Since the initiation of lockdowns as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, art has served as a way out and an outlet of expression for people confined indoors. From theatrical and musical performances, films, museums, and books made freely accessible from home to individual artistic endeavors, art in all its forms has been critical to sustaining our well-being as human beings.

On Wednesday, May 27 at 18:30 (GMT+3), the SNF DIALOGUES will hold its fourth live webcast, “Art on Lockdown,” to discuss the deep new challenges arts and culture professionals face as a result of the pandemic. Through an open conversation with these professionals and the audience, SNF DIALOGUES will explore the impacts of the pandemic, what comes next, and our collective responsibility to ensure that art and culture do not succumb to lockdown.

Participants in the DIALOGUES webcast on “Art on Lockdown”:

-Foivos Delivorias, Singer-Songwriter, Chairman of the Board at EDEM
-Prodromos Tsinikoris, Director, Dramaturge

Katerina Evangelatos, Artistic Director of the Athens & Epidaurus Festival
Linda Kapetanea, Artistic Director of Kalamata Dance Festival 
Nikos Kolovos, Artistic Director of National Theatre of Northern Greece
Dimitris Lignadis, Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Greece
Thomas Machairas, Artistic Director of Release Festival
Giannis Paltoglou, Artistic Director of Ejekt Festival
Mily Paschali, Artistic Director at SNF
Anna Fonsou, President of the “Actor House,” will contribute video messages that will be streamed during the discussion.

The DIALOGUES are curated and moderated by Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou.

About SNF Dialogues

Through its monthly series of events, entitled SNF DIALOGUES, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation presents individuals and representatives of civil society who inspire others through their work, actions and vision, coming from different fields, backgrounds, and countries.

SNF DIALOGUES delve into different themes that cut across the key pillars of the Foundation’s work: Arts and Culture, Education, Health and Sports, and Social Welfare.

Through this series of events, which are free and open to the public, the SNF seeks to catalyze conversations around critical issues, create a platform for the exchange of ideas, present individuals who inspire a new way of thinking, and encourage collaboration among individuals and organizations across the globe.

Are you interested in youth exchange programs? Do you want to know more about exciting opportunities to meet and collaborate with peers from other countries in the EU?

Join the webinar ‘European Youth Mobilities explained: Get memorable experiences abroad’ on 28th May, 16.00-17.00, to learn more about Youth Mobilities, financed by Erasmus+ program.

The options are many – for choosing the right one, it depends on your areas of interest!

In the webinar, you will get information about:

• Topics/thematic areas of Youth Exchanges
• Typical activities in youth mobilities and learning outcomes
• What are the expenses covered for you to participate in the mobility
• Application process: How to write an engaging motivation letter
• Where to spot youth exchange opportunities
• How COVID-19 pandemic affects youth mobilities

Mobility projects for young people offer many opportunities to acquire competences and grow as an individual, through non-formal learning. Learn how to prepare yourself and get ready to participate in the near future!

Participation is free of charge. 

The Panhellenic Students Competition of Negotiations Athens Negotiations Tournament returns for the second year running. On the 30th and 31st of May 2020, students of Greek and Cypriot universities will take part in real-time negotiations.

This competition has been organized by the Department of Business Administration of Athens University of Economics, with scientific director dr. Ilias Kapoutsis.

In this competition, 18 teams are taking part, consisting of three students each undergraduate and postgraduate students from Greece and Cyprus and supported by 40 volunteers.

The purpose of this competition is to get together students from Greece and around the world for the resolution of various issues and to enhance the skill of negotiation which is a prerequisite for the adaptation and prosperity in the 4th industrial revolution.

During the two-day simulations, the participants will have the opportunity to exhibit their negotiation skills and to gain valuable experience.

The winners of ANT2019 will represent our country at the Warsaw Negotiation Round 2020 International Negotiation Competition. The knowledge and the experience that the competitors will gain from this event, will be beneficial for them and our country.

The interested teams to participate in this competition, they can apply through the Greek website: www.ant.aueb.gr, from 10 to 28 of February. The final selection will be based on the studies that the applicants have concluded, the possible working of voluntary experience, any awards, the geographical origin of the team, and the accompanying video explaining the reasons why they believe that they should are selected to participate.

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XpatAthens is proud to be a Media Sponsor of the Athens Negotiations Tournament

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About The Festival 

The Athens & Epidaurus Festival is the foremost public cultural organization in Greece and one of the oldest active festivals in Europe. Spanning 65 years, the Festival has welcomed some of the greatest music, dance, and theatre artists of the international and local scene, attracting large audiences from around the world.

Up to the year 2005, the Festival was held exclusively at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens and the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus. In the summer of 2006, five brand-new theatre stages were launched at the Peiraios 260 industrial venue which has since emerged as a major springboard for contemporary art. Furthermore, artistic productions and site-specific performances are presented in other venues all over the Attica region, under the banner of the Festival.

Nowadays, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus focuses on music, with special emphasis on celebrated orchestras and famous soloists, while the Peiraios 260 venue highlights the latest trends in theatre and dance, inviting internationally acclaimed, avant-garde creative teams, and commissioning new works by talented Greek artists.

The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus features primarily ancient tragedies and comedies by established Greek and international directors. Meanwhile, the Little Theatre of Ancient Epidaurus, whose reins were gradually handed over to the Athens & Epidaurus Festival by the Friends of Music Society in the early 2000s, focuses on experimental music and musical/theatrical performances.

Under its current Artistic Director Katerina Evangelatos, the Athens & Epidaurus Festival aims to expand its international scope through co-productions with world-renowned theatre and dance companies, as well as showcasing Greek artists, supporting artistic research in the area of performing arts, and connecting research with audience development.

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XpatAthens is proud to be a Media Sponsor of the Athens & Epidaurus Festival

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Young Executives Shipping (YES) FORUM (Greece) in partnership with YoungShip Cyprus, YoungShip Turkey, YoungShip Panama, YoungShip Venezuela, YoungShip Singapore, YoungShip Texas, Young Professionals In Shipping Network Hong Kong, Young Shipping Professionals New York, Young Professionals In Shipping Network Shanghai & Beijing, Maritime SheEO India, Shipping Professionals Network London, It's All About Shipping UK will organize an online event on Friday 5th June 2020 16:00- 18:00 (Greek time).

Representatives of the above organizations will answer the audience's questions about the below topics:

- Presentation and best practices of each organization.
- Onboard and Ashore Career: Opportunities and Challenges in each country
- Tips to follow in your career path (soft skills, social media, CV tips, networking, etc)

Moderator of the discussion will be: Danae Bezantakou, Concept Founder – YES FORUM & CEO – NAVIGATOR SHIPPING CONSULTANTS

The e-dialogue will be live via FACEBOOK in this event page so that everyone can have access from different countries and ask questions live.

The discussion will take place in English.

The participation is free of charge. 

To register please click here. 

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XpatAthens is proud to be a Media Sponsor Of YES FORUM

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FokiaNou Art Space is pleased to present “Interstitial Places”, a two-person exhibition by Jane Grover and Dimitra Maltabe. In order to allow for social distancing, the opening will take place over two evenings, the 11th and 12th of June, with the rooftop terrace open for added space. The two artists create photographic fictions, starting with the randomness of the world and imposing order, to paraphrase the photographer Stephan Shore. Jane Grover's photographs of walls and surfaces were taken on trips from as far afield as Mexico and as nearby as Anavyssos. She seeks accidental and serendipitous compositions that have been fashioned by entropic forces on manmade surfaces. Dimitra Maltabe juxtaposes and collages urban residential windows to evoke thoughts about architectural features that function both as openings and as boundaries or borders while hiding different worlds within.

Born in England, Jane Grover studied History of Art at Leeds University before moving to the United States in 1980. She worked in theater and set design all over the U.S. and was a member of the union United Scenic Artists Local 829 in New York City. In 2002 she moved to Taos, New Mexico, to concentrate on painting, where she was represented by a Sage Fine Art as well as two galleries in Colorado. She is happy to have made Greece her home for the past seven years.

Dimitra Maltabe is an Athens-based visual artist. She holds a degree in Painting and Stage Design from the Athens School of Fine Arts and a Master’s in Fine Arts from Kent Institute of Art and Design, University of Kent, Canterbury, U.K. Her work focuses on human and environmental interaction. She has shown her work in many solo and group shows in Greece and abroad, including the 6th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art, “Imagined Homes”, as well as a 2018 residency at Kinono Tinos Art Gathering, and at artAmari Residency, Crete in 2016.

About FokiaNou Art Space

FokiaNou Art Space is an artist-run project space in the intimacy of a small apartment in an old building in the center of Athens. The space encourages collaborative creative efforts between Greek and foreign artists, thereby promoting and supporting the local art community. The space hosts exhibitions, workshops, and projects under the direction of two artists, Mary Cox and Panagiotis Voulgaris.

The SNF Run returns, this year in virtual form!

This summer, get ready for a powerful comeback from the SNF Run. Adapting to virtually unprecedented times, the popular race is going virtual for the first time, inviting us to run wherever we are to support our local hospitals. We’ll keep our distance, but cover greater ones all over Greece, always together and always for a good cause!

To experience the Virtual SNF Run, pick a day between Monday, June 15, and Sunday, June 21 to run your own 5-km route, then upload your results. You decide where to run: in a park, on city streets, on your favorite beach, on the treadmill, in your garden, or on the stairs at home.

Like every year, this year’s race has a charitable mission. When registering, those who wish can choose to support their local hospital. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) will add double the amount contributed by runners, tripling the overall size of the donation.

Whether you run by yourself, with your family, or with your friends, take a selfie on your run and share it with the hashtag #SNFRun. 

On the evening of International Olympic Day, June 23, at 21:00 (GMT+3), the announcement of the Virtual SNF Run results will be streamed as part of the Summer Nostos Festival RetroFuture Edition in an event featuring your best snapshots from the race. The event will be presented by iMEdD Managing Director, SNF DIALOGUES Executive Director, and journalist Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou.

More information on how to register will be announced soon at SNFestival.org.

Stay tuned, stay connected.

Adapting to the current situation, Athens’ International Music Conference and Festival is reshaping initial activities by combining the physical with the digital world, in order to create the best possible experience for the glocal audiences.

 

Online activities will be fused with physical events (panel-discussions, webinars, artist showcases, Q&A sessions), as well as live music events, always conforming to the official public health guidelines. 

 

As the Music Industry is confronting the consequences of the global pandemic, #AthensMusicWeek supports the Music sector by investing, this year, all resources and assets to creating a high-quality weekly event, which music professionals, artists and music lovers from all over the world can access completely free of charge.

 

AMW’s main goal is to promote music as a tool for local development and drive innovation between stakeholders of the CCIs, entertainment, and the music industry, in order to foster curiosity, boost creativity, entrepreneurship, and social cohesion!

AMW is planned as a multifaceted music experience event. With 4 complimentary pillars –  Music & the City, Music Convention, Athens Music Walk, Music Innovation Hub – the overall event is designed to motivate the broader public, to widen the music boundaries of music lovers and to enhance the creative process and the sustainable development of creative artists, musicians, and professionals of the music sector.

As a whole, the AMWs program aims to enhance music practice and promote the music scene of Athens through happenings and activities encompassing discussions with artists, presentations of music projects, special events, music showcases, festivals, and many concerts.

For more information please click here. 

XpatAthens is proud to be a Media Sponsor of Athens Music Week 

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The Hellenic American Union presents in cooperation with Hellenic American College (HAEC) and Technochoros Art Gallery, in its Kennedy Gallery, the visual arts exhibition by Chrysostomos Mousmoulidis. The exhibition, which is organized under the aegis of the George Zongolopoulos Foundation, is curated by Vivi Vasilopoulou.

Taking into account the safety of visitors and personnel, the instructions, measures, and guidelines announced by relevant authorities to prevent the spread of COVID-19, are followed during your visit at the Hellenic American Union building and exhibition venues.

Chrysostomos Mousmoulidis creates arks of fragmentary moments, filled with sensitivity, re-using canvases and frames from previous works that bear testimony to an earlier self. He combines these (stitches together) to create new works, in which many older ones lie concealed. In some of these new works, hidden behind the bold stitches and patches of a self and a past that opens wounds he seeks to heal, are poems, attestations of his psyche. Each work is a silent cry of anguish and a place of refuge for the artist.

Samsung Electronics Hellas, British Council, and INNOVATHENS Powered by Samsung organize the fascinating webinar “New Experiences using Natural Language Processing in Artificial Intelligence” on Friday, 19 June 2020, at 19.00. The webinar will be live-streamed through the British Council’s and INNOVATHENS’ Facebook pages.

 

Natural Language Processing has been the subject of intensive research and an object of high hopes for decades. Yet, most of us still do not see any spectacular tangible results like eloquent androids or omnipotent AI present in popular Hollywood movies. Still, many companies advertise their AI systems as truly intelligent.

What is the truth? Has anything changed in the NLP area recently? To what extent do we actually use NLP in our life and what exactly is it? Do computers really understand human language? What does “understanding human language” actually mean and what are its potential implications? Finally, what can we expect from the NLP technologies in the close future, and should we be afraid of it? Dr. Lukasz Slabinski will try to answer these questions from the perspective of Samsung Electronics, a company that is one of the largest producers of intelligent consumer electronics. Mr. Kostas Karpouzis will be the moderator of the webinar.

Participation is free.

The science talk will be live-streamed through British Council’s and INNOVATHENS’ Facebook pages.

Dr. Lukasz Slabinski is the Head of the Artificial Intelligence Department at Samsung R&D Institute in Poland. He and his team work in various AI areas like NLP, Data Analytics, and Computer Vision to bring new AI-powered functionalities to Samsung’s global customers. Before joining Samsung, Dr. Slabinski worked as a scientist in research institutes, as a university assistant professor, and as an entrepreneur in his own start-up company – always exploring how AI can aid people in their lives.

Kostas Karpouzis is currently an Associate Researcher at the Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS) of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) in Greece. His research interests lie in the areas of human-computer interaction, emotion understanding (Ph.D. thesis in Greek [PDF]), affective and natural interaction, serious games, and games based assessment and learning. Since 1998 he has participated in 15 research projects at Greek and European level; most notably the Humaine Network of Excellence, within which he completed his post-doc in the field of mapping signals to signs of emotion, and the FP7 TeL Siren project (Technical Manager), which was voted Best Learning Game in Europe for 2013 by the Games and Learning Alliance Network of Excellence. He is an elected member of the Executive Committee of the Association for the Advancement of Affective Computing (formerly Humaine Association) and the Student Activities Chair for IEEE Greece. He’s also a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal on Multimodal User Interfaces (Springer), Personal and Ubiquitous Computing (Springer), and Journal on Synthetic Emotions.