Statue of Mother

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The Statue of Mother is located on the island of Aegina,

3 km north of the port of Aegina,

in the area of Plakakia. [37°45'54.5"N 23°25'26.6"E]

 

The spot is beautiful and attracts any visitor to the island.

It is only a walking distance away from the house

where Nikos Kazantzakis lived and wrote his works

and from the beautiful Bouza lighthouse.

 

The Statue of Mana is the work of the well-known Greek sculptor

of the 20th century (1909 - 1993) Christos Kapralos.

It is made of bronze and symbolizes the mother

who is waiting for her son who is a sailor to return from a long, multi-day, voyage.

 

A few meters opposite the statue

you can visit the Christos Kapralos Museum to enjoy remarkable exhibits.

 

 

 

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Please click on the picture

to enjoy the sunset in a larger resolution.

Alexandos Papagos

IMG_1294 [Papagos]

 

Field Marshal Alexandros Papagos (1883-1955)

Commander-in-chief of the Greek National Forces (1940-1941 and 1949)

Prime Minister of Greece (1952-1955)

 

The man for whom Winston Churchill on December 4, 1940 said:

“I wish Papagos would command the British army”.

 

The sculpture above, crafted by Iraklis Xanthopoulos,

was wisely placed a few meters away

from the entrance to the Greek Ministry of Defense in Athens.

 

 

 

IMG_1294 [Papagos]

 

This picture was taken through a hedge

that surrounds the little “Pl. Enoplon Dynameon” (= Greek Military Forces sq.)

where the statue was placed in 2000.

 

Both photographed on October 23, 2022

The Runner

IMG_1054 [Runner]

 

I have a piece of advice for you, my friends. If you are ever caught up driving in a traffic jam, lower your window and have your mobile phone ready. You may be lucky to see “The Runner” or something else interesting enough for you to press the trigger. This is what happened to me in the center of Athens on September 25, 2022.

 

The Runner is a piece of work created by the sculptor Kostas Varotsos in memory of the Greek Marathon Race winner Spyros Luis. Currently, it is standing on a little square next to a well-known hotel in central Athens but reportedly there are plans to move it to Omonoia square.

 

For more info and a different view of the Runner please click HERE.

[Clicking is free and doesn’t cost a penny!😂]

 

 

 

Apollo the Guitarist

802_1539 [Apollo the Guitarist]

 

This statue of Apollo, the ancient Greek Olympian god of music, stands with his lyre on a column outside the Academy of Athens, a world-wide highlight of the city. The statue itself measures 3.71m in height while the column is 19.54! 

 

It is attributed to the Greek architect Leonidas Drossis but there is evidence that there is more to the matter.

For additional information please click HERE to watch a slideshow on the Academy of Athens, in case you have missed it. 

 

Please click on the picture for a better view. 

 

 Photographed downtown Athens on September 13, 2015 

 

 

The Cathedral of Athens

802_6311 [The Cathedral of Athens 2]

An early evening shot of the Cathedral of Athens.

Please click on both pictures for a better view.

For more pictures and info about the Cathedral please click here.

Photographed on July 20, 2016

 

By the way, on the left, in the foreground one can see the statue of Archbishop Damaskinos [See below]: a prominent figure who, during the German occupation (1941-1944), assisted the people who suffered, defended their rights and freedom and opposed strongly to the persecution and holocaust of the Greek Jews.
He was a man of great courage who stood up against the German occupation authorities (1943) and said: “The members of the clergy of Greece may not be shot. They may only be hanged. I beg you to respect this tradition….” [Inscription can be seen at the back of the statue.]

802_6600 [Archbishop Damaskinos]

Photographed on August 18, 2016

Satyros at Olympia

_8012045 [Satyros at Olympia]

A portrait head of a boxer made of bronze. It was found at Olympia, Greece. The man is crowned with kotinos, the olive-wreath awarded to victors in the Olympic games. Unfortunately, only the stem of the wreath is preserved. His facial features have led to the identification of the figure as a boxer. The head probably belonged to the statue of the famous boxer Satyros of Elis, who repeatedly won the boxing event at Nemea, Pythia and Olympia. The statue was the work of the Athenian bronze-sculptor Silanion.

About 330-320 BC.
.

Photographed within The National Archeological Museum in Athens [here] on January 18, 2014

The Academy of Athens: A slide show

[The Academy of Athens]

A slide show featuring the Academy of Athens: a marble neoclassical building (1885) that is considered one of the major landmarks of the city and - according to international experts - one of the most exquisite neoclassical buildings worldwide.

Duration 8' 39"

You are recommended to watch it in full screen.

Photographs taken in 2015-2016

“The runner”

801_5410A [The Runner]

This controversial piece of art was made exclusively with sheets of glass arranged horizontally one on top of the other on a well-hidden metal skeleton. It was created by the Greek artist Costas Varotsos in 1988.
Originally, it was placed on Omonia square where it remained until 2000 when metro works began. Then, it was moved - reportedly for safety reasons - to the square next to the Hilton Hotel where it can be seen until today.

The Runner in the picture above seems to be about to cross a “Finish line”.

Photographed in Athens on May 31, 2014

"Dona i ocell"

Parc indu 09 [Dona i ocell]

“Dona i ocell” [Woman and Bird] was created in 1982 by the Spanish Catalan artist Joan Miró in collaboration with Gardy Artigas.
The statue - 22m high - is made of concrete and is covered with ceramic tiles that were styled by Joanet Gardy Artigas. Today, it can be seen in Parc Joan Miró in Barcelona.




"Dona i ocell": detail

Parc indu 09 [detail]

It was photographed on August 25, 2006

An artist gets inspired

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Please click on the photos for a larger view

In summer 2007 a raging fire burned out a vast area of forest on Mt. Parnitha leaving behind not only a depressing sight but also large numbers of homeless animals like Red deer (Cervus elaphus) among others.  

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Today, Spyros Dasiotis (Σπύρος Ντασιώτης), a forest ranger on Mt. Parnitha and an artist, came up with the brilliant idea of giving life in his own way to some of the half-burned tree-trunks left behind after the fire. He is visualizing a park with wooden statues to be laid out next to a nearby deserted sanatorium where so many people have lost their lives. His works, although still lying on the ground unfinished, seem to express feelings that could be triggered off by a lost life or by a burned forest.

We would like to congratulate him on the idea

and we are looking forward to seeing his project completed soon.

Here follow a few pictures of his works, albeit still unfinished.  
 

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Mt. Parnitha: 07/09/2012, photos by Tony Taglides