6^th Patras World Poetry Festival

Invisible People | Invisible Thoughts

Organized by

The Poetry Office | Culture Book | Jean Moreas Awards

 

with the collaboration of

Region of Western Greece | University of Patras

 

Opening

Thursday, 7 September 2023, 19.00 – 21.00

Agora Argyri Multipurpose Space for Visual Arts

 Aghios Andreas 12, Patras

Duration: 4 – 14 September 2023

The Patras International Poetry Festival continues its successful course and this autumn it returns with even more innovative and multi-level actions that include not only poetry but also other forms of contemporary art that are invited to engage in conversation with each other and with the spectators who will attend them. Its realization is the result of the excellent cooperation of the President of the International Poetry Festival, Professor Triantafyllos Kotopoulos, the President of the Poetry Office Antonis Skiathas, the organizers of the event, the Poetry Office, culturebook.gr, Epikentro Plus Patras, Cube Gallery, the scientific committee and the multi-member organizing committee and always in accordance with the international standards of International Poetry Festivals.

The President of the International Poetry Festival, Professor Triantafyllos Kotopoulos, states: “The Patras International Poetry Festival has created an international institution for literature that honours Greek letters, promotes Greek poetry and brings Greek poets together with their counterparts from all over the world. Along the way, poets from fifty countries have conversed with each other at the Patras Word Poetry Festival.”

The President of the Poetry Office, Antonis Skiathas, states: “It is extremely important for all of us at the Poetry Office that the festival is a city-wide affair, as national, regional and local institutions, businesses and citizens support the festival in all possible ways. The Ministry of Culture, the Region of Western Greece, the University of Patras are some of the institutions that support the festival, as well as municipalities, institutions, university and intellectual institutions, embassies, businesses and the literary community on an international level. The publications that have been planned as well as the activities in various emblematic places of the wider region such as Achaia Clauss, the Greek Diaspora Foundation and the Perivolaropoulos House shape the identity of the Festival. At the same time, the synergies with cultural institutions and the connection of poetry with other arts such as music, visual arts, photography create all those things that make the festival unique.

For another year, the festival is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Tourism, the Region of Western Greece, the Regional Union of Municipalities of Western Greece, the University of Patras, the Hellenic Open University, the University of Western Macedonia and the collaboration with important institutions such as OSDEL, Pen Greece and the Greek Library of London and is twinned with the Larnaca International Poetry Festival.

The 6th Patras International Poetry Festival, entitled Invisible People, will take place from 4 to 14 September 2023 and will host 70 poets from 20 different countries of the world, who will participate with physical presence. The main activities will take place in Patras and Messolonghi, important cities of the Region of Western Greece, thus linking the historicity of these regions and giving the foreign guests the opportunity of an experiential acquaintance.

The Poets

GREECE: Dimitris Alexiou| Penelope Alivizatou| Eleni Arapi| Dimitris Varvarigos| Dimitris Vasilakis| Christina– Panagiota Grammatikopoulou| Thanos Gogos | Niki Drougka| Nikos Erinakis| Stathis Intzes| Panagiotis Kerasidis| Nikos Keehem Kotsabougioukis| Elsa Korneti| Maria Koursi | Kostas Kremmydas| Triandafyllos Kotopoulos| Christina Labousi| Katerina Liatzoura| Eftychia– Alexandra Loukidou| Sotiris Lykourgiotis| Mania Meziti | Elias Melios| Marina Michail– Christaki| Alexandra Bakonika| Antonia Botonaki| Asimina Ksirogianni| Tassos Pagiaslis| Aristea Papalexandrou| Sotiris Pastakas| Sofia Perdiki| Yorgos Rouskas| Liana Sakelliou| Antonis Skiathas| Yannis Stefanakis| Vangelis Tassiopoulos| Tonia Tzirita– Zacharatou| Tasoula Tsilimeni| Varvara Christia

CYPRUS: Eleni Artemiou-Fotiadou | Maria Christodoulou

ALBANIA: Dashamir Malo | Vangelis Zafeiratis

VENEZUELA: Norys Odalia Saavedra Sanchez     

VIETNAM: Mai Văn Phấn      

VOLIVIA: Veronica Delgadillo | Sulma Montero

ITALY: Leo Luceri | Fernando Pensa | Salvatore Tommasi

COLOMBIA: Rómulo Bustos Aguirre | Daniel Montoya | Fredy Yezzed   

CROATIA: Marija Dejanović 

CUBA: Giselle Lucía Navarro         

MALI: Ismael Diadié Haidara

NORWAY: Henning Bergsvåg | Μ.             Seppola Simonsen

SLOVAKIA: Mila Haugová | Zuzana Husárová

SLOVENIA: Nina Medved | Denis Skofic

TURKEY: Gokcenur Celebioglu | Ahmet Kuntberk            | Selahatin Yolgiden

CZECH REPUBLIC: Pavel Piekar | Kateřina Rudčenková | Simona Racková  

TUNISIA: Marianne Catzaras

CHILE: Andrea Quiñones Rubio

The novelty of this year’s festival lies in the inclusion of three very important art projects, which will take place from 4 to 14 September, with the main part of the festival concerning poetry from 7 to 10 September.

The official opening of the festival is scheduled for Thursday, September 7, 2023, 19.00, at the Argyris Agora Art Space with the presentation of the art project Invisible People | Invisible Thoughts, in which Greek and foreign artists participate and which includes paintings, installations, constructions, video art and performances. The curator is Liana Zoza.

With the participation of: Anne Beigbeder Sollis | Bleeps | Brendan Kelly | Toulouse | Vilelmini Andrioti| Ioannis Kourtalis| Makis Kyriakopoulos| Kostas Lakis| Panos Liapis | Angeliki Loi | Andreas Lymperatos | Alexandros Magkaniotis| Christina Mitrentse| Dimosthenis Bogiatzis | Ismene Bonatsou| Andreas Nikolaou | Vasiliki Pantazi | Gefso Papadaki| Dionysis Pappas| Virginia Filippousi| Yannis Christakos and the Meta-i-dolls: Dome Κatze (Katerina Economu) | Chimera (Elli Leventeri) | Akai (Vasia Metsini) | Αnima Creativa (Elvira Papaioannou) | Margay (Myrto Kapnisti) | Finy (Katerina Kyriafini) | Step of Color (Faye Skardi) | Sakura (Vilelmini Andrioti) | Naf (Nafsika Tzanoulinou) | Kelly (Kelly Tarenidi) | Nastya (Anastasia Tsoutsouka) | Polimnia (Melina Kouvaki) | Prax (Praxithea Aristeidou).

Performance Therapy with Antigone by Ginger F. Zaimis.

Performance by Meta–i–dolls in collaboration with the 3rd Sculpture Workshop of the School of Fine Arts and Professor Yiannis Melanitis.

Portraits by Peny Delta.

The Argyris Market will also host part of the art project Aphrodite today in collaboration with the Association of Czech Engravers Hollar and the Centre for Classical Studies of the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences and in parallel to the Cube Gallery, where on Friday, 08.09, 11.00, there will be a guided tour by Pavel Piekar, President of the Association of Czech Engravers HOLLAR.

With the Participation of: Mikoláš Axmann | Karel Beneš | Jan Blaha | Šimon Brejcha | Dušan Černý | Petr Fiala | Petr Hampl | Pavel Holeka | Tomáš Hřivnáč | Ditta Jiřičková | Martin Mulač | Petr Palma | Pavel Piekar | Martin Raudenský | Zuzana Růžičková | Jiří Slíva | Ladislav Sýkora | Petr Štěpán | Hana Šuranská | Jana Šindelová | Eva Vlasáková | Bohunka Waageová

On Friday, 08.09, 10.00, an artistic event will be presented in the district of Refugees, which will take the form of a surprise and will be performed by a well-known street artist in abandoned buildings of the city, with a concept that will be linked to a well-known poem and will be communicated through social media.

On Friday, 08.09, 20.00, alongside the poetry readings, a musical performance by the international musician Dimitris Vassilakis will take place at Achaia Clauss.

On Saturday, 09.09, 10.00, there will be a guided tour of the Greek Diaspora Foundation followed by poetry readings at the Perivolaropoulos House, 12.00 – 14.00, with a limited number of invitations.

On Saturday, 09.09, 20.00, the musical event entitled: “Kostis Palamas: The muses I loved“, with music by Sakis Papadimitriou and text by Maria Panagiotakopoulou, with the participation of the actor Kostas Kastanas.

On Sunday, 10.09, in the morning there will be poetry readings on the Bridge and then a tour of Messolonghi for the invited poets and poetry readings in the Art Gallery in collaboration with the Spiritual Center of the Municipality of Messolonghi, while in the evening of the same day, at 20.00, there will be a musical event in the beautiful garden of Polyedros, 20.00, with the Grecan poets as the central theme.

The events that will accompany the festival and will involve important guests, renowned and internationally renowned academics, writers and representatives of institutions include poetry readings in different venues, tours of important sites in the two cities, and meals, dinners and musical evenings and parallel activities, such as the Poetry Alley with an exhibition in a central pedestrian street of the city, with banners with the participating poets and their poems, poetry set to music with a musical tribute, the Meet Poetry project, with interviews with poets, critics and publishers through the culturebook channel and social media. The poems of the participants will be included in the collected printed bilingual edition and in an e-book the Anthology of the 6th Patras International Poetry Festival.

It is important to emphasize that the organization of the entire festival is not for profit and the participation of the public is free of charge in all its activities.

PROGRAM 2023

Thursday 7 September– Evening| Agora Argyri

19.00 – 21.00 Art Project Opening Invisible People | Invisible Thoughts

1st Circle of Poetry Readings

Friday 8 September- Day

10.00 street art in the Refugees region

11.00 Guided tour by Pavel Piekar, in Cube Gallery | Art Project Aphrodite Today

Friday 8 Σεπτεμβρίου – Evening| Achaia Clauss 

Guided tour in Oinokastro

20.00 2nd Circle of Poetry Readings

Musical performance by the lauded artist Dimitris Vasilakis

Saturday 9 September– Day

10.00 Greek Diaspora Foundation | Guided tour

12.00 Perivolaropoulos House      

3rd Circle of Poetry Readings

Saturday 9 September– Evening| Villa Kolla

20.00 Honorary Awards

Musical event entitled: “Kostis Palamas: The muses I loved”,

music by Sakis Papadimitriou and text by Maria Panagiotakopoulou,

with the collaboration of Κostas Kastanas (actor).

Sunday 10 September– Day

10.00 Bridge| 4th Circle of Poetry Readings

12.00 Mesolonghi

Guided tour and session in collaboration with the

Cultural Centre of the Municipality of Messolonghi

Garden of Heroes

5th Circle of Poetry Readings | Gallery

Sunday 10 September– Evening| Polyedron

20.00 6th Circle of Poetry Readings

Grecian poets

Musical evening with traditional music by

from the Greek-speaking villages of Southern Italy