The ‘Olympic Truce’ banner in Turin
A lot has happened since this photograph was taken on February 2 in Turin on the occasion of the Winter Olympic Games. The «Olympic Truce,» a painting by Mina Papatheodorou-Valyraki which has been hanging in the UN building in New York, adorns the Palazzo Stupinigi at the official opening of the Olympic Truce Foundation in Turin. Peace prizes were awarded in the presence of former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch and members of the delegations of the countries taking part in the Games. Standing in front of a copy of the work, Hugh Dugan, founder of the Olympic Truce Foundation set up at the UN in 1993, analyzed the symbolism of the work and honored the Greek artist. Prints of her painting were given to the recipients of the awards with their prizes. Fanni-Palli Petralia, then alternate culture minister and now minister for tourism, was present and conveyed a message from IOC President Jacques Rogge. In 2007 Valyraki will hold a retrospective of her work at the International Museum in Beijing at the invitation of the Chinese IOC member Jeling He.
