Politismos eMagazine | Arts & Culture
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“The Soul’s Song” by George Leonardos

28.12.2017 in Arts & Culture

“The Soul’s Song” by George Leonardos   Athens, Greece has been selected as World Book Capital 2018 by UNESCO. In celebration of this designation, we’re sharing some of our favorite authors and books.   Being an avid literature reader and having read hundreds of novels, I don’t remember being more gripped by a book – so as to read 388 pages in one day – as I was when I read “The Soul’s Song” (first published in 1997 by Livanis Publications). From the moment I opened this novel by George Leonardos, I couldn’t stop reading it! The book’s heroine, a…

“Daughters of water” by Filomela Lapata

26.12.2017 in Arts & Culture

“Daughters of water” by Filomela Lapata   Athens, Greece has been selected as World Book Capital 2018 by UNESCO. In celebration of this designation, we’re sharing some of our favorite authors and books.   The novel “Daughters of Water” narrates the story of four women, all members of the same family – women with common roots but with very different personalities and lives. Aikaterini Chatzigianni (known in Braila as “the lady”) Natalia Patrikiou (nicknamed “the witch” for being surprisingly beautiful), Antonia Manolatou and Filomela Lapata. Having fiery temperaments, they all lived their lives with outbursts, passion and love. The lives…

Emmanuel Rhoides (1836-1904)

21.12.2017 in Arts & Culture

Emmanuel Rhoides (1836-1904)     Athens, Greece has been selected as World Book Capital 2018 by UNESCO. In celebration of this designation, we’re sharing some of our favorite authors and books.   Greek Letters would be definitely poorer without the contribution of Emmanuel Rhoides, an author whose works were a milestone for 19th c. literature. Rhoides was born in 1836 on the island of Syros to a rich merchant family. He spent most of his youth abroad – in Germany, Romania and Italy – studying history, literature, and philosophy. Rhoides spoke several European languages as well as ancient Greek and…

Alexandros Papadiamantis (1851-1911)

19.12.2017 in Arts & Culture

Alexandros Papadiamantis (1851-1911)     Athens, Greece has been selected as World Book Capital 2018 by UNESCO. In celebration of this designation, we’re sharing some of our favorite authors and books.   A hermit, a recluse, an occultist… Alexandros Papadiamantis was the ascetic figure of the 19th century literature movement in Greece; a “monk in the world” and the “saint of the Greek belle letters” as subsequent writers and critics used to call him. Few authors influenced the 20th century Greek literature as Papadiamantis did. He was born in 1851 on the island of Skiathos, located in the western part…

“The Little Mariner”, Odysseas Elytis

14.12.2017 in Arts & Culture

“The Little Mariner”, Odysseas Elytis     Athens, Greece has been selected as World Book Capital 2018 by UNESCO. In celebration of this designation, we’re sharing some of our favourite authors and books.   The Little Mariner (1970-74) by Nobel Prize winner Odysseas Elytis is one of my favorite, most interesting reads. Some critics debate that somehow this collection did not have the same impact most of his other poems did. It is definitely a more mature work of his and the ways he manipulates poetic language in it can be somewhat perplexing. Elytis alternates between prose and poetry, using…

“The Magic Pillows”, Eugene Trivizas

12.12.2017 in Arts & Culture

“The Magic Pillows”, Eugene Trivizas     Athens, Greece has been selected as World Book Capital 2018 by UNESCO. In celebration of this designation, we’re sharing some of our favourite authors and books.   For the unfortunate citizens of “Ouranopolis”, King Arpatilaos is on the rather nasty side. He only cares about his twelve crowns (one for each month!) and the jewels that decorate them. He is particularly scornful of all holidays and happy occasions and uses his crow feather to write laws that ensure his subordinates work in the city’s jewel-mines undistracted! The King bans the Carnival, birthday parties,…

Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) – A true “miracle” at the Faliron Delta

23.11.2017 in Arts & Culture

Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) – A true “miracle” at the Faliron Delta     The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), a true “architectural miracle” at the Faliron Delta – where the Athenian Hippodrome was once located – is a hub of activity for visitors of all ages, interests and backgrounds…   It is simply not possible to roam the Cultural Center’s incredibly rich, multi-fold program, without spotting things that interest you, activities to try or performances to enjoy: From learning to make soaps at home or growing vegetables on your balcony or garden, to philosophy classes and…

Costas Varotsos – Art is a Mirror

15.10.2017 in Arts & Culture

An interview with Costas Varotsos, Sculptor and Professor of Architecture – “Art is a mirror of reality, of the times that we live in.”   Concerned about the future of Europe, Costas Varotsos presented his new work this past summer “Composition-Decomposition” (2017). The 27 flags of the European Union member states lie broken on the floor with two glass spirals emerging from them. “We are at a critical moment. It is as if we were carrying the flag of the European Community and it fell from our hands. The idea of ​​the European Union is breaking down”, Varotsos said, on the…

Marina Triantafyllou – Artist

10.08.2017 in Arts & Culture

Marina Triantafyllou, “By creating, you are partaking in life” Marina Triantafyllou grew up in the beautiful village of Lefkes on the island of Paros, Greece. At a young age, she realized she possessed a talent for art. From this, grew the dream of one day owning her own art studio/gallery where she could share her love and passion of all things artist with everyone. Marina Triantafyllou began her professional career in 1998 by studying renovation and restoration of old, traditional Byzantine iconography as well as murals (Fresco and Secco) at the Christian Brotherhood of Youth Art School in Athens, Greece….

Syros, Island of the Pope

15.07.2017 in Arts & Culture

Syros, Island of the Pope… Where a Catholic and an Orthodox Found True Love While more than 95% of Greece’s population claims Orthodox as their religion, on the island of Syros, almost half of the population is Catholic. From the times of Venetian rule, the Catholic Church has played an impressive role in the island’s history. In medieval times, the Venetians brought Catholicism to the island of Syros. The Church planted strong roots and even during the almost 400 years of Ottoman occupation, the faith found solid ground. In addition to the churches there are also several Catholic Monasteries on…