Art in Hydra

THE AUTHENTIC

by ZEUS+DIONE 

The Zeus+Dione spring summer 2017 collection is named after Hydra and it draws inspiration from the island’s striking nature and rich artistic scene. To coincide the launch of this, the third issue of Authentic, that expands and responds to the theme of the collection, has been released. This issue focuses specifically on highlighting the creative people and places that make up the distinctive culture on the island.

From singer, songwriter and poet Leonard Cohen to authors such as Margarita Karapanou, both who are profiled in the new issue of Authentic, the island has been a source of creative inspiration to many. It is this connection with the arts that has created the foundations for the island to become an international art hub, attracting the elite of the contemporary art scene. Today, places such as the Slaughterhouse that opened in 2009 and Hydra School Projects, whose founder Dimitris Antonitsis is interviewed in Authentic, ensure the art offering on the island remains dynamic and exciting.

One of the must-see art events that took place this summer at Hydra, was the annual DESTE exhibition. The foundation, created by the internationally renowned collector Dakis Joannou, invites a group of artists or a single artist to develop an exhibition for the Foundation’s Project Space situated at a former slaughter house. This year African American contemporary artist Kara Walker was chosen for the task.

Walker’s work explores race, gender, sexuality, violence and identity. For this exhibition, she transported the left hand from a monument titled “The Sugar Sphinx,” that was originally exhibited at the Domino Sugar factory in Williamsburg, New York in 2014 to critical acclaim. On display until the end of September, Figa, as this piece is called, is made out of polystyrene and sugar and it is shaped into a fist with thumb thrust between the index and middle fingers. With meaning rooted in ancient Greece and Rome, the sign can be interpreted as rude but it also has positive connotations as a symbol of fertility and protection against the evil eye.

A special thank you to DESTE foundation and Dakis Johannou for giving the world the opportunity to see such great art in Greece