The mayor of Patras, Kostas Peletidis, welcomed the ten artists participating in the Panhellenic Symposium of Painting “A great walk of memory and dream in Patras 2023” on Tuesday evening, September 19, at the “Ichthioskala” where the Panhellenic Symposium of Painting will take place.

The artists were guided to the open-air exhibition that has been developed there on the occasion of the symposium, as well as to the open-air sculpture gallery that operates in the area and consists of the works of the artists who participated in the 2022 sculpture symposium. The sculptors Christos and Philip Valeras, whose works are also present at the site, were also there.

Mr. Peletidis noted that “For the second year in a row the Municipality of Patras and the Cultural Organization in the framework of the International Festival are carrying out a particularly important cultural action such as the symposium. This year again, people of art from all over the country are taking part. The aim of the municipal authority is to fill our city with life, because man needs to be uplifted with the daily difficulties being many”.

The presentation of the painters who take part in the Panhellenic Symposium of Painting that takes place in the “Ichthyoskala” of Patras was held on Wednesday morning, September 20 at the Town Hall by the President of the Cultural Organization Katerina Geropanagioti.

The President of the Cultural Organization stressed among other things that: “As far as the municipality of Patras, the Cultural Organization and the International Festival are concerned, we will do everything in our power to make the artists feel that they are in a city that loves them , in a city that loves the arts and culture. We know that without the people of art and culture there can be no culture.

In the context of the symposium we have planned parallel events, such as the Choir Meeting that will take place at 8.30 in the evening on Friday 22 September at the “Ichthyoskala“. In addition to the parallel activities that will take place during the Symposium, I would like to make special mention of the cycling event which will start on Saturday 23 September at 6. 00 in the afternoon from the former plaza of the EOT (Educational Action Park), which will end at the “Ichthyoskala” where a concert with the “Thanasis Tsipinakis” String Orchestra will take place, as well as the concert with the music ensemble of the Municipal Conservatory of Patras which will take place at 8.30 in the evening on Monday 25 September at the “Ichthyoskala“.

The parallel events will continue at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 27 September at the “Argyris Agora” where the opening of the annual exhibition of all the departments of the visual arts workshop of the municipality of Patreon will take place. On Thursday 28 September at 8.30 in the evening at the “Ichthyoskala” multi-purpose hall, the symposium will close with a concert dedicated to Lavrentis Machairitsas.”

The president of the Chamber of Fine Arts of Greece, Mr. Nassos Chalkidis, noted that “On Sunday, September 24th, artists from Athens and other regions will visit the symposium site by bus, who will have the opportunity to follow the progress of the symposium. The establishment of such actions by the municipality of Patras contributes significantly to the promotion of culture and all forms of art. This is something particularly important because it is an action that is born with the people and workers of Patras as recipients”.

The artists participating in the symposium, as part of their introduction to the city, were guided by the President of the Cultural Organization Katerina Geropanagioti to the Municipal Library, the Roman Hippodrome of Hephaestus Street and the Roman Odeon.

The artists taking part in the Panhellenic Symposium of Painting are: Kanellopoulou Athena, Karystinos Petros, Kevrekidis Yorgos, Kontaxis Antonia, Kyprianou Maria, Lamprou Christos, Olympiou Irini, Pavlidou Deppy, Savvaki Christina, Ferentinos Panagiotis.

The reception of the artists was attended by visual artists of the city, the president of the Patras Artists’ Union Chrysanthi Vandaraki, the members of the advisory committee of the Municipal Library of Patras and the employees of the Cultural Organization Yanna Panagopoulou, Sevi Mandragou and Maria Manesioti.

*In the framework of the Symposium, educational programmes will be organized especially for students, through which they will have the opportunity to visit the space and talk to the artists. For the scheduling of educational visits, schools can contact Mrs. Sevi Mandragou, at the following telephone number: 2610 – 624088.