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T
he Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EuropeanUnion in the second part of 2012 offered a unique opportunity to
promote the country’s history to an international public. This issue of
Cyprus Today
presents fourmajor archaeological
exhibitions held across the EU – these exhibitions showcased artefacts from the Neolithic period to the Middle Ages that
were exported from or imported to Cyprus.
In another cultural milestone for our small island, the Leventis Municipal Museum in Nicosia hosted the exhibition
Do-
menicos Theotokopoulos: From Candia to Toledo – a European Route
, the first ever exhibition in Cyprus of work by the
great Greek artist more commonly known as El Greco.
Keeping up with efforts to promote Cyprus tradition during the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the European Union,
the decorated bread museum
To Ploumisto Psomi
hosted special events in Nicosia in September and October. This unique
museum gives its guests remarkable insight into the important role baked dough played in everyday life back in the old
days. Our article about the museum gives our readers a chance to read about the history of bread in Cyprus and includes
photos of amazingly detailed replica breads.
This issue also includes an article about
“Does Europe Exist?”
, an exhibition which posed a number of questions, includ-
ing whether or not Europe as an entity exists within its “geographical” space.
“Does Europe Exist?”
also examined how
Europe is perceived by the media.
The Mediterranean Sea is featured in two local exhibitions covered in this issue.
Mare Nostrum
presented artwork by 35
Cypriot artists attempting to reinvent the Mediterranean, while
Mare Liberum
showcased extraordinary maps and charts
from the 16
th
, 17
th
, 18
th
and 19
th
centuries.
We also have
URBAN-A-WHERE? (U-A-W)
, an international activity developed within the framework of the Cyprus
Presidency which underlined the need for public involvement in urban planning and other issues.
Another interesting take on the history and culture of Cyprus was the
inSITEExhibition
, a cultural contemporarymosaic of
installations and performances by seven young artists at the Nea PafosArchaeological Site.
This issue also takes a look at the short film
Homo Bulla: 18 days
by Cypriot artist Melina Nicolaides. The film tells the
story of the 2011 Egyptian revolution through a series of bubbles, a symbol of the fragility of human life.
Of course, no issue of
Cyprus Today
would be complete without the obligatory festival article. Last year’s highly
anticipated
International Short Film Festival of Cyprus
opened in October with a diverse programme of short
films from Cyprus and other countries. The festival screened and awarded the work of filmmakers both young
and established.
As for promoting our small island in faraway places, nine local artists were invited to exhibit their work at the
5
th
Beijing
International Art Biennale
in China, a Biennale that prides itself on promoting modernisation and the progress of human
civilisation. And it wasn’t just China – Cyprus was also at the centre of an exhibition in October in Bratislava, Slovakia,
Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love and Beauty
. Finally, Cyprus was
the guest of honour at
“Sculpture and Object XVII”
, also
in Bratislava, where over 120 artists from 20 countries, including nine Cypriot artists, presented art lovers with a broad
range of sculpture and creative styles.
This issue of
Cyprus Today
isn’t just about promoting Cyprus abroad, though. We are also delighted to provide readers
with our summary of
Brazilian CultureMonth
, a series of events and educational programmes dedicated to the art, cinema,
literature and music of SouthAmerica’s largest, most diverse nation.
Cyprus Today
was thrilled to learn about the
Vintage Wedding Dresses and Photos Exhibition
, organised by the Akaki
Gymnasium in a bid to urge the youth of Cyprus to learn more about their culture and tradition, as well as to take older
Cypriots on a trip down memory lane. Our article includes photos of vintage wedding dresses from the era 1915-1980.
And another one for the oldies!The conference
Remembrance of Times andPlaces past: Literary impressions by the people
of Cyprus
highlighted issues involving Cyprus, from the Leontios Machairas era to today, as addressed in our country’s
literature and folklore.
Finally, this issue of
Cyprus Today
also includes an article about the
Meeting of Senior Officials on Culture
, which exam-
ined and addressed the governance of culture in today’s globalised world, in an attempt to implement better governance for
cultural and creative sectors.
Editorial