Omonia. A historic square, a magical place with a secret life, the navel of Athens, and a captivating literary center with a mythic power over contemporary writers. From the late 19th century to the late 20th century, many writers, poets, and songwriters have immersed themselves in the depths of the square. From Michail Mitsakis and Ioannis Kondylakis, the baton was passed to George Seferis, George Theotokas, Kostas Tachtsis, Alexandros Kotzias, Nikos Gatsos, Henry Miller, Nikos Tsiforos, Giannis Maris, Michalis Katsaros, Manos Hadjidakis, Mikis Theodorakis, Dionysis Savvopoulos, Thanasis Valtinos, George Chronas, Giannis Patilis, Sotiris Dimitriou, Manolis Rasoulis, Aphrodite Manou, Maria Mitsora, Maria Damanaki, Dionysis Kapsalis, Theodoros Gkonis, and many others.
Twenty years after the now-classic work of George Ioannou dealing with the sinful side of Omonia, another writer, FILIPPOS FILIPPOU, attempts a different approach to the space. Omonia 2000 - The Journey to the Navel of Athens, a book featuring 123 evocative black-and-white photographs by STRATOS KALAFATIS, is a wander through the heart of the city, a pivotal point that has undergone successive interventions by architects, urban planners, mayors, and ministers, and for which new architects and experts are preparing new transformation plans under the guise of improvement.
Today, Omonia is not just a transportation hub or merely a passage for Athenians, provincial residents, and foreign tourists, but also a space where migrants, refugees, the needy, and other distressed individuals find refuge and solace.
This book, besides the most important historical elements about the square, contains separate chapters with texts about its cafés, souvlaki shops, fast food places, cinemas, pharmacies, barbershops, kiosks, the underground, the metro, police officers, nightlife, youth tribes, as well as the sounds, scents, colors, and peculiarities. It also includes texts about the December events and Aris Velouchiotis, the July events, about Katerina Gogou and Menis Koumandareas, and an excerpt from the nearly unknown diary of K.P. Kavafis, who visited Athens in the early century.
A study of decay but also of memory, Omonia 2000 is also an elegy for childhood and adolescence and additionally for the world of youthful dreams and visions, both a document and a keepsake.
Number of pages
229
Cover
Soft
Year of publication
2000
Publisher
Agra
14 Coins
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