Lesvos: the island of hidden harmony

ISTANBUL

At a newly opened exhibition at the Greek Consulate General in Istanbul, Greek photographer and travel writer Tzeli Hadjidimitriou shares with visitors various moments from Lesvos, the island where she was born and raised, while avoiding the superficial ease of digital photography and its modern gaze. 

The exhibition is an invitation from the other side of the Aegean Sea. It is an expression, by an artist whose family came from Anatolia, of the need to bring together the two societies divided by the sea through the “hidden harmony” of Lesvos. She says her purpose is “to share the memories of our lost homelands, as we find a new, healing approach that liberates and connects us.”

Situated on the eastern frontier of Greece, Lesvos emerges in Hadjidimitriou’s photographs through its diverse “nature.” This natural diversity is above all due to the light; not just the sunlight but also the light of the moon and the stars. In her compositions we can observe the diversity of the island’s lights and colors, while gradually discovering its powerful identity, inexhaustible beauties and hidden sensations - which derive mostly from nature and less often through the daily human presence. 

According to the artist, the photographs of Lesvos are not simply a presentation of a beautiful landscape. They invite visitors to hear the sounds of its waters, calm and stormy, to feel the heat of its earth, burned by the sun, gaze at its moonlight and feel the humidity of its forests. 

The human body and physical sensations are at the foreground of the artist’s work; whether in the female bodies taking pleasure in the sea, or in the photographs without human figures but evocative of forgotten experiences that go far beyond a simple observation.

The photographs are an insider’s view, a view through the eyes of the heart. 

Born and bred on the island, Hadjidimitriou shares her homeland with us, as she lived and loved it. 

The exhibition is supported by the North Aegean Region, the Setur Marinas Mytilini-FF Group, the Elgiz Museum of Contemporary Art, the Molyvos Tourism Association, the Eressos Tourism Association (The Other Aegean), Non-stop printing ltd, the Municipality of Lesvos and other Lesvian Associations.


A native of Lesvos

Tzeli Hadjidimitriou was born in Lesvos, Greece. Her work includes artistic photography, travel writing and the teaching of photography. She has published six photo books, while various galleries and museums within Greece and abroad have held exhibitions of her work. She has written two books on the islands of Kythera and Lesvos, respectively, as well as travel pieces in the Greek press about her journeys to South Korea, India, Cambodia, Laos and many other places. In her Odoiporikon photography workshops, held in Greece, Hadjidimitriou introduces students of all levels to the never-ending journey of discovering a world flooded with light. 

The exhibition will be open to visit through June 7 at the Greek Consulate General’s Sismanoglia Megaro building.