2023-06-16 13:31:51
This was undoubtedly the artistic event of the year – or to be more precise – the biggest artistic gathering of 2023 in Greece. And this is because, until today, so many personalities of culture had never been gathered at the same time in Athens, the cradle of arts and knowledge. For one week, from May 22 to 28, the heart of the capital beat to the rhythm of the 20th anniversary of the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, with over 30 events in cultural venues such as the Benaki Museum, the Stavros Foundation Cultural Center Niarchos, the Athens Conservatory, the National Museum of Contemporary Art, the Concert Hall, etc. (see also the related topic we presented to you here).
The entire city was saturated with performances, exhibitions, readings, screenings, installations and high-level public discussions, featuring some of the world’s greatest artists from the fields of architecture, dance, film, literature, music, theater and of visual arts.
You will surely have heard names like Sir David Adjaye, Margaret Atwood, John Baldessari, Sir David Chipperfield, Alfonso Cuarón, Olafur Eliasson, William Forsythe, Stephen Frears, Gilberto Gil, Philip Glass, Alejandro G. Inárritu, David Hockney, Joan Jonas, Sir Anish Kapoor, William Kentridge, Robert Lepage, Spike Lee, Youssou N’Dour, Jessye Norman, Michael Ondaatje, Crystal Pite, Martin Scorsese, Kazuyo Sejima, Peter Sellars, Álvaro Siza, Julie Taymor, Colm Tóibín, Robert Wilson. Each one excels in their subject but all are connected by their close relationship with Rolex and the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative program. With an unwavering commitment to art, the Swiss watchmaker brings together established artists and new, emerging talent, fostering mentor-student partnerships.
Every young person with talent in some form of art who participates in the program gets the unique opportunity to work for at least one year next to an internationally renowned artist who takes on the role of mentor, guide. Their collaboration is two-way, as the new is inspired by the “old” but the old also has the opportunity to see things in a fresher light.
Rolex’s mentoring program was launched in 2002 and is an excellent way of artistic “mentoring” on the road to excellence.
Just a small taste of what happened in Athens during the Rolex Arts Festival, in the video that follows…
#Rolex #Arts #Festival #Athens #center #culture