I am Greek in my soul
Life is a passion and I agree with the greek God Eros: when we feeling passion and desire we are really alive. Do you agree with me? Passion makes you feel really, really alive and we are all potential geniuses if we find our true passion!
One of the things that we are rarely told in life, is that we are creators. We may hear that we are creative but rarely that we are creators and our lives are a form of art and the best way to create them is with passion. One of those creators I meet because of my work in Greece is Alexandra Simanndani. An exciting artist with a unique style. The images in the blog are from her studio, most of them made to order from clients. Below are notes from the February 2021 meeting.
When you live here you are blessed with so many impressions
Can you help me with a short presentation of you?
I was born in Germany. My Mother was from Sparta and my father was from England. We moved very often because my father was in the British Army. Before the age of 21, I lived in Germany, Libya, Lebanon, England and Saudi Arabia. We visited Sparta and my Greek family every summer: I was Greek in my soul from the beginning. When I was 21, I decided to move to Greece, to Athens, then Sparta, now to Stoupa in Mani and soon to Kalamata. Since then I left Greece only once for 4 years to live in Varna, Bulgaria. But i missed Greece so much i had to come back..
What do you appreciate most about Greek life style?
I love everything about the Greek lifestyle and hope it never changes. The only thing I would want is that the animal welfare laws get better all the time.
One of my favorite writers Paulo Coelho wrote: “Everybody has a creative potential and from the moment you can express this creative potential, you can start changing the world”. Do you agree? Can art change and save the world?
O, I love Coelho but I don’t think art can change the world. I believe that it can change the world of the artist. When I started to paint, my own world was changed. Every single sunrise can be a painting and every single meeting can start a new project! When I share my painting with others. I have an opportunity to meet new people and get a new perspective as well.
You are a creative person. Does Greece push forward your creativity?
For sure! My soul and my thoughts are free, i enjoy the simplicity of living, the colours, the sun and the sea. When I start a painting, I play with colours and I wait to see what they will show me. When you live here you are blessed with so many impressions!
When we speak about our paintings. You are experimenting all the time, with acrylics and sometimes inks and with a variety of styles. But we always have some masters. Which is yours? And why?
Yes, I mixed the traditional acrylics with some touch of gold like in the old icon paintings and I love many techniques. You know: when the colours take over and they decide what I will paint. And I love to show the beauty! This is what I want to share with others: the beauty of the world around us. And I love Gustav Klimt The master of symbolism! And I use gold a lot in my work as he did. Gustav Klimt is my absolute favourite, i love all of his work.
Let me know if you want to contact Alexandra and thank you for reading!
