2020 has been a watershed year for us all. But for best-selling British author Victoria Hislop, it’s been “the very worst and very best of times”; defined by extremes of pain and joy. In the wake of losing her mother, Hislop buried herself in her work to produce two new books and a televised series (mid-pandemic, no less) and also became a...
Read moreWe don’t want to hear it or be reminded it. The Voice of Reason. In the seventh of his monthly chronicles on living through pandemic times, as told from the perspective of an American mystery writer who has called Greece home for 35 years, Jeff Siger insists on why we cannot wear our noise-cancelling ear plugs just yet. Do not ignore the Ca...
Read moreSusanna Hoffman traces Greece’s 6000 year-long love affair with honey and the evolution of the Greek honey industry to include a whole range of apiary offerings from royal jelly, propolis, bees’ pollen and extended product lines that cover the gamut from sauces to soaps, all enriched with Greek honey. [caption id="attachment_8...
Read moreIf these past few months have taught us anything, it is to make our travel experiences as immersive as possible. With the weather expected to remain summery well into late late-October, extend your holidays at Kinsterna. Embrace seasonal rituals that have punctuated the Greek calendar for millennia from the stomping of grapes with bare fe...
Read moreFrom a retrospective of contemporary African art to Brice Marden's marble compositions, Takis' magnetic sculptures, photography exhibitions, film festivals and more, Athens' cultural scene is thriving, angry viruses notwithstanding. Sam Friedman’s Island at Dio Horia WHAT: Sam Friedman's first solo show in Athens, Island, c...
Read moreJohn Zervos, a lifelong Hydra-phile, recalls an extraordinary place that has played muse to everyone from Bridget Bardot to Presidential hopefuls. As a living archivist, he explains why there’ll never be another island like it. The island of Hydra in the Saronic gulf is unique in its architecture, significant in its role in mo...
Read moreArt critic Peter Schjeldahl of The New Yorker, described the acclaimed 81-year old artist Brice Marden as "the most profound abstract painter of the past four decades." And for good reason. Some of his paintings have been sold for more than 10 million dollars. He is also a hotelier, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, ...
Read moreA fertile setting for writers in need of inspiration, Hydra's bohemian artistic community in the '60s provided fodder for the literary wizards who'd adopted the island as their muse. From George Johnston's barely-disguised biographies to Henry Miller's transcendental ramblings, Daniel Klein's epicurean musings and Charmian Clift's poetic...
Read moreArt historian Els Hanappe researches into the making of an international artists’ community on the island of Hydra during mid-20th Century. Hydra 1936. Crumbling stone mansions testify to the glorious seafaring past of this long, bare and rocky island, close to Athens and across from the mainland of the Peloponnese. Less popul...
Read moreFrom concerts at epic venues, retrospectives on contemporary art, sculptural installations, new gallery openings, ceramic exhibitions, collectible design, tango, theatre and more, Athens Insider rounds up the must-see events for the next two weeks. Kick off the cultural scene this September in style. Monica Bellucci in “Maria Ca...
Read moreBeyond its cobblestoned alleyways and dovecotes, Greek islands are fast acquiring a reputation as gourmet destinations. Talented Athenian chefs have set up culinary ventures from fashionable Tinos to hippie Koufonissia – proof that innovative locavore cuisine is thriving. A review of five new island restaurants that promise meals to remem...
Read moreThrough the irreverently irrepressible Mrs. Tependris, his fashionista alter ego, Konstantin Kakanias’ innocuously glam, satirical drawings use intrepid wit and flair to comment on the pandemic pandemonium that has taken over our lives. LA-based Kakanias’ body of work, often a crossover between fashion and art, is a metaphor f...
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