Thank you to everyone who supported and attended my opening night on Tuesday the 9th of December. It was a huge success and I am so happy with the feedback I received. Looks like I better start preparing for a national tour and then a special showcase in Nicosia one day soon. The exhibition is on at Chapel off Chapel gallery in Prahran until the 20th of December and then again from the 5th – 11th of January. Onwards and Upwards.
I just love my new Kimberly 9xxb pencils… special delivery from the USA.
This drawing of the famous rock (presumably, the birthplace of the Goddess Aphrodite) is based on an old photograph taken by Reno Wideson. I still need to touch up the foam and the waves and perhaps add a few more pebbles on the beach.
In this age of digital technology and the dreaded ‘selfie’ – the mystery, magic and wonder of photography may be all but lost. With the advent of ‘smart phones’ anybody can point and shoot and take countless happy snaps to record important milestones (or more often) – mundane moments in their life. Every waking moment can be captured on a tiny memory-card and unlike analogue technology such as negative film; the act of taking photos is instant and free. Through online sharing sites such as Instagram and Facebook – the proliferation of photos has reached epidemic proportions. Never before has mankind recorded or captured life on this planet on such a scale. Add Photoshop and now we can also manipulate, alter and correct every image we take. Today, we have unprecedented ways of taking photos however; rarely do these images end up printed in family albums or framed on a wall.
I too have been bitten by the digital shutterbug. I must have at least 20,000 photos of my family stored on computers and hard-drives. My intention has always been to print and showcase these images on the walls of my home and office. One day perhaps, I’ll get around to it.
I also teach photography to adolescents and young adults. Sadly, when my lesson starts to focus on the fundamentals of good photography such as, composition, lighting, depth of field, framing, viewpoint, exposure and focal point – most of my students let out a collective yawn and become disinterested. The art of photography, the technical know-how is somewhat lost on this ‘point-and-shoot’ generation. Just like the art of handwriting, many digital natives are ignoring the craftsmanship of yesteryear.
I have only one photo of my parents when they were young. Rarely have I encountered a Cypriot family that possesses more than one or two old photos from the past. That’s what makes my exhibition and art project so important. It’s more than just archiving these rare and precious photos. When you look at an old photo that was taken in the distant past, there is so much to admire and respect. It’s not just the tactile and aesthetic qualities of the paper itself. It’s the tonal qualities and the natural ageing and staining of the surface itself. You can’t help but admire the craftsmanship utilised by these past photographers at the time. There is an unmatched quality in terms of the way the photograph was taken and then developed. Each old photo in my collection is a remnant of pioneer technology and a snapshot of Cypriot life and culture. The people in the photos wear the clothing, fashion and styles of their period. For example, many of my distant uncles sported the toothbrush moustache before Adolf Hitler came along and killed off that style forever.
The youngest photographic portrait I have of my father was taken when he was about 28 years old. He looks like a proper gentleman. He looks wise, mature and well groomed. Not a piercing, tattoo or any other socially encourage blemish in sight. If my father was alive today he would grumble about all the trouble I was going to save or resurrect these old photos. “Stop all this fussing and running around” he would say. “They’re just old photos.” Perhaps it’s take a certain person with a certain eye to appreciate these gems.
My search to uncover and reproduce old photos from Cyprus has not been easy. There have been some obvious challenges and constraints. Many of the people I have interviewed for this project have declared that because they had to flee their homes after the Turkish invasion in 1974 all their precious photos were left behind. In other cases, the original photos were often taken by a sibling who decided not to share these photos with other family members. Some photos were lost or accidently destroyed or thrown away for no good reason. Many photos were damaged due to poor storage.
The most common reason, however, that old photos do not exist today is simply because 60 or more years ago, many people could not afford or simply could not foresee their importance at the time. There were very few photographers on the island of Cyprus and rarely did a member of the community possess a camera.
I look at my 8-year old son with his compact Nikon and he takes more photos in one day that my father took in his lifetime. Truly amazing.
And so my search for these hidden gems continues. I look forward to showcasing what I have found together with the stories behind the people in the photos in my end-of-year exhibition in December this year.
Until then… onwards and upwards!
Here is my third pencil drawing for my Tales of Cyprus Exhibition.
As you can see I am working of this vintage postcard. The photo was taken in the village of Panagia in Paphos. It took about 12 hours over three days to complete. Once again, I sacrificed sleep to get the job done.
Click on this link to see the process documented from start to finish.
My latest achievement. This one measures 25 x 38 cm and took roughly 10 hours to complete over three days. It’s based on a photo taken in the 1950s by Reno Wideson. I am happy with the overall result, especially the prickly pear in the foreground (these cactus figs are known as baboutsosyka or baboutsa is Cyprus). I am still using a hot-press watercolour paper and a range of pencils from light and hard (2H) all the way up to soft and dark (6B). The darker pencils provide a rough texture which is ideal for drawing foliage, rocks or stone work. The light and hard pencils provide a smooth even finish which is fine for the houses in the picture.
The village life that my parent’s knew had a richer community spirit, a greater support network and a better-connected family structure than in modern society today.
As a budding ‘researcher’ I was often blown away by the incredible warmth, hospitality and genuine goodwill expressed by the Cypriot diaspora whom I chose to interview for this project. It was also quite evident that many of the people who chose to share their stories with me were really quite lonely, and in some cases appeared to be neglected or abandoned by their families and indeed the community altogether. Here I was, at times a complete stranger – and these beautiful old souls would go out of their way to make me stay longer or come back for a second, or third visit. The obvious clue for me was just how eager these elderly Cypriots were to tell me their story – how much they wanted to share. It wasn’t uncommon that I would find myself spending 4-5 hours in their presence and downing two or three Turkish-style coffees and countless home made sweets while I sat and listened to their tales. “You must come back,” they would say as I bid them farewell. “Bring your family – stay for dinner next time.”
I feel guilty for not being able to keep in touch. I wish I could.
I couldn’t help but reflect that if these lonely old souls were somehow transported back in time to their village in Cyprus they would feel less alone and depressed. Many whom I have interviewed had expressed a longing to be back amongst their loved ones and compatriots in Cyprus. They all shared a common belief that they would be cared for and attended to with a greater respect and response to what they are experiencing in today’s society. I must point out however that they are reminiscing the Cyprus of old. The fact is, their recollections of village life on the island represent a timeframe of over 50 or 60 years ago.
My own mother, herself nearing 90 years old has spent the best part of her life in Australia (over 60 years of her life) hiding away in her house. She has succeeded in blocking out the outside world and shunning society – because it was easy to do so in Melbourne. Eight thousand miles away from family, cousins and ‘φίλους’ the outside world did not come knocking. People are genuinely left alone over here – if that’s what they want.
My mother has dementia now. I’ve read a lot of research lately how in places around the world where there is a greater community involvement or connectedness with others, the brain is stimulated enough to starve off dementia, even the onset of dementia. It’s fascinating to contemplate and it makes sense to me. If you have the company of others, if you feel connected with others in your community – chances are you will not feel so alone or so neglected. Researchers in Greece believe that elements of lifestyle are significant in the health and longevity of the people who live and practice a more traditional and rural lifestyle. Rates of smoking are relatively low, mid-day naps are the norm, the pace of life is slow and people socialise frequently with friends and family, drinking moderate amounts of wine. Furthermore, extended families give older people an important role in society. Levels of depression and dementia are low.
Although my mother would admit that she preferred to stay at home or that she didn’t want to go out and socialise, I can’t help but think how different her life might have been – if she lived in a traditional village-style community with friends, family and neighbours dropping in for a baklava or Turkish coffee. What I noticed about village life in Cyprus when I was there as a young boy in 1974 was how nobody was ignored or left alone to wallow in self-pity. You were never short of company. My grandparents were surrounded by loved ones all the time. My relatives had an open-door policy. If it wasn’t Yianaki dropping by for a quick coffee on his way to the market, it was Thea Maria delivery a basket of freshly baked bread, or Maroula popping in for a chat, or Panikos just hanging around until his father picks him up.
I often think about all those nameless and countless elderly citizens languishing away in ‘aged-care’ facilities – old people’s homes – where no one comes to visit them. My mother is fortunate to have four loving children who take turns to keep her company and look after her. She is never alone. It doesn’t matter that she doesn’t recognize who we are sometimes – it only matters that she doesn’t feel alone in the world.
I read a book last year written by a hero of mine called Jared Diamond. In his book, “The World before Yesterday” he writes how in New Guinea the elderly remain and live in the same hut or a nearby hut to their children. They are regarded as an essential and useful member of the tribe and given responsibilities such as child-care while their parent’s go off and hunt or farm during the day. My wife Christina, who worked in the jungles of New Guinea for years, can testify to this way of life and thinking. As an archeologist she often witnessed how the locals revered and respected their aging members of the tribe. “The repositories of knowledge are the memories of old people,” says Diamond. “If you don’t have old people to remember what happened 50 years ago, you’ve lost a lot of experience for that society,” from communal history to advice on how to survive a cyclone or other natural disaster.
It’s a sobering thought.
The sketch below is based on an old 19th century photo of a Cypriot peasant girl taken by British photography John Thomson. I have drawn the sketch on a combination of four different papers to see how my pencil marks react and respond to the surface and texture of the paper.
Here is another page of practice sketches for a second poster concept. This one is based on the famous Gothic Monastic Abbey called Bellapais near Kyrenia. I’m using a combination of different grade pencils (2H hard to 6B dark and soft) to alter the texture and smoothness of the stonework that is such a beautiful feature of the Abbey.
tales of cyprus 