By Michalis Katsigeras

Some buildings are the seats of institutionalized power: the Parliament building, the Presidential Palace, the Supreme Court or the headquarters of the Bank of Greece. Others, particularly monuments like the Parthenon, have symbolic cultural significance. But there are also buildings which, by virtue of their size and strategic location, became seats of real power, such as the Army Pension Fund building.

It was constructed in the 1930s, at a time when military men took part in the power struggle with a number of coups. During the German occupation, the building was requisitioned by Nazi forces. After the war, it was used by the British and then by the United States Information Service which did more than just express Washington’s view of the world, giving a voice to many Greek artists.

More recently, the site came into the hands of the Piraeus Group to again become part of the city’s economic and cultural life.

The history of the Army Pension Fund building, presented in a new book by architect Vassilis Kolonas that has just been published by the Piraeus Cultural Foundation Group, also hosted many cultural landmarks: the Pallas Theater, the Orvo and Elsa Vergi theaters, the Experimental Theater of Marietta Rialdi, the Maxim cinema that then became Aliki Theater. The building also housed artist haunts such as Zonar’s and Floca, the Brazilian and now Clemente VIII.

The newly refurbished Pallas is currently hosting a much-acclaimed show by choreographer Dimitris Papaioannou. The bevy of renowned bankers at the official premier was an indication of the patronage bestowed on the artist and his work. After all, the patron-artist relationship goes back a long way. Only when the former does not try to control the latter but just supports him with generous handouts (or in this case with a strong presence), can the relationship between the two become truly creative.