No Direct Link Found Between Athens and Alexandria in Historical Contexts

How Pablo Picassos Masterpieces Were Inspired by Ancient Greece Pablo Picasso is most commonly remembered as the architect of Cubism or the brilliant creator behind Guernica, yet his relationship with Ancient Greece and classical antiquity was one of the most foundational elements of his career. Rather than treating Ancient Greece as a distant archive of borrowed imagery, Picasso absorbed its artistic spirit at a […]

greek reporter · 8 days ago

The Rise of Athens Hotels: Hospitality in 19th Century Greece Walking into modern hotels in Athens today, one is welcomed by polished marble floors, seamless Wi-Fi, concierge services, rooftop pools, and menus crafted by renowned chefs. In stark contrast, the earliest forms of hospitality in Ottoman-era Athens were humble and utilitarian. Merchants and wanderers slept in roadside hanis—primitive inns with shared courtyards, no furniture, and […]

greek reporter · 8 days ago

Matching Gary Oldmans Krapp with a teenagers take on Godot is a masterstoke The Royal Court is presenting the Slow Horses stars version of one Beckett masterpiece alongside 19-year-old Leo Simpe-Asantes riff on another. They combine beautifullyWhere does the time go? Its a year since Gary Oldman performed Krapps Last Tape in York, returning him to the Theatre Royal where at the age of 21 he played a sleepy panto cat. Now, Samuel Becketts play has a homecoming of its own. Oldman has brought the production – directed and designed by himself – to Londons Royal Court, where Krapp had its premiere in 1958, starring Patrick Magee. The Court is also where Oldman cut is teeth in the 80s. I find it difficult to fully grasp, but four decades have passed, he writes in the programme.The sentiment is fitting: Krapps Last Tape is indeed an old mans play. Beckett was 52 when it was first staged and Krapp is 69. He heaves great sighs as he shuffles around his den, reeling in the years through diary recordings made 30 years earlier, in which he reflects on his late 20s. But for this Royal Court run, Krapp is accompanied by a teenage voice. The evening begins with a short new work by 19-year-old Leo Simpe-Asante, a winner of the theatres inaugural Young Playwrights award. Its an audacious and generous bit of programming that signals huge confidence in the newcomer, should serve to inspire other first-time playwrights and retains the theatres mission to produce new writing while reviving a classic. Its also a reminder that Krapp itself was originally a curtain-raiser – the main event in 1958 was Becketts Endgame. Continue reading...

theguardian · 8 days ago

Ancient Greek Theater of Kassope Reopens After 21 Centuries The little-known ancient theater of Kassope in Epirus, Greece was renovated and reopened to the public recently adding to the rich cultural landscape of the country. The theater of Cassope built in the 3rd century BC is located in the southern foothills of Zaloggo and overlooks the peninsula of Preveza, the Ambracian Gulf, the Ionian […]

greek reporter · 8 days ago

The Last Ever Ancient Olympic Games The enduring legacy of the Olympic Games is among the principal achievements of the ancient Greeks. Since its rebirth in 1896, the modern Olympics has become the most important event for contemporary athletes and sports fans alike. About 1,500 years passed between the last ever ancient Greek Olympic Games and their modern revival. Due to […]

greek reporter · 8 days ago

Greece to Convert Two Military Camps in Pella into Houses, Parks Greece is moving ahead with the major redevelopment of two former military camps in Pella, northern Greece under a wider urban plan that brings together housing, public services, parks, cultural facilities, and tourism-related activity. The Special Urban Plan covers the former Filippakou and Kapsali military camps in the Municipal Unit of Giannitsa, within the Municipality […]

greek reporter · 8 days ago

Athens Among Top Memorial Day Destinations for US Travelers Athens ranks among the most popular international destinations for US travelers during the Memorial Day holiday weekend, according to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA). Memorial Day, observed on the last Monday of May, falls on May 25 this year and traditionally marks the unofficial start of the summer travel season in the United […]

greek reporter · 9 days ago

Its a love letter: exhibition pays tribute to Frank Gehrys lesser-known works The late designer was best known for his distinctive buildings, but the first show since his death last year focuses on his non-architectural piecesAlthough Frank Gehry is best known as a world famous architect with iconic creations such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall, he also made art pieces. Springing out of his fascination with the fluidity of animal forms and creative properties inherent to various substances, Gehry created works including fish, bears, crocodiles, and snakes.As a celebration of Gehry, who died in 2025 at age 96, Gagosian now offers a suite of his non-architectural work, built mainly around the artists graceful play with the forms of fish. Simply titled Frank Gehry, it offers moments of beauty and whimsy in the gallerys Beverly Hills space. Continue reading...

theguardian · 9 days ago

The car park that changed British art: Bold Tendencies at 20 Two decades after it opened in a multi-storey in Peckham in London, the space has redrawn the map for how to present art – with rooftop cocktails and the pink staircase that launched a thousand selfiesIts hard to imagine now, but there was a time when rooftop bars werent really a thing. A time before pop-ups and contemporary outdoor sculpture parks. A time even, if you can bear to think of it, before immersive art. Way back in 2007, there was none of that – the UK was an experiential art wasteland. And then Bold Tendencies showed up, chucked a whole load of sculptures in a multi-storey Peckham car park, painted a staircase bright pink, built a cocktail bar on the roof, and changed everything.Now going into its 20th summer season, Bold Tendencies is celebrating two decades of sometimes sun-drenched, often windswept and drizzly arts programming. In that time, it has welcomed more than 3 million visitors into its concrete edifice behind Peckhamplex cinema, commissioned dozens of new artworks, hosted countless recitals and performances, built an auditorium and a concert hall, and drawn the roadmap for countless art experiences that have come in its wake. Continue reading...

theguardian · 9 days ago

Latinus, the Mysterious Son of Odysseus Who Ruled Over the Etruscans In Greek legend, the famous hero Odysseus is said to have had a son named Latinus. According to Hesiods Theogony, Odysseus son, Latinus, ruled as king over the Etruscans along with two of his brothers. However, does this mean that he was the king of ancient Italy? And can he be identified as the Latinus from […]

greek reporter · 9 days ago

Ciao UFO review – Hong Kong tear-jerker is less ET than time-hopping chronicle of housing estate kids In 1985, four working-class characters are bonded for ever by a strange sighting in this sentimental saga that tracks their lives into adulthoodDirected by Patrick Leung, this affecting saga from Hong Kong is a bit tricksy to get to grips with because it keeps hopping back and forth between an assortment of time frames. It tracks a set of characters as children in the mid-1980s, played by one group of young actors, and then later in the 1990s and early 00s when an adult cast takes over. But as it spirals in towards its surprising and dramatic conclusion, everything falls into place and the last 10 minutes is properly tear-jerking – even if its unabashedly sentimental, like a classic melodrama.The key incident foretold in the title happens around halfway through, although its no spoiler to know its coming. In 1985, a quartet of kids growing up on a working-class Hong Kong housing estate – boys Kin (Matthew Wong Cheuk-yin) and Heem (Chui Ka-him), and girl Hoyi (Lam Seung-yu) and her kid brother (Shawn Heung Sung-yu), for ever called Little Brother – see a UFO in the sky one night. The experience bonds them for ever, even if each kid grows up to pursue goals one wouldnt expect based on what theyre like as tots. Sailors son Kin (played by Chui Tien-you as an adult) pursues wealth in the stock market as it booms in the aftermath of the 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China, itself an understandably big deal in the story. Heem (a very engaging Wong You-nam) had leukaemia as a child, and lives constantly in the short term under the shadow of illness. Hoyi, who everyone describes as a pudgy little girl, grows up to be a slim-hipped beauty (Charlene Choi Cheuk-yin) – this is considered a great achievement along with becoming an accountant and planning to marry a dullard named Austin (Joey Cho Yiu Leung) who has his life all planned out. Continue reading...

theguardian · 9 days ago