Greece is the Guest of Honor at this year’s 29th Moscow International Book Fair that is taking place from 7 till 11 September 2016 at Moscow’s largest exhibition center, VDNH. The Russian Federal Agency for Press and Mass Communication appointed Greece as the Guest of Honor on the occasion of the Joint Year Greece-Russia 2016, while Russia was in turn the Guest of Honor at the 13th International Thessaloniki Book Fair in May.

Visitors of the Greek stand will have the opportunity to get acquainted with aspects of Greek culture, there will be displayed a selection of around 600 publications from 50 publishing houses, representative of the rich literary, scientific and artistic production of Greece spanning from antiquity, the Byzantine era, the Enlightenment, the 20th century until today.

Important Greek writers and artists are currently in Moscow in order to participate in the events’ programme that includes 30 events aiming at introducing the modern cultural face of a small country with a great history that maintains deep historical and cultural ties with Russia, through literature, cinema, visual arts, music.

Events include:

  • “The new spirit of Greek literature”, with the participation of writers Ioanna Bourazopoulou, Giannis Palavos, and Christos Chrysopoulos and literary critics Mikela Chartoulari and Vangelis Chatzivasileiou.
  • “Greek crime fiction facing the challenges of the era” presentation of the course of Greek crime fiction by Vangelis Chatzivasileiou.
  • Academic lectures by Hagen Fleischer, Venetia Apostolidou, Alexandra Ioannidou in collaboration with the Department of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies of the Lomonosov Moscow State University.
  • Literature and cinema: screenings of Greek films inspired by Greek literature, including the academy award winning film “Z” by Costas Gavras. The writer Vasilis Vasilikos who wrote the novel of the same title on which the film’s script is based, will introduce the film.
  • Screenings of award-winning Greek animation films for children and adults in collaboration with ASIFA HELLAS and Greekanimation.gr
  • The Art Exhibition “Typography as an act of art” and lectures by the director of the State Museum of Contemporary Art, Maria Tsantsanoglou and the curator Eirini Papakonstantinou.

The events’ program was developed by the Hellenic Foundation for Culture with the collaboration and support of Cavafy Archive-Onassis Foundation, State Museum of Contemporary Art, Greek Film Archive, Greek Film Center, Michael Cacoyannis Foundation, ASIFA HELLAS – Greekanimation.com, Greek IBBY-The Circle of the Greek Children’s Book and the Embassy of Greece to the Russian Federation, as well as the Department of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies of the Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Why Greece: Policies, institutions, challenges

After the official opening of the Greek stand on Wednesday 7/9 at 12:30a discussion will follow, at 14:00, on the subject “Why Greece: Policies, institutions, challenges”. Speakers include: Professor Aristedes Baltas, Minister of Culture and Sports of the Hellenic Republic, Professor Konstantinos Tsoukalas, President of the Hellenic Foundation for Culture, Professor Kostas Gavroglou, President of the Parliamentary Committee on Education. Dimitris Papanikolaou, Associate professor in Modern Greek and Fellow of St. Cross College, University of Oxford will be coordinating the discussion, while the Ambassador of Greece to the Russian Federation, Andreas Friganas, will also address the audience.

Sokratis Kampouropoulos, book expert, book policy working group of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, will make a presentation of the Greek book market at the international book forum organized by the Russians.