Influencer the 1st, a work by Greek artist Athan Mytilinaios, is featured in the exhibition “Formed by Dialogue,” which runs from November 14 to 24 at the iconic Egyptian Museum in Cairo, located in historic Tahrir Square.

“Influencer the 1st” presents a pharaoh carved in Triesta marble, which is not marble, but a type of local limestone from Mount Sinai. The repeated figure refers to ancient Egyptian relief sequences, where the multiple rendition of a form was used to emphasize the universality of its message, the dissemination of its teaching, or the power and breadth of its presence. Instead of a staff, the pharaoh holds a telephone, the new tool of power, memory, and global influence.

The project explores the relationship between ancient hieroglyphics and modern communication.
It honors the fact that the ancient Egyptians invented what has now evolved into the truly global, universal language of emojis, a legacy that has spread throughout the world. In this way, the connection between hieroglyphics and emojis acts as a bridge linking ancient Egypt with contemporary global culture, highlighting and honoring their enduring influence.

The sculpture was made locally in Cairo, with the expertise of Stones by Rania Malli.

Athan Mytilinaios is a Greek artist and creative consultant whose practice spans sculpture, drawing, and spatial narration, exploring how memory, mythology, and contemporary life coexist. Working between Athens and international cultural capitals, his work reshapes timeless archetypes through a contemporary lens: ancient gods enter the present, symbols take on new meaning, and heritage is transformed into a living language.

His visual philosophy draws on Greek and Egyptian mythology, treating the past not as something distant, but as an active part of today that shapes the world we continue to build. Through stone, line, light, and narrative, he seeks the sacred in the everyday and the contemporary in the ancient.

His artistry and artistic direction have been featured in Architectural Digest, Monocle, Vogue, Financial Times HTSI, The Modern Road, and other magazines. His collaborations include artistic direction for campaigns for the historic German jewelry firm Hemmerle, design and creative work for the LVMH group and architect Tarek Shamma, as well as the creation and implementation of the collaboration between Lake Vouliagmeni and Zeus + Dione, and the creation and creative management of the KAL.ATHI pop-up space in central Athens.

Ο καλλιτέχνης του και η καλλιτεχνική του διεύθυνση έχουν παρουσιαστεί στα περιοδικά Architectural Digest, Monocle, Vogue, Financial Times HTSI, The Modern Road κ.ά. Στις συνεργασίες του περιλαμβάνονται η καλλιτεχνική διεύθυνση για τις καμπάνιες της ιστορικής γερμανικής φίρμας κοσμημάτων Hemmerle, σχεδιαστικές και δημιουργικές εργασίες για τον όμιλο LVMH και τον αρχιτέκτονα Tarek Shamma, καθώς και η δημιουργία και η υλοποίηση της συνεργασίας ανάμεσα στη Λίμνη Βουλιαγμένη και το Zeus + Dione, όπως και η δημιουργία και η δημιουργική διαχείριση του pop-up χώρου KAL.ATHI στο κέντρο της Αθήνας.