What's It All About, Athens?

 

Saturday–Jeff

[Before getting deeper into this story, I wish to acknowledge Tasos Kokkinidis of The Greek Reporter whose reporting I borrowed from liberally in preparing this post.] 

In December, Athens headlines screamed it’s all about the above pink version of the Greek flag exhibited in New York, but was it?

A Greek flag in pink colors shown in Greece’s New York consulate, caused anger in Athens, with Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis ordering the artwork withdrawn.

Here’s the invitation that launched a thousand critics.

The controversial piece by artist Georgia Lale was exhibited to highlight the issue of femicide and domestic violence in Greece. 

With this work, the consulate said that the artist raised awareness through her handmade flag weaved from bedsheets donated to her by abused women.

“This work of art is created from sheets donated by women living in Greece. These women seemingly have little in common, but they are all lying on these sheets desperate and scared,” said the description of Georgia Lale’s exhibition.

Here’s a description of the Project sponsoring Ms. Lale’s creation, and of Ms. Lale’s background.

The pink flag was withdrawn immediately after the intervention of Gerapetritis. “As an individual and as an academic, I support the freedom of art and expression, even when it is sharp and aggressive,” Gerapetritis told Skai radio.

He emphasized the issue lies in the context of the exhibition, stating, “I would accept having this specific artwork in a museum, gallery, or at home. However, we are talking about the display of an artwork at the Greek Consulate in New York. This represents the core of the state and the image of Greece abroad.”

Foreign Minister Gerapetritis

“The consulate is obliged to uphold the emblems and symbols of the country intact, serve the expatriates, and maintain a neutral character. It is not a gallery or an exhibition space,” he added.

The issue was initially raised in the Greek Parliament by the head of the right-wing “Niki” party, Dimitris Natsios, who pointed out that “this rag was presented to the Greek Consulate General yesterday as our flag. The only color that blue and white accepts is red from the blood of our heroes,” he said.

Main opposition leader Stefanos Kasselakis blasted the government for giving in to the extreme right. “Art is even allowed to ‘play’ with the colors of national symbols when it wants to convey a message—from its opposition to racism to domestic violence,” he said.

“I don’t expect Mr. Gerapetritis to appreciate art, but at least he should leave it alone,” Kasselakis said.

The New Left Party which was recently formed from former SYRIZA rebels said, “The government constantly succumbs to the pressures of the extreme right. We must not allow it. We are with Georgia Lale. We are with art. We are with the women.”

Georgia Lale spoke of a “misinterpretation of her work” after the decision to withdraw her pink Greek flag.

Georgia Lale

In a statement to ANT1, she said: “I am sorry that my work was misinterpreted. The victims of femicide and domestic violence are heroes in the fight for the right to life and freedom in Greece and worldwide.”

During the presentation of her art at the Greek consulate of New York, she referred to the many victims of femicide in Greece in recent years, including the 2020 killing of Caroline Crouch by her husband, confessed wife killer Babis Anagnostopoulos. He initially claimed she was killed by a gang of foreign burglars who broke into their home. He later confessed to strangling his wife.

 

Regular readers of my blog may recall I’ve written about that atrocity several times. It remains all-consuming to many…and justifiably so.

By the way, Ms. Lale’s work remains withdrawn.

–Jeff

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