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The “Mentis Donation”

 

The site of the old workshop at 6 Polyfimou Street houses the “Mentis Donation”. The donation by Spyros, Marina, and Othon Mentis to the Benaki Museums includes the sum total of all the merchandise in storage, as well as the equipment of the MENTIS fibre manufactory, one of the oldest workshop and commercial enterprises in the country in the field of fibre processing and production of passementerie (galloons, ornamental cords – piping, braids, fringes, tassels, brandebourg frogging, curtain tiebacks).

 

For over one-and-a-half centuries, the products of MENTIS Ltd. decorated Greek traditional costumes, theatrical costumes, clerical vestments and military uniforms, and creations of well-known couturiers in Greece and abroad. When the Mentis family was forced to close the business in 2011, the Benaki Museum accepted the generous offer of the Mentis family, in order to create a space that will be a living workshop / museum.
The goal is to offer visitors an opportunity to learn how a historical workshop functioned; follow every step involved in silk processing and the crafting of masterpieces out of thread, for which the company was renowned.

 


At the same time, this new space aims to become a centre for the conservation of traditional crafts related to thread/filament processing, weaving and embroidery. Beyond monitoring the living process of production, the Benaki Museum Educational Programme Department is collaborating with highly-skilled workers to arrange a programme of classes for adults about these traditional arts.

 

At the same time, the Benaki Museum Shop, in its ongoing efforts to connect old know-how with a contemporary look, invites young artists to be inspired by the products of the MENTIS workshop. Their work, objects with a contemporary aesthetic, which use traditional materials, will be put on display for sale at the Piraios Street Building Shop

text source:

photos from our last visit.

photos by Dido

 

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Yannis Tsarouchis : Illustrating an autobiography

The exhibition presents the history of Yannis Tsarouchis’ painting through chronological groupings, re-creating the environment in which he lived and investigating the manner in which he was influenced throughout his artistic progress.

The theme “Illustrating an autobiography” will be shown in two parts, each of which will last a full year.
Viewers will begin in Yannis Tsarouchis’s childhood in Piraeus, Athens and Kifissia, and will traverse the artist’s era through his works, what he listened to, his acquaintances, his intimates, his collaborators and his teachers. They will encounter individuals such as Fotis Kontoglou, Konstantinos Parthenis, Dimitris Pikionis, Nikos Velmos, Angeliki Hadjimichali, Eva Palmer-Sikelianou, Ellie Papadimitriou, Teriade, as well as many more in a tour that will be accompanied by photographic material, texts and interviews by the artist himself, as well as audiovisual material from Dimitris Vernikos’ documentary “Study for a portrait”.

The exhibition is part of a group of themed presentations of the holdings of the Yannis Tsarouchis Foundation collection, which will be hosted by the Benaki Museum from November 2012 at the Pireos Street Annexe.

Exhibition curator: Niki Grypari
Architectural design: Lili Pezanou

Duration
17/10/2013 – 27/07/2014 (Opening: 16/10/2013, 20.00) 

Benaki Museum

Tickets
€ 5, € 2,5
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Benaki Museum – Mentis Donation

All photos are by our good friend Ingrid, on our first visit. The complete album on our official Facebook page www.facebook.com/livinlovin.gr

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The site of the old workshop at 6 Polyfimou Street houses the “Mentis Donation”. The donation by Spyros, Marina, and Othon Mentis to the Benaki Museums includes the sum total of all the merchandise in storage, as well as the equipment of the MENTIS fibre manufactory, one of the oldest workshop and commercial enterprises in the country in the field of fibre processing and production of passementerie (galloons, ornamental cords – piping, braids, fringes, tassels, brandebourg frogging, curtain tiebacks).

*

 

For over one-and-a-half centuries, the products of MENTIS Ltd. decorated Greek traditional costumes, theatrical costumes, clerical vestments and military uniforms, and creations of well-known couturiers in Greece and abroad. When the Mentis family was forced to close the business in 2011, the Benaki Museum accepted the generous offer of the Mentis family, in order to create a space that will be a living workshop / museum.

*

 

The goal is to offer visitors an opportunity to learn how a historical workshop functioned; follow every step involved in silk processing and the crafting of masterpieces out of thread, for which the company was renowned.
At the same time, this new space aims to become a centre for the conservation of traditional crafts related to thread/filament processing, weaving and embroidery. Beyond monitoring the living process of production, the Benaki Museum Educational Programme Department is collaborating with highly-skilled workers to arrange a programme of classes for adults about these traditional arts.
At the same time, the Benaki Museum Shop, in its ongoing efforts to connect old know-how with a contemporary look, invites young artists to be inspired by the products of the MENTIS workshop. Their work, objects with a contemporary aesthetic, which use traditional materials, will be put on display for sale at the Piraios Street Building Shop.

6 Polyfemou st
11854 Athens
tel +30 210 347 8792
mentis_donation@benaki.gr

Tuesday to Saturday 10:00 – 15:00

Closed on Sunday, Monday and the following holidays:
March 25th, May 1st, August 15th, October 28th, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, Epiphany, Easter Day, Easter Monday, Clean Monday, Holy Spirit Day.

BUSES 035, 049, 227, 500, 815, 838, 914, Β18, Γ18 TROLLEY-BUSES 21
METRO line 3 (KERAMIKOS station)
RAIL PETRALONA Station

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The Greek Monsters by BEETROOT

Beetroot Design Group is the design agency and think-tank from Thessaloniki, who won one of the highest distinctions in communication design in the world (red dot Agency of the Year).

“The Greek Monsters” exhibition was created to celebrate Beetroot’s “consistently brilliant level” in design that won its prestigious distinction: the red-dot Communication Design Award as the Agency of the Year 2011. It is consisted of installations, sculptures, idols, stencil graffiti (resembling a contemporary frieze) and also “invisible” monsters that can be perceived only with the use of audio –visual technology.
All exhibits are inspired by the vivid ancient Greek mythology and are designed in a neo-black-figure style specially devel¬oped by Beetroot. Each exhibit is also accompanied by an exhibition tag that instead of facts and information on its make and history, pre¬sents an original poem on the philosophy or practice it stands for.

With the “Greek Monsters”, Beetroot aims to respond –not without a sense of humor– to the current ill socio-economical image of modern Greece as this is largely presented in the media around the globe, while presenting key philosophical stands and practices in design. The Greek Monsters are used with their dual meaning both as perpetrators and victims, and ultimately as contemporary symbols against racism, generalization and exclusion.

Place
Athens
Benaki Museum