped the way in which modern Greeks wished to view themselves and their future.

*Interview to: Ioulia Livaditi

The post Eirini Karamouzi on ‘Imagining Greece’, the digital exhibition on Greece as a tourist destination: “Greece is always reinventing itself” appeared first on Greek News Agenda.

Greek News Agenda pays tribute to landscape sculptor Nella Golanda who will be turning 81 on June 19 2022. A graduate of the Athens School of Fine Arts and the first honorary member of the Pan-Hellenic Association of Landscape Architects, Golanda has, since 1970, applied a holistic approach - or else the concept of “Total Art” - in public spaces, re-establishing the relationship between nature and historical landscape on a human scale with the aim of regenerating urban life in contemporary metropolitan cities.

One of Golanda’s artistic goals has always been to make public spaces human-centered again. In fact, Golanda’s sculptures function as interactive experimental landscapes where art comes out of the museums and becomes part of everyday life. Her works are referenced at international universities, congresses, and architectural editions, while the artist has participated in a number of prestigious events, including the Praga Conference “Culture in Towns” (1993), the European Landscape Convention in Andorra “Landscape and Transfrontier Cooperation: Landscape knows no border» (2015), and the Venice Architecture Biennale (2016).

Though she has had the chance to create works of art in other parts of the world, Nella Golanda’s work is “indigenous” to the Greek landscape. With marble, concrete and wood being the main elements of her work, the artist’s expression of materiality has a direct connection with ancient Greek history and a clear reference to contemporary Greek architecture. As she has noted:

“One of the milestones in my life as a child is that I ran, played, and gazed at the sky and the sea, the beauty of the Greek landscape in correlation with the ancient ruins found in it.

The human scale observed in every architectural expression from the temples of classic antiquity to the most humble buildings, brought me close to an actual miracle. I have had the incredible fortune to live in an open-air museum: Greece”

More specifically, the artist envisions Greece as a terrace towards the sea where the horizon and water surface create a sense of infinity, as this is one of the main features that makes Greek landscape so special. The connection and the dialogue with the coastal landscape have been eloquently expressed in the artist’s design of “Flisvos sculpted Quay” in Paleo Faliro. Other remarkable projects of hers are Flisvos Main Square, Aixoni Sculptured Theatre in Glyfada, and the Pedestrian-Bicycle Path connecting Rafina with Marathon. There are also the Historical Center of Larisa and the Pedestrian Connection of the Two Main Squares of Larisa with the City Ancient Theatre, as well as the Sculpted River of Larissa that was Greece’s official entry to the 5th Landscape Award Session of the Council of Europe.

It is worth mentioning that Nella Golanda is one of the Greek women architects to receive the Archisearch Lifetime Achievement Awards at ESO 2022, the one-day conference that has become a leading showcase event for architecture, and interior & graphic design in Greece. Organized by +Design and Archisearch magazines, the event is co-curated by the Mies Van Der Rohe Foundation and will take place on 15 June at the main stage of Onassis Stegi, under the title “Crossing Territories” referring to society’s unprecedented experiences in recent years, which have paved the way towards cultural, political and economic transformations.

More info:

See also on GNA:

E.S.

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The First Sustainable Fashion Summer School will take place in Greece next June (6-26/6/2022) and will be co-organized by Fashion Revolution Greece and the Athens University of Economics and Business under the auspices of the Municipality of the City of Athens and the Ministries of Education and Culture. The Summer School, that is organized in collaboration with leading Universities and sustainable fashion institutions from Europe and the U.S., is aimed at professionals from the clothing, footwear and textile industry but also to designers, researchers, artists, architects or students that want to upscale to sustainable, circular and ethical fashion processes that will reshape global fashion.

Taking inspiration from Greek craftsmanship

The Fashion Revolution Summer School will travel in Thessaloniki, Kilkis, Corfu, Kalamata, Mani and Athens, where participants will be part of unique guided experiences with local educators, regenerative farmers, artisans, entrepreneurs and researchers. They will visit fashion venues of the entire supply chain from raw material production to circular manufacturing in order to explore traditional Greek textile and fashion production techniques appreciating local craftsmanship. They will also have the opportunity to be inspired by the symbols of the Greek culture that in recent years have become source of inspiration for global fashion creators. Participants will also visit archaeological sites and monuments admiring Greece’s amazing landscapes and cultural heritage.

The four main thematic areas of the FR Summer School will be the following:
1. Sustainable Design & Materiality
2. New Business Models, Circular Manufacturing & Logistics
3. Digital Fashion & FashTech Hackathon, Heritage & Ethics
4. Policy

Over 25 top educators from institutions from the U.S. and Europe such as the Fashion Institute of Technology, Lasell University, the Pratt Institute, the University of Exeter, St. Martins, London College Fashion, the Institute of European Design and others will travel in June 2022 in Greece for a 3-week educational program that will be delivered to graduate students and industry professionals from all over the world.

Fashion Revolution Greece is member of Fashion Revolution, a global movement of people who work for the fashion industry acting at the same time as consumers and active citizens caring about the environment and people. Designers, academics, writers, business leaders, policymakers, brands, retailers, marketers, producers, makers, workers and fashion lovers participate in this movement representing at the same time the fashion industry and the public. Their aim is to ensure that clothing is made in a safe, clean and fair way changing the way clothes are sourced, produced and consumed.

To this end the Network along with its Country Offices tries to raise public awareness and educate people about the systemic challenges that the global fashion industry is facing encouraging them to consume less, value quality and take better care of their clothes. At the same time Fashion Revolution’s activity aims at putting an end to human and environmental exploitation in the global fashion industry anticipating safe, dignified working conditions and living wages for all people in the supply chain.

Action taken at EU level

Photo: Fashion Revolution Greece FB page 

The European Commission has just proposed in March 2022 an EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles having noticed the high impact of textile industry on the environment. According to EU data European consumption of textiles has the fourth highest impact on the environment and climate change, after food, housing and mobility. It is the third sector for higher use of water and land use, and fifth for the use of primary raw materials and greenhouse gas emissions. Aiming to create a greener, more competitive and more modern sector that will also be more resistant to global shocks, the Strategy proposes actions for the entire lifecycle of textiles products, while supporting the ecosystem in the green and digital transitions. It addresses the way textiles are designed and consumed, including by looking also at sustainable technological solutions and innovative business models.

The European Commission has invited all interested parties and in particular SMEs, public authorities, social partners and research organisations to express their views on how best to realise the transition, while boosting resilience.

Read also via Greek News Agenda:

A World of Fashion – Made in Greece

New ‘Chic’ Revives Greek Silk

IE

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Greece was a pleasant surprise at the third place of the European Design Awards 2020, an annual awards program for outstanding work in the communication design field. It is worth noting that more than 1500 participants coming from 35 different European countries submitted their work this year, competing in 44 categories covering branding, packaging, exhibition design, typography, digital design, illustration, and self-promotion, among others. Greece received 15 awards in total (three gold, seven silver, and five bronze prizes); more specifically, the winners were as follows:

Gold 2020

1. Digital, Promotional site: Antonis Kounellas by Kommigraphics Design Studio
2. Miscellaneous, Printed miscellaneous:  Jam Pedals by Beetroot Design Group
3. Digital, Motion graphics: Sky Premium Life by Beetroot Design Group

Silver 2020

1. Publication, magazine: Archisearch, The Paper Edition by Post–Spectacular Office
2. Illustration, corporate illustration: At Heroic Rhythms by G Design Studio
3. Packaging, packaging miscellaneous: Brain On Fire Matchboxes by Sputnik Design Team - Linakis Digital
4. Packaging, food & beverage packaging: Kudu Coffee by Bob Studio
5. Internal production, self-initiated projects: Marlet AntiManifesto, a typographic XXL compendium by Parachute
6. Packaging, alcoholic drink packaging: Warehouse Ten by G Design Studio
7. Illustration, corporate illustration: Yiayia And Friends by Beetroot Design Group

Bronze 2020

1. Packaging, health & beauty packaging: Aenaon by Bob Studio
2. Promotion, brochure: Parachute® Type Elections 2019 by Chris Trivizas
3. Miscellaneous, original typeface - display: PF Marlet by Parachute
4. Miscellaneous, student project: Vlemmata (gazes) by Kimon Ladonikolas
5. Packaging, food & beverage packaging: Yiayia And Friends by Beetroot Design Group

Endorsed by the International Council of Design, the European Design Awards (also known as ED-Awards) is a joint initiative of design magazines from across Europe; the jury consists of representatives from high-profile European design magazines (publishers, journalists, editors, and academics) that come together on a yearly basis, so as to gather, evaluate and acknowledge the best examples of communication design in Europe.

The European Design Awards wraps up with a festival in a different city every year, leading up to the Awards ceremony. This creates an ideal opportunity for the most creative people of this community to come together, benchmark, be inspired, celebrate, and make their work visible to a wider audience. The first festival took place in Athens, Greece in 2007, while the next one is scheduled to be hosted in Valencia, Spain in 2021. This year’s ceremony, which took place at the end of April 2020, was in full digital mode due to the lockdown that was imposed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

More info: visit the ED- Awards official website

E.S.

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Long before the days of television, radio, or even cinema, there was a different form of entertainment in Greece derived from folkloric traditions. Known as Shadow Theatre, or the so-called "Karagiozis" art (named after the main character of Modern Greek shadow theatre - thus becoming a synonym of the theatre it belongs to), it includes paper-made puppets handled by a puppeteer who stands behind a white screen that is illuminated by some source of light and devises his own original tales. One of the most prominent artists that kept the Greek shadow puppet tradition alive was Eugenios Spatharis (1924-2009), whose 11th death anniversary is marked tomorrow, May 9, 2020.

The Spatharis family’s legacy

The son of Sotiris Spatharis, himself a pioneer in this field and a founding member of the Pan-Hellenic Association of Shadow Players, Eugenios Spatharis was progressively introduced to his father's art, despite his father's early wishes that he become an architect. However, due to the hardships brought on by the German occupation in Greece, Eugenios devoted himself to his father’s art. In fact, the Spatharis family case confirms the saying about “the student becoming the master”: in 2007, the Greek Ministry of Culture awarded Eugenios Spatharis the title of "Grand Master" in recognition of his contribution to the art.

“I want you to promise me that you will never abandon the art I taught you!
You must always remember that Karagiozis and the other heroes, whatever they do, they will always be your true and best friends "

A man of many talents, Eugenios Spatharis began his career painting the posters and sign-boards advertising his father's shows. Later on, he used this talent for decorating stage costumes and settings. His long experience gave him the opportunity to be recognized as a professional painter and to become a member of the Chamber of Fine Arts in Greece; more specifically, as a "naive" painter, he adhered to clear figure lines and simplicity of design.

As a shadow player, Eugenios Spatharis began staging his one-man shows in Maroussi and several other neighborhoods of Athens in 1942. A few years later, he started traveling all over the Greek countryside, performing many shows featuring Karagiozis, either in shadow puppet shows or with real actors at the National Theatre of Northern Greece, the Hellenic Chorodrama, the Hatzokos Theatre in Thessaloniki, the Syntehnia Theatre and many more with his plays, such as “The journey” by G. Themelis (1965), “Karagiozis the Dictator” by G. Giannakopoulos (1969), “Our Great Circus” by I. Kabanellis (1972), and many more.

He also traveled abroad (New York, Brussels, Paris, Geneva, and London among other cities) to take part in international festivals and conferences on the art of Shadow Theatre. Among other distinctions, Eugenios Spatharis – who was a member of the UNESCO International Theatre Institute – was awarded the prestigious Rome Prize in 1962 and the Toscanini medal in 1978. In 1980, a World Festival of the Shadow Theatre was organized in his honor in Paris, while he also set up a school of shadow theatre in Denmark, which his pupils are still operating today.

In 1966, the first Greek TV Channel (ERT1) began its broadcasts with a Karagiozis show by Eugenios Spatharis and these programs continued until 1992. He also appeared in many feature films as well as TV commercials and collaborated with prominent Greek composers such as Xarchakos and Fotiadis by providing the voice for Karagiozis in the recordings. Last but not least, in 1991, Spartharis founded the Spathario Shadow Theatre Museum in Athens, showcasing the history and evolution of this traditional popular art form from 1860 to the present; however, to quote Eugenios Spatharis, the aim of the museum "is not to show a lifeless exhibition of shadows... on the contrary, the intention is to keep them alive in a permanent hospitable home in which both young and old visitors will be accepted to amuse themselves and leave satisfied”.

The Greek shadow theatre in the 21st century

The history of Shadow Theatre goes back centuries and is still active today even though there are only a handful of puppet masters left worldwide. Greece adopted the shadow puppet theatre with gusto and created a form all its own; thus, it became an inextricable part of Greek culture and a vital way for Greeks to see, hear and maintain their cultural and artistic traditions, with the character of Karagiozis representing the virtues and vices of the average Greek.

The “Karagiozis” shows were very popular throughout Greece right up to the early 1980s. The shadow theatre was improvisational and the people’s reactions to each performance were decisive for the development of the play. Nowadays, shadow theatre does not fill the public spaces of Athenian neighborhoods like it used to. In fact, contemporary puppet players of Karagiozis shadow theatre may have a smaller share of the audience (children mainly) compared to a few decades ago, but they remain loyal to the art. They still make their puppets themselves, as their predecessors always did, they perform in the traditional way but they also enhance their theatre with contemporary themes (such the “Astronaut Karagiozis”) or means (like the combination of shadow puppetry and video art).

Perhaps shadow theatre is so embedded in Greek culture as a form of expression that even if it is outmoded as a spectacle it shall not become extinct but will find a way to be preserved through a child’s ability to laugh along with the genuinely simplest things in life.

In one Karagiozis story, where the hero was on trial for some reason, the judge asked him which was the mother tongue he better understood, for Karagiozis to reply:

“The one I have in my mouth”.

While Karagiozis’ language is old, it isn’t obsolete. And what he does best nowadays is to provide an alternative source of societal commentary and joy.

More info: visit the Spathario Shadow Theatre Museum's official website

See also: the Pan-Hellenic Association of Shadow Players’ website

E.S.

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“Eλλάς” (Hellas or Greece) is a project that presents the crisis affecting Greece in the past years through the eyes of six authors, cartoonists and illustrators: George Botsos, Petros Christoulias, Thanassis Dimou, Michael Kountouris, Antonis Nikolopoulos (Soloup) and Thanassis Petrou.

Under the high patronage of the Greek Embassy in Rome and with the collaboration of Katerina Fragou (founder of Iris Literary Agency), the project was presented last year by Giuseppina Frassino for Tricromia gallery (Rome, Italy) in an endeavor to explore the crisis from an economic, social and political point of view.

The idea of the exhibition was to portray the crisis in pictures, hoping that through the Greek case one can understand the future of every European nation. At the same time, special tribute was paid to the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo that has become for many people, a symbol - like Greece- of freedom and courage.

Greek News Agenda* spoke to Katerina Fragou** who provided an insight to the project’s concept and future plans, as well as to the six participating artists*** who shared their views on how feasible it is for an illustrator-cartoonist to communicate the case of Greece abroad, taking into consideration the cultural differences between countries.

Can you provide an insight on how the “ελλάς” project came to life? What were the aims of the initiative; any plans for the future?

Katerina Fragou: The initial idea came from Tricromia, the Italian gallery in Rome and its owner, Giuseppina Frassino. Tricromia specializes in comic illustrators. Giuseppina Frassino asked me to help her find important comic illustrators occupied with the crisis and the problems it created in Greek society. She also suggested that, in case they happened not to have works on the crisis, she was willing to commission artworks. In Greece however, we lived in times of immense change for years and the crisis was, and still is, abundantly portrayed, especially in works of cartoonists.

The Italian gallery aimed to give food for thought to Italian society, which was in a similar situation.

The idea was to have a travelling exhibition or to present similar shows in other countries in galleries, museums or embassies. Judging from my contacts around the world, people in other countries are curious to see how we survive in Greece with all the problems we are facing.

We use to say that “a picture is worth a thousand words”; however, the work of illustrators and cartoonists is a bit special, as it involves political -often satirical- messages touching on delicate social problems. Judging from your participation in the “ελλάς” project, as well as from your overall working experience, how easy is it for an illustrator/cartoonist to communicate the case of “Greece” abroad, given the different cultural backgrounds between countries?

George Botsos: I tend to turn around the saying; the opposite could really be true: "a word is worth a thousand pictures". Words and images can be the source of infinite combinations and, moreover, our main field of inspiration. When you communicate visually, you are able to express a whole "text" in a single gesture, to tell a story with a "silent" symbolic movement. That is why for my contribution to the "Ελλάς" exhibition I've chosen to communicate without words, in the form of a triptych synthesis, using the universal language of comics, trying to surpass the possible different cultural backgrounds of our foreign audience.

To communicate the "Greek case" through artistic expression is totally different from a political or economic analysis. An illustrator-cartoonist is not striving to persuade through his work, but to send a message that is both intellectual and emotional, sometimes ambiguous in an aesthetically appealing way. If a creator is able to express his ideas about "Greece" in an interesting, original way, his Greek origin can work only as a “plus”.

Petros Christoulias: The task of communicating the case of Greece to a foreign public is not easy. Society is not compact - neither in Greece or abroad - and an artist deals with diverse audiences. Despite the difficulties however, an image can carry a message in a more abstract way, generalizing the situation that it tries to depict. This way it can be more effective than a thorough documentary.

I used this approach when I was "drawing the crisis" as an abstract confusion of inked lines and motives. In the first image, the symbolic representation of the gloomy atmosphere is sitting like a heavy cloud over Athens and its people, while in the second image, a high wave threatens to gulp down a symbol of Greece’s positive face, that of its ancient history and culture.

Thanassis Dimou:"I admire the ability of political cartoonists to do this job and to encapsulate reality, but I have not practiced this profession myself. Humor, however, is a way of handling the reality that one is faced with, while comics and illustrations generally offer readers a creative escape. The language of sketches is global and this is its strength".

Michael Kountouris: My cartoons rarely come with words or captions. In order to describe or comment on people or a situation, I opt for symbols and images, making sure they are clear and intelligible to the public, both at home and abroad. The same rule applied to the 'ελλάς' exhibition: the cartoons I chose with which to take part in the exhibition were such that that pictures and symbols could be understood by the Italian public.

With over thirty years working experience in the field, I can assure you that it is much easier to talk about the crisis –whether economic, political or social - with a sketch than it is to deal with it in everyday life.

Antonis Nikolopoulos (Soloup): Yes, it’s true… you just described my daily life in the satirical and political newspaper “to Pontiki” where I’ve been working as a cartoonist for the past twelve years. Every day, togetherwith my colleague journalists, we are up against deadlines. For this reason, we have several meetings at the newspaper so as to discuss our reports, what happens in Greek parliament or abroad etc. Then I also need to be informed about what other newspapers or portals report. Finally, all this information needs to be transformed into a satirical sketch. With one cartoon, you must report and comment on a political or a social situation. Not only do you have to describe the story behind the report but you must communicate your thoughts, your point of view about what is happening.

Every nation lives with its own preconceptions. All around the world, people tend to believe that their country is a little bit better than others; and all around the world, there is a core national narrative regarding “the superiority of our race”. We have to bear in mind that this type of prejudice may exist, when we wish to communicate our country and our messages abroad. You have to respect other cultures and keep in mind that everyone loves their country, customs, traditions and way of life as much as you love yours.

It is not so easy to communicate your work around the world if you come from a small country like Greece. Other people don’t understand your language and something like that is a huge obstacle. But the problems we are faced with nowadays, such as the financial crisis, nationalism, immigration, poverty etc are global. So, if you want to communicate something clear about these issues, you also discoverways of arousing the interest of people around the world.

Thanassis Petrou: I took part in the exhibition, more as a comic book artist rather than a political cartoonist. A political cartoon is the art of the ephemeral: it comments on the daily social and political life, and it is often difficult to be understood, not only by the foreign but by the Greek public as well, if it refers to events that took place a long time ago that might be forgotten. For the “ελλάς” exhibition, I tried to create works that could have wider reading and be understood outside a narrow Greek context.

The different cultural background between countries is not that different between creators, because we have all seen and studied the work of foreign artists for many years, so there is proximity in our expression and aesthetics.

Unfortunately Greece, for years now, has been at the heart of developments taking place at European level, so both publishers and the public abroad expect to see works commenting on the crisis we are experiencing. From my own personal experience, having published a series of comics in France and reading the comments and reviews that followed online, it was made clear to me that audiences are looking for associations with the crisis in anything to do with Greece, even in works that do not directly relate to the crisis.

* Interview by Eleftheria Spiliotakopoulou

**Κaterina Fragou was born in Athens, where she studied French Literature. She lived in Paris for 15 years, where she also studied Comparative Literature. In 1995, she established Iris Literary Agency in Athens, undertaking the translation of works from all over the world into Greek.

She is working on making Greek literature known abroad, whilst working at the same time as a translator and an editor. She also organizes exhibitions.

***Authors- illustrators – cartoonists (in alphabetical order):

George Botsos was born in Athens, in 1960. In 1983 he graduated from the Department of Political Sciences of the University of Athens. He published his first comic in “Babel” comics’ magazine (1987). This was the beginning of a long lasting collaboration with Babel, in which he presented 60 short comics. His comics have been published in magazines in France (L’Echo des Savannes) and Italy (Dolce Vita).He has also been working as a freelance illustrator for books and magazines (such as Marie Claire) and as creative director for advertising agencies. Since 2000, he has been teaching the art of comics and is director of the Sketch-Comics-Cartoon department of AKTO Art & Design College.He has also written and illustrated eight books for children and exhibited his paintings in several solo shows.

Petros Christoulias was born in Chalkida in 1979 and studied Fine Arts at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He works as a painter, comic creator and illustrator of children's books. The comics he has written and illustrated have been published in magazines and websites and have received many awards. He has also been involved in animation projects. He has participated in almost 20 collective comic expositions in Greece and an exposition on his book “Trenches” was held at the Greek National Library. He has also participated at the festival La Storia in Piazza, at the Palazzo Ducale in 2011 where he received honours in “conflicts war balloons” for “Trenches”. In 2015 he participated at the collective exhibition “Ελλάς” at Tricromia gallery in Rome and in the Ravenna festival. All of his books have received different prizes.

Thanassis Dimou is a graduate of the Department of Theatre Studies of the University of Athens (2000) and the “Theatro Technis K. Koun” Drama School (2001). Since then, he has collaborated with the National Theatre of Greece, the National Theatre of Northern Greece, the Athens and Epidaurus Festival and many important repertory theatres in Athens (Theatro Technis, Theatro tou Notou, Praxis, Porta etc.) in works of Aristophanes, Shakespeare, Goldoni, Moliere, Kleist, Chekhov, Durrenmatt, as well as in contemporary Greek and foreign plays. He also works as a cartoonist and recently wrote and illustrated the “Winter’s tale” (based on William Shakespeare) for which he received the National Award for Children’s Book Illustration (2009).

Michael Kountouris was born in Rhodes, in 1960. Since 1985, he has been working as an editorial cartoonist in Greek newspapers and magazines. He currently works at the (“Efimerida Ton Syntakton”) newspaper; he also cooperates with Courrier International and Caglecartoons. He has taken part in many solo and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad, such as The Hague Sculpture-GIANTS (The Netherlands, 2004), “G20” (Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburg, 2009), “Ελλάς” (‘Tricromia’ Gallery, Rome, 2015), ‘Fifty-fifty’ Gallery (Düsseldorf 2016). He has received awards in various cartoon contests at the United Nations, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Turkey, Iran, Greece, etc. As a children’s books illustrator he has been awarded with the Illustration Prize of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY, 2002) and with the First EBGE Prize on Graphic Design and Illustration (2006). Since 2011, he has been working on innovative projects regarding the use of cartoons in education (Educartoon).

Antonis Nikolopoulos (Soloup) is a caricaturist who collaborates with “to Pontiki”, as well as other major newspapers and magazines in Greece. He studied Political Sciences at Panteion University and obtained a PhD in Cultural Technology and Communication from the University of the Aegean. He has published 13 books with comics and cartoons. His Phd is about the History of comics in Greece. His graphic novel Aivali, which deals with the violent expatriation that took place during the war in Asia Minor between the Greeks and the Turks, in the wake of World War I,received the prize of the best comics and of the best scenario at Comicdom Athens 2015; It has been translated into French and Turkish and is the first graphic novel that is the subject of an exposition at the Benaki Museum travelling all over Greece. In 2015, he participated in the exhibition “Ελλάς” in Rome and in the Ravenna realistic comic festival “Komikazen”. In 2016, Aivali was presented in Brussels, Paris, Istanbul and Ayvalik.

Thanassis Petrou was born in Thessaloniki in 1971. He studied French Literature in Thessaloniki and Paris and has a Master’s in Sociolinguistics. In 2002, he won the first national comic prize of “9” magazine while he started to work for the magazine. In 2005, he completed his studies in comics with distinction (AKTO Art & Design College). He has published comics and cartoons in major magazines and newspapers in Greece and has participated in festivals in Greece and other countries. Since 2012, he has been teaching Sketch, Comics and Cartoons. In 2015, he participated in the group exhibition “Ελλάς” at Tricromia gallery in Rome and in the Ravenna festival. He has illustrated and, in some cases, written scripts for comic books, such as: The Marathon battle (Patakis, 2015), Actors (Cartoonark, 2013, which received the Mention of EBGE Prize on Design and Illustration), Giousouri and other fantastic stories (Topos editions, 2012, which received the Best Comic Prize in Comicdom Athens 2012), Pararlama and other stories (Topos editions, 2011) and The corpse (Jemma Press, 2011, which received the first Cover Prize in Comicdom Athens and the prize of the best comic in EBGE Prize on Design and Illustration; in May 2015, it was published in France by Steinkis.

The post Creative Greece | The Crisis through the Eyes of Greek Cartoonists and Illustrators appeared first on Greek News Agenda.

Alexandros Psychoulis, Greek artist and Associate Professor at the University of Thessaly, showcases his new work in the exhibition "Collective Dizziness Protocol” running at Zina Athanasiadou Gallery (Thessaloniki, November 18- December 10, 2016).

Alexandros Psychoulis** spoke to Greek News Agenda* about his new work which deals with the idea of symbiotic bliss based on his research of the “tsipouroposia” custom (the consumption of tsipouro in taverns) in his home town, Volos, as well as the new Postgraduate Program "Post-Industrial Design: Design and Artistic Practices for the Production of Everyday Life" which he co-directs with architect Zissis Kotionis, at the University of Thessaly.

He also shared his views on the relationship between collective and individual happiness and the reasons why one chooses to become a visual artist.

How did it all start? When did you realize that you want to become an artist?

My father was a chemist and a painter; my mother also painted, as a hobby. Together, they ran a gallery in Volos. Painting was like a game for me. When I realized, later on, that I could also study painting or become a professional artist, I felt I was a lucky man. To this day, my involvement with art is nothing but that game of my childhood years. Sometimes I feel as if I’ve tricked everyone and that I’ve never grown up.

You are show great diversity as an artist, as you’ve experimented with various artistic practices, from painting to theatre. After all of these years, would you say that you can now identify with one particular form of art?

I was always one of those people that wanted to try everything, whose parents and teachers usually try to admonish by telling them: "Don’t do many things, focus on one and do it well." If this advice is not merely an ideological construct, it is certainly a dull recipe. I never tried to prove that one can do a lot of things and do them well, but that everything – that is, "many" things – is one: That different artistic expressions are under the surface associated with the same rules.

I consciously use a different discourse depending on the subject I am exploring. Different subject matters lead to different media. I walk this path with determination, telling myself that I have a commitment towards others, my students and children who enjoy digging, full of guilt, into different things. I hope that, someday in the future, parents will say: "If you want, go ahead and do many different things; you do not need to become a virtuoso, but to tell your own stories in the most honest way."

Can you tell us more about the concept of your new work "Collective Dizziness Protocol"? What was it that sparked your interest to explore this issue?

The starting point of this exhibition is the participation and the subsequent observation of a particular culinary tradition, that of “tsipouroposia”, namely the consumption of tsipouro in the taverns of Volos (the so called “tsipouradika”). It is a unique banquet experience that brings people to a state of camaraderie, tranquility and brief happiness. But not always; in order to have the above results, nine conditions must be met, which I first elaborated in detail, by watching and analyzing the types of this ritual as it evolved in the city, in the course of a hundred years. What cannot be expressed in words is approached with drawings, paintings and sculptures.

The idea of collective happiness is interpreted and attained in different ways across cultures throughout the world. In your view, how important is collective happiness for the Greeks and how is it related with individual happiness?

Starting with the second part of the question, I would say that happiness is never a personal matter. Happiness that cannot be shared is at the same time misery.

One will find that people all around the world pretty much congregate in gatherings that unwind and bring bliss to participants as they collectively take a step beyond their daily reality. If we look at "tsipouro adulation" as a relatively new "ritual" and take a leap comparing it with the tea ceremony in China and Japan - rituals whose roots go back many years – we’ll be faced with two completely different cultural approaches. For instance, in the Japanese tea ceremony, the objective is to reach a "symbiotic bliss". In the “tsipouroposia” in Volos and not only there, one will realize that the result is the unconditional identification in mind and spirit with the others.

Whilst the Greeks are part of western society and culture, they will never give up, on account of temperament and inherited wisdom, their blissful gatherings in the name of overproduction.

You are also an Associate Professor at the Department of Architecture in the University of Thessaly. Was teaching a conscious choice through which you felt you can express yourself, as well as to give-and-take things or one of necessity as a means of earning a livelihood?

I began teaching at the University of Thessaly at the age of 34 – that is, quite early in my life. However, I recall having already begun feeling not so “young” anymore. What I’m saying is that my approach to life had begun being utterly “rational”; the time of questioning had faded, my rage had subsided.

So, I thought that if I started teaching at the University, I could “steal” some of the students’ anger. But things didn’t exactly turn out that way. Times had changed for good. Both my students and I had to create the mood for change in academic terms and not to expect it as a natural impulse.

You are co-director of a new Postgraduate Programme on "Post-Industrial Design”. Does such a thing exist in Greece today, and if so, in what form? What is, in general terms, the relationship between design and fine arts?

In a discussion with the architect and writer Zissis Kotionis, who also teaches at the University of Thessaly Architecture Department, we concluded that – contrary to what happens with industrial design – having a postindustrial approach to design is something that could have a huge range of applications in Greece.

You see, postindustrial design focuses on small scale of production; it redefines the model of production of traditional techniques and is inspired by them so as to even arrive at a singular object, the “transcendental” or “non-utilitarian” object, what we recognize as a work of art.

Despite being one of the most prolific contemporary artists, with many solo and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad, you have stated that “there is no such thing as a career in Greece for visual artists”. What do you mean by that, does it relate to the crisis? If this is true, what are the motives for one to become a visual artist?

The idea of a career as a visual artist in Greece has always seemed like a joke. The Greek state has always been promoting and capitalizing on our ancient Greek heritage, but not contemporary art production; fortunately we’ve never had in Greece the so called “Art Stock Market”, which operates with celebrities.

The crisis simply added the final nail to the coffin even of those artists who had some commercial success.

In Greece, you don’t get involved with Art so as to have a career, become rich or famous. You know this as a fact from the very beginning. From an early stage you look at the future and see the difficulties rising like a mount. If you can give it all up, you do so. If you can’t - if you believe that this form of expression is the only thing that makes you happy- you go on. You become a visual artist because you cannot do otherwise.

* Interview by Eleftheria Spiliotakopoulou

** Alexandros Psychoulis was born in Volos in 1966 and studied Painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts. He is also an Associate Professor of “Art and Technology” at the Architecture Department of the University of Thessaly, Greece and co-director of the new Postgraduate Program "Post-Industrial Design: Design and Artistic Practices for the Production of Everyday Life.

In 1997, he was awarded the Benesse Prize for his work “Black Box”, with which he participated in the 47th Venice Biennial. The exploration of virtual reality territory has been up until now the central drift of his work, which consists of installations, animation and painting, while in his most recent works the element of manual work is also present. He has presented many solo exhibitions such us: “God’sNails” (a.antonopoulou.art Gallery, Athens, 2012), “Under the shadow of Ailanthus Altissima” (Zina Athanassiadou Gallery, Thessaloniki, 2010), “Body Milk” (a.antonopoulou.art Gallery, Athens, 2003) and “There’s no place far enough for you to escape from images and the pain they caused you” (Deitch Projects, New York, 1998).

He has taken part in many group exhibitions, the most important of them being: THE LUMINOUS INTERVAL, Guggenheim Bilbao (2011), THE ARK, Old seeds for new cultures, 12th Biennale International Architecture Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia (2010),Expanded Ecologies/ Perespectives in a Time of Emergency, National Museum of Contemporary Art EMST, Athens, (2009), Transexperiences, Greece (2008), 798 Space, Beijing (2008), Exploring cultural means to combat global homogenization, Foukoutake Hall, Tokyo University (2008), MASQUERADES/ femininity, masculinity and other certainties, State Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki (2006), Positive Charge, State Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessalonikι (2006), BIDA Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki (2005), Body Works Art Centre of the Municipality of Nicosia, Cyprus (2004), BREAKTHROUGH!, Greece 2004, Contemporary Perspectives in Visual Arts, Alcala, Madrid (2004), ϋber MENSCHEN, "Synopsis 1- Communications" Contemporary Art Museum, Athens (2000).

The post Creative Greece | Alexandros Psychoulis on the idea of symbiotic bliss & the reality of working as a visual artist in Greece appeared first on Greek News Agenda.

The Association of University Graduate Architects - Panhellenic Union of Architects (SADAS- PEA) and member of the Architects’ Council of Europe (ACE) recently announced the five buildings that will represent Greece in the "European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award 2017", one of the most prestigious awards in international architecture. The prize is granted at a special ceremony taking place every two years to acknowledge and reward quality architectural production in Europe. Specifically, the jury selects two works: one that receives the EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture in recognition of its conceptual, technical and constructional qualities, and the other that receives the Emerging Architect Special Mention.At the same time, an exhibition is taking place, so as to showcase the work of all the nominees from around Europe.

According to the Greek Association’s press announcement (October 2016), the five buildings designed by Greek architects that will represent the country as candidates for the “EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture -Mies van der Rohe Award 2017” are the following:

1. The optical shop C_29 / ’Optimist’ designed by 314 Architecture Studio: an interwar listed building located in the centre of Chalkida that expands along the back patio of an adjacent building and features a courtyard defined by an imaginary cube. The main design aspect was the creation of a gradient technique in the texture of materiality so as to emphasize the reflection and absorbance of light. Moreover, the plan does not allow visual contact with the courtyard and the shop. Therefore, a wall is formed at an angle of 45 degrees in the intermediate space, fully covered by mirrors, resulting in visual continuity between the two spaces.

The architect behind 314 Studio is Pavlos Chatziangelidis, which he founded in 2004. He studied civil engineering at the National Technical University of Athens in 1996-2002 and architecture engineering in The University of Thessaly 2006-2012. In 2004 he acquired a Master of Arts degree in design. The name of the studio is inspired from the mathematic symbol π = 3,14 used to count the area of the circle. This reference is related to the philosophical dimension of the concept of the circle. The basic characteristic of his design, beside the ecological, social and programmatic dimensions of the project, is the creation of a shell that urges the user to experience an abstraction.

2. Private residence on the island of Syros, designed by Katerina Tsigarida: The complex – comprising five buildings that house living and dining areas, bedrooms and a studio – is sited on the edge of a bay that overlooks a small deserted island. The orientation is subtly ingenious: the axis of each building catches an edge of the bay, while the axes of the intervening courtyards point directly to the island. Getting the orientation right, according to the architect, was probably the most challenging part of the project. The results, though, were worth the effort – the spaces offer both natural ventilation and light, and protection from the strong coastal winds.

Born in Athens, Tsigarida studied at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki School of Architecture and continued her studies at London’s Architectural Association School of Architecture under Elia Zenghelis, a partner at Rem Koolhaas’s Office for Metropolitan Architecture, and worked for Koolhaas in London, before opening an Athens branch of OMA with Zenghelis in 1981. On her own for three decades, she’s designed everything from chairs to vacation compounds to major urban infrastructure informed by the classical tenets she has embraced since her student days. Her most important work has been in Thessaloniki, where she designed the New Helexpo Gates and the East Metropolitan Axis, a cultural district and series of plazas that helped revive a moribund part of the city.

3. Monochord house in Agria, Volos, designed by Zissis Kotionis: The house is developed in four levels vertically (including the basement). Horizontally, on the longitudinal axis (north to south, mountain to sea), the construction forms a unified space divided in three equal parts and a shorter, fourth part in front of the building. In terms of typology, the house could be considered a basilica type, with an interior atrium. The construction materializes the house’s typology: the two aisles are built of concrete and the main area is formed as a wooden box that comes to fit to the concrete sides of the building. The wooden box, is like the sound box of the simplest musical instrument, the monochord.

Zissis Kotionis is a PhD architect, writer and artist. He is a Professor in the Department of Architecture, University of Thessaly. He has published eight books on architectural theory, urban culture and narrative poetry. His architectural and art projects have been published and exhibited around the world. His work includes artistic performances, installations and public art practices. In 2010 he was co-Commissioner of Greece in the 12th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, Venice (The Ark). In 2012 his architectural research on metropolitan architecture and the commons under the title “Multidomes”, and in 2014 his project “Anaximander in Fukushima”, were exhibited at the Benaki Museum, Athens.

4. Veterinary Clinic building, designed by AKKM Architecture Studio: AKKM & Associates - Architecture and Urban Design Studio, was founded in 1992. The practice has since taken on and realized a wide spectrum of design and supervision projects, as well as small to medium scale construction work.

Specifically, the architectural design of the veterinary clinic was carried out by Greek architects Damianos Abakoumkin, Yorgos Kavvadas, Athanassios Kaloyannis and Spyridon Mpoutis; the team has been nominated for several prizes and awards in the past, such as at the “Young Greek Architects 6th Biennale” (organized by the Hellenic Institute of Architecture) and the ArchitectureAwards 2010 (organized by the Association of Greek Architects).

5. The Museum of Ancient Wall Constructions, part of the Archaeological park at the ancient gates of Piraeus, designed by Vasilis Ganiatsas, architect and professor of architectural design at the National Technical University of Athens.

The archaeological site is approached as a local submersion of the ancient city which is extended underneath and in parallel to the contemporary city. Pylis street is treated as the last street of a contemporary city overlooking the archeological site on a lower level, a balcony of today looking out to our past. It is proposed as a pedestrians zone and acts as a threshold by comprising the entrance to the archeological site, by connecting the site to the local Museum of Ancient Wall Constructions and by providing space underneath for all necessary facilities.

The EU Prize for Contemporary Architectureis managed jointly by the European Commission in cooperation with the Mies van der Rohe Foundation, which is based in Barcelona and supported by a network of 15 architecture institutions, as well as a committee of experts from 31 countries. The aim is to draw attention to the major contribution by European professionals to the development of new ideas and technologies. Furthermore, the institution sets out to foster architecture by encouraging architects to work throughout the entire EU and by supporting young architects as they set off on their careers.

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This month, the public in Greece will have a last chance to visit “The Equilibrists”, a grand exhibition, devoted to a new generation of young Greek and Cypriot artists, running through October 23, 2016 at the Benaki Museum (Pireos Street Annexe). “The Equilibrists” is a project organized by the New Museum (New York, USA) and the DESTE Foundation (Athens, Greece), in collaboration with the Benaki Museum on the occasion of DESTE’s 33rd anniversary. On the occasion of its anniversary, rather than focusing on its past, the Foundation is looking forward with a focus on the future of young art in Greece, by bringing together work by a new generation of young Greek and Cypriot artists working in Athens and abroad, ranging from their mid-20s to mid-30s.

Specifically, the 33 artists*** participating in the exhibition have adopted radically diverse approaches towards reflecting and engaging with the world around them. Working across painting, sculpture, drawing, film & video, and performance, they capture the fragility of the present moment through a shared approach to materiality. Their work touches upon themes as varied as historical memory, shifting notions of cultural identity, the politics of architecture and infrastructure, and the surfaces and flows of the digital realm.

Greek News Agenda* had the pleasure to interview Gary Carrion- Murayari** who was co-curator of the exhibition (together with Helga Christoffersen and the New Museum’s Artistic Director Massimiliano Gioni). He spoke to GNA about the cooperation between the New Museum and the Deste Foundation – two of USA’s and Greece’s leading cultural institutions with regards to contemporary art – as well as on the selection process that was followed in relation to “The Equilibrists” exhibition. He also shared his views on Greece’s contemporary arts scene and the challenges artists are faced with in times of crisis.

Q: How did the New Museum‘s cooperation with DESTE Foundation and the Benaki Museum come about, in relation to “The Equilibrists” exhibition?

A: The New Museum has collaborated with the Deste Foundation in the past and we were invited last summer to organize the exhibition to commemorate the anniversary of the Deste Foundation, as both the New Museum and Deste have a long commitment to emerging artists from around the world.

Q: Can you provide an insight on the selection process with regard to the artists showcasing their work in the exhibition? What were the main selection criteria?

A: We spent several months researching and requesting portfolios from Greek and Cypriot artists working within both countries, as well as those who were living in abroad. We also solicited recommendations from a number of artists, curators, and writers working in Athens and beyond. After reviewing hundreds of portfolios, we undertook several trips to meet artists – traveling to Athens, Thessaloniki, Nicosia, Berlin and London – and selecting 33 artists from this group.

Our intention with the selection process was to highlight the diversity of practices and viewpoints within this generation of artists. We were looking for strong, original voices across mediums and themes, rather than attempting to proscribe a singular viewpoint on what these artists should be making. The selections were driven by the individuality of the artists and the richness of the dialogue we had with each of them.

Q: Working as a curator for one of the leading contemporary art museums in the world, what is your view on the contemporary arts scene in Greece?

A: The scene in Greece is incredibly strong at the moment, not only in the works being produced by these young artists, but also in the artist-run initiatives and alternative spaces operating, which provide critical platforms that would be impressive in any city. We were also lucky to meet a number of brilliant, young curators working full or part-time in Athens whose projects are incredibly exciting and produce a true vibrancy to the scene.

Q: As a consequence of the eurocrisis, the younger generation in Greece is becoming part of an international ‘young precariat’, despite the burst of cultural activity in recent years. In this context, some claim that spending cuts entail a "blitzkrieg" for the arts, while others believe that Art flourishes in times of crisis.  What is your opinion on the issue?

A: The spending cuts for the arts in Greece are a huge hindrance to the arts – as they are in other crisis hit cities around the world. The crisis has meant that very few of the myriad talented artists in these cities are able to make a substantial living on their work – often leading many talented individuals to leave and forcing the ones who stay to limit the amount of time they spend on their work and the amount of work they are able to make. It has also hindered the ability of institutions to provide a platform for emerging and mid-career artists and to properly encourage young generations of artist to develop their work critically.

That being said, the response by artists and curators in Athens very recently has been to improvise, collaborate, and act resourcefully to create their own opportunities and communities that support their work. The purpose of this exhibition has been to highlight these exceptional individuals and hopefully bring a larger appreciation to these efforts from both a local and international audience.

Q: Are there any plans to host “The Equilibrists” and/or other exhibitions of Greek artists in NYC New Museum in the future?

A: The exhibition was conceived of and planned for presentation only in Athens (it also includes a number of young artists who rarely or have never exhibited in Athens, even though they work and live there). The show provided a great contribution to our ongoing research into emerging contemporary art around the world and we will continue to keep tabs on the scene in Athens and hopefully work with some of these artists again in the future.

*Interview by Eleftheria Spiliotakopoulou

“The Equilibrists” is in keeping with the spirit of the ongoing DESTE Prize which has honored a promising young Greek artist biannually since 1999. It also reflects one of the fundamental aims of the Benaki Museum, which as a historical museum, regularly seeks to bridge the past with the emerging present. Finally, this project also continues the New Museum’s ongoing commitment to international emerging artists, highlighted by its signature Triennial exhibition which will next take place in 2018.

**Gary Carrion-Murayari was recently appointed as a curator (together with Alex Gartenfeld) of the 2018 New Museum Triennial. He is Kraus Family Curator at the New Museum, where he has been an integral part of the curatorial team since joining the staff in 2010. Over the past five years, he has curated solo exhibitions for Phyllida Barlow, Ellen Gallagher, Haroon Mirza, and Camille Henrot, among others. He has also co-curated several New Museum exhibitions, including “Ghosts in the Machine,” “NYC 1993,” “Here and Elsewhere,” and “Chris Ofili: Night and Day.” He previously worked at the Whitney Museum of American Art for seven years, where he organized solo presentations of work by Elad Lassry and Karthik Pandian, and co-curated a number of group exhibitions. Carrion-Murayari was the co-curator, with Francesco Bonami, of the 2010 Whitney Biennial. He has contributed to numerous publications and exhibition catalogues, and has edited and overseen the production of several New Museum catalogues over the past five years. He is currently co-organizing a retrospective exhibition on the artist Jim Shaw, which will open at the New Museum in October.

***Artists participating in “The Equilibrists” exhibition: Loukia Alavanou, Dimitris Ameladiotis, Maria Anastassiou, Eleni Bagaki, Margarita Bofiliou, Marianna Christofides, Manolis Daskalakis-Lemos, Petros Efstathiadis, Eirene Efstathiou, Zoi Gaitanidou, Giorgos Gerontides, Stelios Kallinikou, Yannis Karpouzis, Lito Kattou, Kernel, Ioannis Koliopoulos, Orestis Mavroudis, Irini Miga, Olga Migliaresi-Phoca, Petros Moris, Persefoni Myrtsou, Eva Giannakopoulou, Malvina Panagiotidi, Aliki Panagiotopoulou, Eva Papamargariti, Zoë Paul, Sofia Stevi, Anastasis Stratakis, Valinia Svoronou, Paky Vlassopoulou, Myrto Xanthopoulou and Natalie Yiaxi.

See also: The Nifty 50 | Gary Carrion-Murayari, Curator

Watch video: "THE EQUILIBRISTS" organized by the Deste Foundation, New Museum NY and the Benaki Museum

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The inaugural London Design Biennale opened its doors at Somerset House on September 7, with installations by architects and designers representing 37 countries. Each project responds to the theme of “Utopia by Design,” aspiring to explore big questions and ideas about sustainability, migration, pollution, energy, cities and social equality.

Pairing with the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports, together with Emmy-awarded lighting designer Eleftheria Deko and graphic designer Domnika Gregoriades, Sisters Niki and Zoe Moskofoglou of on • entropy have created a digital marble landscape aiming to convey the feeling of utopia through marble and its innate landscape.

Included in the Top Five Picks of the Biennale, according to NY Times, Utopian Landscape is a digital recreation of a marble quarry at Dionysus, offering potent ground for an investigation into heritage, trade and population movement. The installation features a video projection of the quarry, transporting viewers to Mount Pentelicus, the birthplace of the stone used in constructing the Parthenon as well as the more contemporary National Library of Greece and the Greek National Opera. The video also show the history of transporting marble and the shifts in cultural and social migration it brought to the Greek community. The second room features a digital recreation of a solid 1.2-ton Pentelikon block structure — and a light installation by Eleftheria Deko that creates a sense of fluidity against the sturdiness of the marble.

The Greek team references the current flows and transitions of people, contextualized against a long history of population movement through Greece – a geographic bridge between east and west. The aim is to explore the complex relations between landscape, heritage, identity and materiality in varying historical spatial contexts. Marble sets the backdrop and foundation where the utopian narrative takes place: the landscape. Its imperfections, veins and natural flaws render the marble’s strata a map in itself with its deltas, uneven terrain and infinite routes. Storytelling through the installation reminisces of travelling through landscapes as places of cultural heritage and spaces of desire. It confronts a sense of identity and belonging, viewing the self through time and place.

Read more about the Utopian Landscape installation here: LDB booklet

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