Artistic references to the 100 years since the Asia Minor catastrophe and to the timeless, universal phenomenon of uprooting and refugeeship come to the fore in an exhibition at the Tsichritzis Foundation for the Visual Arts in Kifissia.

“My dear, when your beautiful body took fire, and shone like the stars,

God could not be found, nor a person to stand up for you, only the day watched, muted, and the night […], because the people were monsters and God was missing in foreign lands.” Angelos Simiriotis, ‘Smyrna’

THIRTY-TWO contemporary, remarkable visual artists make reference to, and honor with their works the centenary commenorating the Asia Minor catastrophe and the timeless, universal phenomenon of uprooting and refugeeship, in the art exhibition “XERIZ-OMOS REALISMOS” (Uprooting, Realism), presented in the emblematic environment of the Tsichritzis Foundation for the Visual Arts, 18 Kassaveti St, Kifissia, from Wednesday, June 22 to Saturday, July 9.

Dimitris Lazarou and his cultural website http://www.art-profiles.net are responsible for the concept, organization and communication of the exhibition.

The exhibition has been co-organised and supported by the International Cultural Platform ART HUB ATHENS / Art for social change – http://www.arthubathens.org.

The person in charge of concept, organization and communication of the exhibition, Dimitris Lazarou, notes:

“With a moral duty not to forget our history and chapters such as the Asia Minor catastrophe, 100 years later, 25 modern, remarkable visual artists, inspire and create works that tell stories that view again, in a different light, historical moments or periods, while at the same time emphasizing the eternity of phenomena that man, no matter how long he declares ready to extinguish them, continues through wrong policies or policies of indifference to hatch and repeat their resurgence.

Uprootings, refugees, caravans of human souls that are mere numbers or statistics for politicians (of people or movements) and who are fully aware of which social phenomena reinforce and guide prosperity, shed crocodile tears for the devaluation of the human soul and create solutions based on numbers, acting like revenue mechanisms that market and route the course of human lives.

ART IS AGAINST ALL THIS!!! Art with a different critical view, with its own RAW REALISM. Even if everything had a solution, art would not stop its work: To inspire, to create, to give credit even to the insignificant, which a future era might consider to be important, because Art always precedes its time and human history, although, it is often the human image, perspective, and “position” that art explores.”

Participating artists: Georgio Babili, Miltos Tsivdaris, Paul Spourelas, Stella Sevastopoulos, Giota Angelopoulou, Sofia Aptosoglou, Elena Arsenidou, Poly Georgakopoulou, Vicky Zagouri, Aglaia Thanasou,  Christos Theodoridis, Stella Kateryiannaki, Christina Kateryiannaki, Miranta Katsifa, Selina Kritikou, Angeliki Kostalou, Evangelia Liaskou, Prodromos Manou, Costas Markopoulos, Vivi Mentzelopoulou, Vasia Moustaka, Emilios Barbatos, Evangelia Bolani, Yiorgos Deros, Olga Xithali, Popi Palatianou, Sotiris Papagiannis, Vangelis Pappas, Aikaterini Pouliasi, Titina Rondoyianni, Matina Sioki, Ioanna Tsachtsirli.

• ‘Uprooting, Realism’, runs till July 9 at the Tsichritzis Foundation for the Visual Arts in Kifissia. 18 Kassaveti St, tel: 210-801-9975, email: info@iett.gr
• Inauguration: June 22, Wednesday, 7-11pm.
• Hours: Tuesday-Friday 11am-7pm, Saturday 11am-6pm. Closed Monday/Sunday.
• FREE ENTRANCE
• Dimitris Lazarou: repdla@hotmail.com // dimitriolazarou@gmail.com