Title of the sculpture: Angelos Sikelianos

Location: Skouze Square

Construction: 1955

Material: Brass

Sculptor: Thanasis Apartis

Description: Sculptural portrait of the poet Angelos Sikelianos made of brass, on a marble pedestal

A few words about the Poet: Angelos Sikelianos (1884-1951) was born in Lefkada. In 1907 he wrote the poem Alafroiskiotos, with which he established himself as a poet. According to Linos Politis, “the tradition of the Ionian school is alive in him and the profound sense and knowledge that Sikelianos had of the vernacular language in its absolute purity is certainly due to this”. Sikelianos envisioned a more general myth, incorporating the worship of nature and life, matriarchal religions, the ancient Greek spirit and the Orphics, as well as Christian symbols. Together with his American philhellene and intellectual wife Eva Palmer, they sought to resurrect the "Delphic Idea", the formation of a global community, aiming at the spiritual elevation and fraternity of people, focusing on the ideals of ancient Greek civilization. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize for Literature, but it was never awarded to him.

A few words about the Sculptor: The sculptor Thanasis Apartis (1899-1972) is considered one of the most important representatives of the post-Rodin French sculpture in Greece in the 20th century. In 1939 the French state awarded him the Legion of Honour and in 1947 the French Ministry of Education awarded him the Order of the Academy of the Phoenix. In 1959 he became a professor at the Athens Technological Institute and in 1961 he was elected a full professor of the 2^nd Sculpture Laboratory of the Athens School of Fine Arts, while in 1967 he was elected a corresponding member of the Sculpture Department of the French Academy of Fine Arts.

Source: Politis, L. (2017). History of Modern Greek Literature. Athens: M.I.E.T. (NBG Cultural Foundation) p. 236
Beaton, R. (1996). Introduction to Modern Greek Literature. Athens: Nefeli