Gennadius organizes tribute to poet C.P. Cavafy, 75 years after his death
For the world-renowned poet from Alexandria, C.P. Cavafy, life began and ended in April. He was born on April 29, 1863 and died on April 29, 1933. This is the month that the Gennadius Library chose to begin a tribute to Cavafy, 75 years after his death. This Thursday, April 17, the Gennadius (61 Souidias, Kolonaki) will welcome a large exhibition with a wide range of rich artifacts from various donors such as the Benaki Museum, the Hellenic Archive of Literature and History (ELIA), the Center for Neo-Hellenic Studies, the Lilian Voudouri Music Library of Greece at the Athens Concert Hall, and of course from the Gennadius Library and private collectors. The exhibition includes original photographic material, books, publications and articles. On the same day, the Cotsen Hall (9 Anapiron Polemou, Kolonaki) will host a concert that will highlight the close relationship between music and Cavafy’s poetry, which has inspired a number of composers. The program will feature works by Richard Wagner, Dimitris Mitropoulos, David Blake and Greek composer Leonidas Kottakis. The tribute will continue on May 8 with a book presentation of «The Collected Poems of C.P. Cavafy» (translated by Evangelos Sachperoglou), which was published by the Oxford University Press, and includes commentaries by scholars and experts in contemporary Greek poetry – particularly Cavafy’s works – from all over the world, including Peter Mackridge and Anthony Hirst. The tribute will conclude in June with lectures by Vasso Penna and Stefanos Geroulanos, who were responsible for the academic concept of the tribute. The lectures will also take place at the Cotsen Hall. The honorary tributes for C.P. Cavafy will continue in the autumn at the Numismatic Museum of Athens.
