ARTIVISM IS an initiative towards a fair society, via art, which has seen to the travels of Greek art around the world and also to New York. Artivism: The Power of Art for Social Transformation is an independant inititiative that has been supported by Adelphi University’s Sing for Hope and by the Gottesman Library, Teachers College-Columbia University. Weekly presentations are organised which focus on artists and organisations from around the world which aim for social change via the strength of art.

In one of these presentations, which hosted the work of internationally acclaimed Greek artist Yiannis Kaminis, the educator and exhibition organiser Dimitris Lazarou presented his cultural site http://www.art-profiles.net and a collaboration began between Lazarou and Artivism, and its cofounder Argie Moutafis Agelarakis.

Argie Moutafis Agelarakis teaches at the University of Adelphi’s art department and is a member of the board of directors at The Centre for the Women of New York (CWNY), and also a board member of other associations such as The Hellenic Women’s Alliance. She hopes to advocate change via art, and thus to help towards a fairer society, by creating programmes and opportunities for students.

Via the three shows organised by Dimitris Lazarou (‘Children have the right NOT to remain silent’, ‘Woman Evolution 200’, ‘Not Ashamed of My Body Shape’), Lazarou has enabled the work of 183 contemporary artists from Greece and Cyprus to travel worldwide, but also to be presented in specific spaces in New York, within the context of the multifaceted events and exhibitions organised with Artivism’s theme of ‘Art for a Purpose’.

The exhibition ‘Woman Evolution 200’ is an online exhibition which focuses on the development of women from the the Greek Revolution of 1821, to the present day. The official video for the exhibition also includes poems by important Greek poets, that have been read by actress/director Maria Katsioni and choreographer/actress Georgia Karamerou.

The exhibition ‘Children have the right NOT to remain silent’, was presented at the Tsichritzis Foundation for the Visual Arts in Kifissia, before it became an online exhibition. The exhibition ‘Not Ashamed of my Body Shape’ was first presented at the Hellenic-French Association in Kolonaki, before it went online and sends the message that we first have to love our body and ourselves before we can love others. The latter two online versions of the exhibitions also feature the electronic musical compositions of Tasos P (Tasos Petsas).

The inauguration ceremonies/presentations of these exhibitions at the Arts Performing Centre of the Adelphi University of New York, started on April 18 and run till May 23. They are to be followed by exhibitions that will take place at the Gottesman – Teacher College of Columbia University (May 6-June 23), at the Center for Women of New York (May 7-21) and at the Costa Rica Consulate.

Parallel to these events and throughout May and June, the cultural site of Dimitris Lazarou (www.art-profiles.net), will be hosting video presentations of the three group exhibitions organised by Lazarou, that are taking part in Artivism’s events, but also of works by the other artists involved in Artivism’s events.

You may visit the following links in order to experience the world of Artivism and to get to know the power of transformation via art:

https://www.art-profiles.net/452133983

ARTIVISM: The Power of Art for Social Transformation on Facebook: https://facebook.com/artivismforsharedhumanity

ARTIVISM: The Power of Art for Social Transformation on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/artivism4sharedhumanity/?hl=el

The three video presentations of the exhibitions organised by Lazarou that are part of Artivism’s events:

WOMAN EVOLUTION 200:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2mSV1Spuy5aYfyo4WLLhgg

CHILDREN have the right NOT to remain silent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGHpm2r7zFU

NOT ASHAMED OF MY BODY SHAPE: