Saturday 5 October 20.30, After opening with local musicians - Raphael Skalidis, Apostolos Brimes, Stelios Christidis & improvisation performance by Marina Tantanozi, Mosque of Kara Musa Pasha
Sunday 6 October 12:00 - 12:30 Band of Municipality of Rethymno, Agia Sophia Church.
Saturday 12 October 18:00 Dawn Nilo - Performance, “The Kingdom of Fools”, Agia Sophia Church.
THE GRAND OPENING OF ΤΗΕ EVENT “UNFROZEN EDUCATION” TOOK PLACE ON INTERNATIONAL TEACHERS DAY
(OCTOBER 5, 2019)
The events of the project “UNFROZEN EDUCATION- Or How To Relearn” were successfully launched on the 5th of October and will be held in Rethymno from October 5th to the 27th, co-organized by the Museum of Education-Xeniseum of the University of Crete and the postgraduate program "Critical Pedagogy and Teacher Education", the Athens School of Fine Arts, the Contemporary Art Museum of Rethymno, the Region of Crete, the Municipal Public Benefit Enterprise of Rethymno, and Switzerland’s Canton of Solothurn. Within this framework, two symposia, art workshops and art exhibitions will be held in selected areas of Rethymno.
The main theme of the above events is to highlight the potential of Education Sciences and Visual Arts in order to raise awareness of climate change problems occurring on our planet. Through the partnership of science and the arts, such practices of reflection and activation of citizens are perhaps the only hope for changing behaviors and policies. The exhibition features artists from Europe and academics from Greece, Europe and the US.
On Saturday, October 5, the first Symposium was held, with a large number of participants, at the building that houses the Helene Glykatzi- Ahrweiler Collection, in the old town of Rethymno. The event was coordinated by Mr. Antonis Chourdakis, Professor of History of Education at the Department of Primary Education of the University of Crete and Director of the C.S.R.H.E.T.P. of the Department of Teacher Education of the University of Crete.
The first speaker was Andrea Polli, professor at the University of New Mexico, Santa Fe, USA, who discussed how digital visualization of visual arts can highlight the value of community activism and political action as preconditions for solving ecological problems. Maria Ambartzaki, Assistant Professor at the Department of Preschool Education of the University of Crete, emphasized the value of narratives, biographical analysis and art. Artist Sophia Kyriakou highlighted the reckless and violent human intervention in the natural environment. In the broader sense of the ecological theme, which is linked to the redefinition of cultural identity, without dividing lines, artist Volanakis Antonis, art teacher at Theatrical Departments of Greece and the US, spoke on achieving social change through the technique of blind dates.
Immediately after the speeches took place, the art workshops began with the participation of the audience. At the Kara Musa Pasha Mosque, Maria Glyka and Dimitris Rendoumis, Artists, demonstrated artistic techniques for group reading of a piece of literature. In their workshop, Dimitra Haramantas and Johanna Schaible, Artists, worked out intricate techniques through which the participants mapped their own "lands". At Marina Tantanozi’s workshop, who is a Musician, a walk of active listening was performed in the square of the old Prefecture and the production of improvised music by those present.
That afternoon of the same day, starting with the Museum of Education-Xeniseum, a special type of walk-Art Walk- took place at the art exhibitions curated by artists and academics, in various parts of Rethymno, which also include places of artistic involvement and events of the project and more specifically at the Kara Musa Pasha Mosque, at the old Customs building, at Agia Sophia and at the building housing the Ahrweiler Collection. The message of the art exhibitions focused on the fact that Pedagogy and indeed the history of education, in conjunction with the Arts, teach us to think about how we can demolish the old and build a new sustainable world as responsible and critically reflective citizens.
After the tour, the inauguration of the Exhibition took place in the building where the Ahrweiler Collection is housed, in the presence of the Vice Rector of the University of Crete, Mr. Konstantinos Spanoudakis, the Vice Rector of the Athens School of Fine Arts Mr. Vasilis Vlastaras, the Regional Vice Governor of Rethymno, Ms. Lioni, the President of the Education Department, Ms. Aspasia Hatzidaki and the Deputy Mayor of Finances and Vice President of the Municipal Public Benefit Enterprise of Rethymno, Mr. Stelios Spanoudakis on behalf of the Mayor of Rethymno Mr. George Marinaki and the President of Municipal Public Benefit Enterprise of Rethymno, Ms. Peppy Mpirlikaki. Additionally, the Dean of the School of Education of the University of Crete, Mr. Nikolaos Zaranis and the Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art of Crete, Ms. Maria Maragou also sent greetings. Following were the speeches of Yota Tsotra and Dimitra Charamanta, Artists, who presented the philosophy of curating the exhibitions, as well as the greeting speeches of Chourdakis Antonis, Professor and Director of Xeniseum and Kostas Christidis, Artist, teacher at the Department of Education of the University of Crete, on bridging the gap between science, education, art and society.
The first day of the Symposium ended at the Kara Musa Pasha Mosque with a musical performance which included a musical improvisation with Marina Tantanozi’s flute and traditional Cretan music with Rafael Skalidis, Apostolos Brimes and Stelios Christidis.
The whole project began on International Teacher’s Day. On October 6, two workshops were held with Susanna Asp at the Kara Musa Pasha Mosque and Johan Svenson at the Old Port Building, while the Municipal Band under the Direction of Mr. Apostolakis enchanted participants and passers-by at Agia Sofia gifting them with an unfrozen musical morning filled with melodies from Greek and international cinema. On Tuesday, October 08, the Xeniseum has invited, from America, Paulo Freire's student and colleague, Antonia Darder, who will speak at the Ahrweiler Center on “Art and Liberation”.
