Tinian architecture has been on a continuous dialogue with the landscape, the nature and the people activities. The roots of the architectural culture on the island date back to the early antiquity when the first constructions were built, develop through the byzantine and post byzantine era and eventually are greatly influenced by the Venetians. The result is a long lasting synthesis of an interaction between people’s needs and environment, and the stimuli the Cycladic landscape generously offers, which is imprinted not only on the scenery, with the endless dry-stone walls and the wonderful countryside constructions, but also on the cultural and social field with the stone and marble artistry and craftmanship.

The capstone of this interaction is the inscription of the Tinian marble craftsmanship on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Therefore, an opportunity is given through the workshop to highlight some of the many aspects of this art, to listen to oral accounts of the craftsmen, to become familiar with the oral traditions associated with it, the functions and practices that accompany it, and its importance for the collective memory and identity of the Tinians themselves. Last but not least, you’ll have the opportunity to have a closer look at the works of Tinian artists, the fruit of incomparable mastery and aesthetics.

PLACE

Tinos, Pyrgos

TIME

Ask for the available dates.

DURATION

21 days (20 nights)

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

1 or 2 groups of 8-12 participants each one

SUBJECTS

a) Marble

    • Getting familiar with the material. Process of selecting the size of the marble block. Tools. Selection and use. Safety rules for the artist and protection of the material.
    • Creation, from a piece of marble (dimensions 40x50x12 cm,) of a marble vessel sink, with relief details, in a free or geometrical shape.
  • Responsible for the workshop/instructors: Mr. Michalis Saltamanikas and Mr. Lambros Diamantopoulos, graduates of the School of Fine Arts of Tinos.

Michalis Saltamanikas was born in 1955 in Pyrgos, Tinos. He started his art life working on wood as an apprentice to the wood engraver Evaggelos Kagiorgis and later he continued with marble, under the instructions of his grandfather Lazaros Artemios Valakas, an old master sculptor. He graduated from the Fine Arts School of Pyrgos and he worked with the sculptors Hondrogiannis, Diamantopoulos and Filippotis. His atelier has been in Pyrgos Tinos since 1997. He is specialized in subjects of nature and sea, having a close relationship with the latter as the descendant of a family with long tradition in seamanship.

Lambros Diamantopoulos was born in Pyrgos Tinos in 1955. He graduated from the School of Fine Arts in 1971 and in 1978 he started his own atelier, creating fanlights, fountains, door frames and more. He is one among the few sculptors who can undertake restorations of old belfries as well as construction of new ones all over Greece. Some of the most important restorations he has recently undertaken are in Paros at the church of Our Lady Ekatontapyliani in 2003 and the double tower bell of the Holy Trinity church (year of construction 1870) in 2011-2012. He has participated in lots of exhibitions both in Greece and abroad.

b) Architecture

    • The landscape of Tinos. Countryside and village
    • The Tinian house.
    • Dovecotes, Wind mills
    • Chapels of Tinos
    • Lighthouses and lighthouse keepers. The lighthouse of Papargyras at Livada.
    • Tools and vessels from marble. Structure elements
  • Lecturer and escort to the field trips: Mrs. Maria Vidalis

Mrs. Maria Vidalis studied Architecture at Portsmouth and Kingston University and holds an MPhil degree in History and Philosophy of Architecture from Cambridge University. She is a PhD candidate at the school of architecture of the University of Thessalia in Greece, studying ‘Liminality, metaphor and place in the farming landscape of Tinos: the case of Kampos’. Also, she has been a research trainee at Mc Gill University with interest on ‘Architecture and Narrative’. She has been participating in conferences in Greece and abroad. Her research work ‘Village and Land, The outlying chapels of the island of Tinos’ was published in Greece, in December 2009.

SCHEDULE

1st day – Arrival, check in, meeting
2nd day – Pyrgos, museums, workshops, quarries
3rd day – Delos, visit and guided tour
4th day – Architecture, field trip
5th day – Architecture, field trip
6th day – Marble workshop
7th day – Marble workshop
8th day – Marble workshop
9th day – Marble workshop
10th day – Marble workshop
11th day – Architecture, field trip
12th day – Architecture, field trip
13th day – Marble workshop
14th day – Marble workshop
15th day – Marble workshop
16th day – Marble workshop
17th day – Marble workshop
18th day – Architecture, field trip
19th day – Architecture, field trip
20th day – Packing up your work, end of the workshop
21st day – Departure

SERVICES

  • Accommodation in Pyrgos and the adjacent area in selected studios (double rooms) with air conditioning, dining room and private veranda.
  • Full board, including breakfast with local home-made food, lunch and dinner in tavernas of the island, well-known for their exquisite dishes. -Ship tickets and bus tickets
  • Entrance fees in museums and archaeological sites – Cars, one per three or four people, fuel included.
  • Interpreter-escort (English – French from 9.00am till 21.00pm) -Handmade tools with your initials engraved on them.
  • The piece of marble you are going to work on.
  • Your personal work of art accomplished in the workshop
  • Packaging and shipping fees from Tinos to your destination.
  • A partner who speaks your language will meet you at the airport and will accompany you till you get aboard and vice versa.
  • The cost of the workshop is 5200 euros.
  • Flights are not included.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

  • The course starts at 9.30am and finishes at 14.00pm.
  • An interpreter (Greek to English or French) will be always present during the course or the field trips that start at 9.30.
  • After the course you can choose either to go for a swim, for a ride, or do whatever you feel like. You can also choose to go back to the atelier and continue your work, after prior arrangement with the master. In that case the escort – interpreter will follow the rest of the group (even if there is only one participant). Our aim is to offer each one of you a schedule tailored to your interests and desires. That’s why it is extremely important that you describe your job, your artistic hobbies and your expectations from that trip and even some of your personal habits in your daily routine you can’t do without. That would help us to adjust your accommodation and the content of the lectures to achieve the best possible result. Our aim is to help you gain a deep knowledge of a very special island and its people and live three unforgettable weeks.