Athens Cultural Walks

OPENING OF "LOOKING EAST", GREEK ORIENTALIST THEODOROS RALLI EXHIBITION AT THE BENAKI MUSEUM OF ISLAMIC ARTS. 10-12-2014 UNTIL 22-02-2015.
After too long a silence I want to share an exciting and very fascinating event held at the Benaki Museum of Islamic Arts, the exhibition of photographs, documents, water colors, studies and major works by Theodoros Ralli - also known as Theodore Jacques Ralli - a Greek fin de siecle Orientalist painter of rare elegance and quality. Ralli was born from Greek parents in Constantinople in 1852, and having been sent to Paris under the auspices of King Otto of Greece, he studied at Les Beaux Arts Academy with Jean-Leon Gerome, the Academist and Orientalist painter favored by Napoleon III's regime. Photographs of his Parisian studio show the painter surrounded by Islamic metalwork and art pieces collected from his extensive travels in North Africa - subjects painted in the hammams and harems are indeed reminiscent of Eugene Delacroix's similar works and inspirations - as well as a Chinese inspired wooden balustrade. The sensual and mystic painter not only lived and worked most of his life in Paris, France and Cairo, where he meticulously painted architectural settings to be later used throughout his works, but also travelled in Greece and Mount Athos in search of the Greek customs and Orthodox traditions that perspire in many of his oil paintings. Many of his female studies echo the tastes and manner of the British Pre-Raphaelites, in an era much interested about women and their social status. The peculiar finishing of those, offering a glazed effect produced by a patient and infinite series of minute brush strokes, conceals the painting material to the gaze of the viewer. This quality is particularly seen in the medallion shaped portrait of a veiled woman exhibited at the Museum, which further displays an accomplished miniaturist spirit. Among the important pieces selected, the Wake of the Pasha of Tangiers ( 1884 ) offers a spectacular view of the Maghreb city towards the sea port, in which the carefully selected terrace and its architectural lines, the rich yet subdued palette and powerful light all contribute to infuse a sense of the mystical Morocco and the loneliness of death for the much hated cruelty of the ruler during his lifetime. Having exhibited in Athens for the 1896 Olympic Games, Chevalier of the Legion d'Honneur since 1901, Ralli chose to depart in Lausanne in 1909. Talking with Dr Mina Moraitou, curator of the Islamic collection of the Benaki Museum, we realized the amount of work behind the revival of Ralli's contribution to the arts in that time of change between two centuries and three continents. Discovering Ralli's works and the documents associated to his life surrounded by the delightful displays of Ottoman, Egyptian and Persian ancient pieces does not only bring to life the Orientalist spirit of the XIX th century but also talks about our need to look beyond our present cultural barriers and limitations in order to embrace the vast east, its peoples and cultures, which have vitalized Europe for several millennia and today still experience diverse forms of discrimination.