Tsarouchis book, at a steep price
A commemorative edition on painter Yiannis Tsarouchis – addressed only to a limited audience as it costs a formidable 6,000 euros – was recently launched at the New Wing of the Benaki Museum. Titled «Yiannis Tsarouchis, the Face of Greece,» it contains prints of 36 of the artist’s works, selected by Tsarouchis himself in 1983, as well as 25 texts by Greeks and non-Greeks, friends and admirers. Participants include actress-turned-politician Melina Mercouri, filmmaker Costa-Gavras, filmmaker Jules Dassin, film director Michael Cacoyannis (who was also present at the launch), composer Vangelis Papathanassiou, poet Odysseas Elytis, fellow artist Alekos Fassianos, composer Manos Hadjidakis, poet Yiannis Ritsos, composer Mikis Theodorakis and many others. The idea was passed from American director George Cukor to Greek-American photographer Stathis Orfanos, but it was only realized 21 years later, by Militos Publications in Athens and Sylvester-Orphanos in Los Angeles, together with the Yiannis Tsarouchis Foundation and collector Dimitris Tsitouras, whose contribution was decisive. The edition is in two dossiers, placed in a Tsarouchis-designed, handmade presentation box of 42.5x32x10 centimeters.
