"Having lived most of my life separated by great distances from loved ones, the existence of heirlooms has been of great comfort to me, a substitute for their absence, a reminder of the bonds connecting us, meaningful talismans guiding me through each day’s paths of joy and drama. Books, untouched items from forgotten trousseaus, correspondence and photos of unknown relatives, traditions, rituals, family lore, and history, all represent the links and references to my identity.  

 

The content of this show derives from the influence of these heirlooms, gifted to me at different stages of my life, safely kept and carried through many relocations between two continents. I consider them treasures pulsing with nostalgic sentimentality, responding to my stylistic values and adding to my trove of materials. These gifts reached me through women I was surrounded with during childhood, women of extraordinary strength and courage. They lived at times of war, faced expatriation, entered new land-scapes to build new lives interrupted by new wars; they were imprisoned and when liberated faced the terrors and sins of a civil war. They were victimized by politics and decisions affecting us all still. They told and sang their stories to me, intermingled with traditional tales, parables and myths that formed the intellectual map of who I became to be.

 

Directly and indirectly, my work and beliefs have been informed, inspired and shaped by these women’s stories and a longing for a time when there will be no reason to talk about gender differences and freedoms."

 

- Anna Mavromatis