Twenty-nine galleries from 7 countries, 20 parallel projects, 3 museum exhibitions and almost 800 artists’ works are the “sum total” of the 5th Art Thessaloniki International Contemporary Art Fair, taking place from 25 to 28 November at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre.
Art Thessaloniki is organized by TIF-Helexpo SA (the national entity for the organising of exhibitions, congresses, and cultural events in Greece) and the artistic director of the exhibition, Mr Pantelis Tsatsis. In fact, the exhibition coincides with the Thessaloniki International Book Fair, making the Exhibition Centre in particular and Thessaloniki in general a bustling arts and culture hub.
It is an established international artistic institution, which takes place in person and is positioned alongside the most important European exhibitions of its kind. The Honoured Artist of the 5th Art Thessaloniki is professor emeritus of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Mr. Yannis Fokas. The dominant features of this year’s Art Thessaloniki, hosted at Pavilions 9 and 10 of the exhibition centre, are the following:
– At the opening, the award-winning composer, as the best of the year in the world, Ms Lina Tonia, will present for the first time her new composition.
– An honorary distinction will be awarded to painters Dimitris Alithinos and George Lazogas for their work and their contribution to contemporary Greek art.
– Many works by the internationally renowned artist Victor Vasarely, which are part of the collection of the Osten Museum of Drawing Skopje, will be presented in collaboration with the aforementioned museum.
– The Georgios Melikis Ethnographic Centre will present the original installation “BODY REMEMBER…by C.P. Cavafy… the beds you lay on”.
– The Museum Exhibition on the Greek Revolution 1821-2021 will present works by A. FRIEDEL, P.V.HESS, as well as newspapers and letters from the period 1821-1828.
– A dance theatre performance will be staged. Directed by Marianthi Psomataki, eleven performers/dancers and three musicians create a landscape of emotions.
– For the second time, the Cultural Society of Entrepreneurs of Northern Greece, in collaboration with Art Thessaloniki, presents the “MATAROA” awards with 10 artists, who will exhibit their work in individual booths.
– The municipality of Thessaloniki participates in the exhibition with a pavilion, where representative works from the Municipal Gallery will be exhibited.
– WAVA (World Association of Visual Arts), in collaboration with Art Thessaloniki, will present during the exhibition two awards, for Best Artist and Best Gallery.
Art Thessaloniki is a major arts and culture exhibition event
Arts and culture find their best expression in a major exhibition event such as the 5th Art Thessaloniki Fair, said the CEO of TIF-Helexpo, Mr. Kyriakos Pozrikidis, during a press conference held today at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre. “The exhibition is visited by collectors, art buyers and gallerists from Greece, Europe, the Balkan countries, etc.” Mr. Pozrikidis stressed, noting that galleries from mainland and island Greece, Italy, Iraq, Turkey, Japan and the US are participating. For his part, the artistic director of Art Thessaloniki, Mr Pantelis Tsatsis, stressed that the exhibition is interspersed with a programme of parallel events and talks by art historians, underlining that Art Thessaloniki is a major exhibition given the difficulties arising from the pandemic.
The honoured artist of this year’s exhibition and professor emeritus of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Mr. Yannis Fokas, said that this event is a celebration of the arts and referred to the fact that Art Thessaloniki managed to be held in person, like the largest exhibitions of its kind throughout Europe.
The Deputy Mayor of Culture and Tourism of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, Ms Maria Karagianni, pointed out that Art Thessaloniki is a very important artistic institution and the Municipality chose to participate this year with a pavilion.
The General Director of TIF-Helexpo, Mr. Alexis Tsaxirlis, stressed that November is a month of culture for Thessaloniki and the “duet” of Art Thessaloniki and the Thessaloniki International Book Fair gives the opportunity to Thessaloniki cultural institutions to participate in these exhibition events.
Finally, the program manager of Art Thessaloniki, Anna Tombazi, noted that this is a different event compared to all other exhibitions.
It should be noted that only vaccinated individuals and those with a certificate of recovery are allowed to enter the premises of Art Thessaloniki, while all necessary precautions regarding Covid-19 shall be taken. The opening hours of the exhibition are as follows: Thursday 25 November 16:00-22:00, Friday 26 November 14:00-21:00 and weekend 27-28 November 11:00-21:00.
