At short notice, Evi Stamatiou is repeating her show based on the Caryatid from the Acropolis

I first heard of Evi Stamatiou when she performed her show Caryatid Unplugged at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Intrigued by the concept behind the show, I also later conducted an interview with her, which you can read here.

Now, with very short notice (due to copyright issues with the planned play), Caryatid Unplugged is going to be at the Rosemary Branch Theatre in London from 29 June to 1 July.

You can book tickets on the Theatre’s website or find more details about this event on the Facebook Page.

Based originally against the backdrop of the Greek financial crisis and Europeans living in other European countries, the event promises to be particularly topical due to the current chaos surrounding Britain’s referendum to leave the EU.

A poem about the Caryatid from the Parthenon taken by Lord Elgin to the British Museum

I have been emailed a poem (originally in Greek, but I was then sent a translated version) about the Caryatid in the British Museum. The one Caryatid fascinates people in a different way to the other sculptures from the Acropolis – perhaps because she is clearly missing the other similar looking Caryatids that she left behind in Greece, perhaps because ass an obvious human form, removed from the context of long processions and ceremonies, she is easier for people in today’s world to relate to and Empathise with.

From:
Olga Belivani Tsitsaki (by email)

Prisoner Caryatids silence

Men lift eyes on me with pride
as I stand svelte and overbearing
but dropping from my eyes falls rain
my soul from nostos hurts. Read the rest of this entry »

Evi Stamatou is a Greek based in London. She is appearing at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival, with a performance entitled Caryatid Unplugged. Here, she aims to tell the story of the caryatid in the British Museum – something that has fascinated many people, capturing people’s attention in a different way to the other Parthenon Sculptures, perhaps because she is the most human like & easy for people to relate to.

There is a short trailer for the performance on Youtube.

From:
Kickstarter

Exploring art, immigration and the female body. The Caryatid story via burlesque, clowning, physical comedy. Traditional Greek music.

Your support for the following project is very important in order to manage to perform Caryatid Unplugged for the full run of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2013. There has been great effort from the creative team and we are very close to reaching our goal. Support our attempt to a make a performance that is a playful forum for social and political discussion.

In the June 2011 debate on whether to return the Ancient Parthenon marbles to Greece, David Cameron tells Parliament that ‘Britain has no intention to lose its marbles’.
Read the rest of this entry »

Dennis Menos, secretary of the International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures & also a member of Americans for the return of the Parthenon Sculptures has published a new book. Purview:Her View tells the story of the removal of the Parthenon Marbles by Lord Elgin – but, as seen from the perspective of the one Caryatid, which is housed in the British Museum, 1000 miles away from her five sisters in Athens.

From:
Amazon

Purview:Her View
[Paperback]
Dennis Menos

This highly informative and entertaining work of historical fiction focuses on the life and times of the Karyatis (Caryatid) statue, presently in the British Museum and of her longing to return home to the Acropolis. Presented in a series of vignettes spanning 2,400 years of Hellenic history, the story of the Karyatis makes for fascinating reading, beginning with the age when twelve Gods ruled the world from on top of Mount Olympus, to the day in 1802 when the statue was removed from her temple by Lord Elgin’s crew and was shipped to London. In the intervening years, the Karyatis was eyewitness to some of the proudest but also darkest moments of Hellenic history, as a series of great empires — Athenian, Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman — rose and fell. The story opens in the British Museum, where the Karyatis bemoans the start of yet another day in captivity. She longs to return home to the Acropolis in Athens hence she was forcibly removed. In the Museum we also meet Sophia, an artist living in London and an admirer of the Karyatis whose painting she is working on. Eventually, Sophia and the Karyatis “connect” and a lively “dialogue” ensues between the two…..

Research by Art Historian Katherine Schwab, looks at whether the hairstyles of the Caryatids from the Erechtheion on the Acropolis in Athens could be recreated today. A DVD is now available that documents this project.

From:
PR Web

Documentary Now Available of Ancient Caryatid Hairstyles Being Brought to Life

A DVD is now available that documents the Caryatid Hairstyling Project, directed by Dr. Katherine Schwab, associate professor of art history at Fairfield University, that investigates whether elaborate female coiffures seen among the Erechtheion marble Caryatids, or maidens, at the Acropolis Museum in Athens could actually be replicated on women today. The 15-minute, fast-paced DVD follows six female students as they are transformed in appearance from modern 21st century women to elegant young women of ancient Greece.

Fairfield, Conn. (Vocus/PRWEB ) April 13, 2010 — A DVD is now available that documents the Caryatid Hairstyling Project, directed by Dr. Katherine Schwab, associate professor of art history at Fairfield University, that investigates whether elaborate female coiffures seen among the Erechtheion marble Caryatids, or maidens, at the Acropolis Museum in Athens could actually be replicated on women today. The 15-minute, fast-paced DVD follows six female students as their long hair is twisted and curled in intricate patterns (which in real time took hours) and records their reactions as they are transformed in appearance from modern 21st century women to elegant young women of ancient Greece. Produced by Christopher McGloin and Daniel Kole of the Media Center, with music arranged by Dr. Laura Nash, Program Director of Music, the DVD was funded by a grant from the University’s Faculty Research Committee and the Classical Studies Program. A webpage about the project includes a clip and online purchase of the DVD at www.fairfield.edu/caryatid.
Read the rest of this entry »

American Mary Phillips made a protest about the Parthenon Marbles a few weeks ago, standing outside the British Museum dressed as a caryatid.

During the protest though, there was an unexpected appearance by British Museum director Neil MacGregor coming over to see what was going on.

Read all the details on Artknows.

Pictures of her protest are on Elginism’s Pinterest page.