This publication was produced on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name, co-organized by the Educational Foundation of the National Bank of Greece, the Greek National Opera, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, and the National Library of Greece in the exhibition space of the National Library at the KTPISN (February 4, 2018 - March 10, 2018).

This volume presents the artistic work of the eminent Greek set designer Stefanos Lazaridis, who, based in London, collaborated with the most important opera houses in Europe. Lazaridis approached the creation of a set as a visual theatrical artist, avoiding decorative solutions. He had, as Pamela Howard writes, "the astonishing ability to capture an impressive visual metaphor for the entire production and to explore all possible scenographic variations."

Moreover, he did not hesitate to work in larger spaces, such as stadiums, where he designed historical performances, shattering the traditional perception of design. The material in this volume comes from the Stefanos Lazaridis Archive, held at ELIAMEET, and covers the most significant milestones of his forty-year creative journey.

It includes painting studies of sets and costume designs—where the influence of his apprenticeship alongside the also international Nikola Georgiadis is evident—mixed media works and collages, photographs of three-dimensional models, digital models, and photos from performances and rehearsals.

The texts that begin the volume, written by Lazaridis's collaborators and friends, illuminate his personality and working method, while the exhibition curator A. Volanakis, also a collaborator, emphasizes the fundamental scenographic principles of his work.

In the excerpt provided as a conclusion, Lazaridis himself summarizes: "The most important thing is the wholehearted participation of each viewer in the performance. What the ancient Greeks experienced once or twice a year, as a rare event, has now become routine. We are saturated with cinema, television, the internet, virtual reality, magazines, and are constantly bombarded with images. We must somehow, perhaps architecturally—and this is part of my work—reinvent the nature of theater, its archaic hierarchy. We need to find a new way to create a church. I want opera to become a collective experience. In the theater, everything comes together to create something unique and special. If beyond all else you do not incorporate the audience into the performance, you will not be able to achieve the uniqueness of the absolutely collective experience."

The publication is complemented by a timeline that includes all the stages of his extraordinarily successful career.