In conjunction with the Artist Residency Program organized by the Vamvakou Revival team, three of the visual artists, SNF ARTWORKS Fellows, traveled to Laconia and spent a week in the village of Vamvakou. Yassonas Megoulas (aka Cacao Rocks), Alexandros Simopoulos and Pavlos Tsakonas, stimulated by the rich history of the place, created murals in three distinct parts of the village. Their beautiful works apart from inspiring cheerfulness, can now be seen as landmarks of the village, adding to the discussion about art for rural communities.
Vamvakou is a small mountain village with few inhabitants, which is currently being reborn through the Vamvakou Revival organization, founded in 2018 by a group of people with strong ties to the village having the guidance and financial support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). Vamvakou Revival aims at bringing new life to the village, drawing on the history, human capital, and natural wealth of the region.
The residency took place between July 13 and 19, 2020 and was supported by Vamvakou Revival and its founding donor the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF).
Video constructed by reconstructing memories (@reconstructingmemories)
Yassonas Megoulas (aka Cacao Rocks), Stronger Together, 2020
A symbol of Vamvakou’s Committee of Representatives (1898) under the motto “stronger together”. The first official and recognized community administration in the history of Greek State.
Alexandros Simopoulos, Another roadside attraction (Tricksters), acrylics and spray-paint on wall, 6×6 meters, 2020
Three wildflowers dance on the stones. The work borrows its title from Tom Robbins’ first novel while depicting a common motif in folk art. At first, reading the mural is a metaphorical illustration to support the efforts for the revival of the village. Αt the same time, seeing these wild flowers on a large scale, flying out of the mural and reaching the asphalt, the stones and different parts of the village — as if they are sticking out their tongues on us like “tricksters” — challenges the visitor to look at them carefully as if they were some kind of monuments dedicated to sensitivity, resilience, elasticity, endurance, lightness, banality, charm, “graphic beauty”, to the archetype of the trickster.
Pavlos Tsakonas, Hawk awk wk k , acrylic colors, 20sqm, 2020
A simple two-color mural, transcription of a theme borrowed from the ancient tradition that emphasizes, among other things, to the fluidity of history, culture and tradition. The hawk as the symbol-sign of the mountains of Laconia intervenes gently, like an indigenous drawing in the stone mountain village’s natural landscape. The discreet color of the design indicates the shadow or the echo of the bird despite its very presence. With its symbolism it conveys messages of victory, hope and spiritual uplift.
