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It is with great pleasure, but also with a strong sense of honour, that I participate tonight in the opening of the exhibition of two great artists, pioneers, I would say, in the introduction of new, radical artistic data that enrich, not only qualitatively but also subversively, I dare say, the artistic scene of Cyprus: Glyn Hughes and Christoforos Savvas.
The exhibition we are inaugurating tonight is organised on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the birth of the pioneering artist Christoforos Savvas, while at the same time it is also a minimal tribute to these two remarkable artists who, for those who don't know, founded the first private gallery in Cyprus in 1960.
In this sense the exhibition is in itself a historical event. For the first time such a large number of works by the honoured artists, who with their new and innovative ideas brought a new breath and led to a new era in the artistically conservative, and not only, Cyprus of that time.
Christoforos Savas bequeathed us a rich artistic work, a timeless work that inspires even today, while his creativity and his ability to express emotions and ideas through art make him a role model.
He was born in 1924 and grew up in a rural family in Mesaoria. He was a sensitive and conscious person for a more just world and in this context he joined the British army to fight against Hitler's fascism that threatened peace in Europe and beyond. After the World War he moved to London, where he attended St. Martins School of Art and Heatherly's School of Art. It was a pivotal period for him as he began to experiment with new styles and media. In 1954 he left London for France where he lived until 1958. It was the period when he became receptive to European artistic trends, which determined and had a catalytic influence on his later artistic career.
In July 1963, Christopher Savva went to Israel, where he consciously chose to live for a while in an artists' commune on the slope of Mount Carmel, while returning to Cyprus he tried to create something similar in today's occupied Lapithos.
In July 1963, Christoforos Savva went to Israel, where he consciously chose to live for a while in an artists' commune on the slope of Mount Carmel, while returning to Cyprus he tried to create something similar in today's occupied Lapithos. A restless spirit artistically, Christoforos experimented with a multitude of materials and techniques, organized several exhibitions of his works in Nicosia and abroad until 1968 when he passed away in London on 13 July 1968, returning from Venice where he and five other artists represented Cyprus at the Venice Biennale.
Born in 1931 in the United Kingdom, Glyn Hughes graduated from Bretton Hall in 1953 and subsequently moved permanently to Cyprus. He worked as a professor of Art at the English School of Nicosia while collaborating and writing articles on Art in English-language newspapers of the time. His early works were on Cyprus, while he gradually followed a more modern aniconic style, expressing his thoughts and concerns about what was happening around him. He organized many solo exhibitions in Cyprus and abroad, and took part in many group exhibitions until 2014 when he passed away.
It was in 1960 when Welshman Glynn Hughes met Christoforos Savvas from Marathovouni and together they founded the "Decision" Gallery, which was a landmark for the visual arts in Nicosia and our country in general. The house in which the two of them lived on Sofokleous Street was the first home of the Gallery, which shortly afterwards moved to Apollonos Street.
The synergy of the two artists created, as has been aptly said, "the only professional, independent art gallery in Nicosia in the 1960s, and at the same time the centre of cultural activity, where exhibitions, lectures, theatre performances and film screenings were organised and hosted, with local and foreign artists".
Today, in a "post-synergy", in the space of another gallery, here in "Apocalypse", these two great artists, whose work, among many others, has left an indelible mark on modern and contemporary art in Cyprus.
My presence here tonight - apart from the due honour to these two artists for their contribution to the culture of our country and as a sign of appreciation and recognition of Ms Natasha Tofaridou's enduring contribution - sends the message that for us, as a State, culture represents the identity and rich diversity of our society and is an area for which we clearly need to do much more.
I believe that with the completion of the bringing together of all the relevant Departments of Culture under one umbrella, that of the Deputy Ministry of Culture, a decision taken by the previous Government which was rightly taken - we were called upon to bring together all the relevant Departments, most recently the Department of Antiquities as of 1 June - we have achieved the main milestones towards a unified management of issues related to the ancient and modern culture of our country. This will be instrumental in promoting targeted actions on our part in the field of culture and at this moment we are, I believe, at a turning point, a crossroads, a turning point if you like, where we can achieve better results through a holistic, integrated framework for our arts and culture.
Let me take advantage of my presence here tonight to note that for us as a State, and I mean this absolutely, the effective support and promotion of culture is one of our main objectives, with the obvious aim, among many others, of preserving and promoting our rich cultural heritage and in this context, above all, strengthening creative expression. In this effort, the first actions on our part concern the strengthening and upgrading of our sponsorship programmes for creators and artists, offering specific incentives for them to continue and enhance their cultural work. At the same time, one of the main and immediate objectives of the Ministry of State is to further strengthen the effort for cultural decentralisation, as well as to encourage the mobility of artists and cultural professionals, in order to work creatively in their place, preserving and enhancing our cultural identity.
Important for us is also the implementation of the institutional framework that regulates the status and professional status of artists and their social security. Today in Cyprus, all these years later, the profession of the artist does not exist in Cyprus. This is a major, long-standing distortion which we will address within 2024. The relevant bill is already at a very advanced stage. We will send it to the Legal Service and I am optimistic that, with the proposals we are putting forward, the Bill will meet long-standing demands of our artists, such as that of securing their professional status, but at the same time support social security for self-employed artists who fall into a particular income bracket. In this way, on the one hand, we support in practice the artistic world to continue the important work they do and, on the other hand, we indirectly promote the development and upgrading of our culture and arts.
I would also like to mention tonight that as a sign of our investment in cultural education and in strengthening our culture, and as I promised during the pre-election, next week we will announce, together with the Deputy Minister of Culture, the Youth Culture Card. This is a measure, which I had included in my pre-election programme, with the aim of giving the State the opportunity, with financial support from the State, to young people who have reached the age of 18, by granting them a prepaid card to come closer to culture and contemporary artistic creation.
Culture is not, and I say this because this perception exists in some circles, nor should it be considered a luxury, and it is certainly not a distant exhibit for a select few as some people very wrongly think.
Culture is a living and dynamic mechanism that, among many other positive effects on our daily lives, defines our identity and educates our society. It is a treasure that, if properly exploited, can make a decisive contribution to progress, development and creation, and in which, if we invest properly and purposefully, as a State, it can contribute much more to both the economy and the social development of our country.
The power of artistic expression that propelled the two artists we are honouring tonight is the social dynamic that pushes people towards multi-level education, that breaks the barriers of the one-dimensional technical training that largely characterises the world today and opens the door to creativity, imagination and free expression. It is this dynamic that is represented through each artist and creates new beneficial social phenomena.
And that is why, taking the opportunity of tonight's event, I would like to make a reference to people of culture. To the artists who continue - sometimes under adverse conditions, we must admit - to maintain their tireless and insatiable dedication to their important work, giving their valuable contribution to our arts and culture. For this we thank them warmly and as a State, acknowledging their contribution, we have already started the implementation of our ambitious programme.
So let us enjoy their works.
(PM/NZ/ASP)
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