Events organised by the Press and Communication Office in Paris - 2009
December 1, 2009 - 6th Panorama of Contemporary Greek Cinema
The movie «Dogtooth» («Kynodontas») by Yiorgos Lanthimos opened on December 1, 2009 the 6th Panorama of Contemporary Greek Cinema, which runs to December 8 and takes place in the Cinéma des Cineastes in Paris.
The Panorama, a highly appreciated artistic event which Paris hosts every two years since 2000, is jointly organised by the Consulate General of Greece in Paris and the Press and Communication Office of the Greek Embassy in France, along with the Greek Film Centre and constitutes a major opportunity for the French audience to watch and get acquainted with the work of the Greek contemporary film makers.
A great number of spectators attended the Panorama’s opening night, highlighted by Lanthimos’ Dogtooth, awarded in the Cannes Festival and in the Stockholm International Film Festival. Among them, the Vice President of the Greek Government, Mr. Th. Pangalos, Greek deputies, the Ambassador of Greece in France, Mr. C. Halastanis, the Ambassador of Greece to UNESCO, Mr. G. Anastassopoulos, diplomatic missions representatives, the chairman of the Greek Film Centre, Mr. Y. Papalios, the acclaimed film maker Costa-Gavras, as well as prominent figures of the Greek community in France.
Ms Aikaterini Koika, the General Consul of Greece in Paris welcomed the audience and expressed her gratitude and content with regards to the realisation of the Panorama’s initiative in Paris, while Mr. Costa-Gavras and Mr. Papalios saluted the new era that prevails nowadays to the Greek Contemporary Cinema.
The whole event was presented by the journalist, Nicos Aliagas.
The Dogtooth by Yiorgos Lanthimos has been presented and reviewed for quite some time now, by the most prominent French Media.
June 27, 2009 - «Blind Adam»: Fashion-art exhibition in Paris
The Parisian art gallery C LAGENCE is currently presenting the most recent work of the Greek designer and fashion editor Thanos Kyriakides, who participates in the Men’s Fashion Week and the Haute Couture Fashion Week in the French capital. The exhibition of his art project «Blind Adam» is organised under the aegis of the Press and Communication Office of the Greek Embassy in France and in collaboration with the Association of Young Greek Professionals of Paris.
In the framework of this event covering the period June 25th to July 7th, a cocktail reception for the press was offered on Saturday, June 27th, at the forementioned gallery in the centre of Paris.
Thanos Kyriakides was born in Athens in 1971. He is working as a fashion editor since 1990 and during this period he has collaborated with many Greek style magazines, such as Vogue, L’Officiel, In Style, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, Esquire etc. In 2002 the artist was stricken by a genetic disease provoking gradual loss of vision, a misfortune that incited him to look for new ways to express his creative imagination. This is how the art project with the symbolic name «Blind Adam» came into being two years ago.
The artist has chosen to work with wool strings, developing new talents that arise from the acute tactile sense he is now acquiring. The basic idea of his art consists in the creation of pieces made from assembled wool knots.
The « blind Adam » art project combines various elements the designer selects from his most preferred artists, his works being mostly inspired by the artwork of Jean Cocteau, Giacometti, Da Vinci, Pollock, Magritte and Dali, but also by the “Emperor’s new clothes” fairy tale and the Braille writing method. Kyriakides wishes to play with the idea of the “invisible clothes”, producing works that, apart from their clothing function, present a magnificent art installation as well, while calling for reflection on themes like vision and blindness, real world and spirituality.
March 26, 2009 - "Mount Athos. The monastic state"
Α special preview screening of the documentary film «Mont Athos. La République des moines» was organized by the Press and Communication Office of the Greek Embassy in France, in collaboration with the production company « Les films de l’Effronté », on Thursday, March 26.
The event took place at the Publicis Cinema, in the centre of Paris (Champs Elysées avenue), and was held in connection with the forthcoming exhibition « Mont Athos et l’Empire Byzantin, Trésors de la Sainte Montagne », due to be presented shortly in the French capital (Petit Palais, 10.4-5.7-2009).
The documentary film, introduced by its French directors, Yves Bertorello and Eddy Vicken, offered the participants a scent of this sacred place having preserved the Christian tradition intact, leading the audience on a voyage to the roots and origins of the European civilization.
The spectators invited to the event were initiated in the spiritual atmosphere of the most famous monastic community, as well as to the monks’ frozen in time everyday life, reminiscent of the golden days of the Byzantine era.
Moreover, the public had the opportunity to admire the unique scenery and exquisite architectural complexes of this World Heritage site attracting every year large numbers of visitors.
The screening was followed by a cocktail reception in the lobby of the cinema. The particularly successful event was attended by more than 400 people who responded warmly to the hosts’ invitation.
