One of the constants of the modern era that is difficult to dispute is the omnipresence of the image, whether photographic or otherwise, and its strong influence on the formation of perceptions and behaviors. However, as the illustrated world grows around us and within us, the critical dialogue about it remains comparatively stagnant, especially in its Greek version.
This fosters simplification and confusion, the uncritical imposition of the commercial image, and visual illiteracy. Is photography an image that one must create and consume without thinking and discussing it? Can the history and aesthetics that empower its creation and orchestrate its reception by the public be ignored? Ultimately, is photography created within a social and ideological void?
This anthology attempts to outline the discursive context of Greek photography with texts and essays from researchers, curators, and theorists Kostis Antoniadis, Nina Cassiani, Fanis Konstantinou, Kostis Liontis, Alexandra Moschovi, Irini Bountouri, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, Iraklis Papaioannou, Penelope Petsini, Platon Rivellis, and Giannis Stathatos.
Its compilation is accompanied by the belief that research and critical thinking not only do not negate but enhance the pleasure that photography offers, contributing to the creation of criteria for its understanding and arguments in an interdisciplinary dialogue. Such goals, of course, remain completely compatible with the joy of reading itself, which is nurtured through the expressive uniqueness of each author.
[Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the publication]
