Chrysanthi Podaras On SOLACE, Independent Creativity & Building A New Cultural Space In Athens

We sat down with Chrysanthi Podaras, the creator of SOLACE, to talk about the story behind the exhibition, independent creativity, building a community around art and design, and her vision for creating something that goes beyond a traditional expo.

From its beginnings as a small gathering to welcoming more than 10,000 visitors, SOLACE has grown into a space where independent designers, artists, musicians and creatives come together, showcase their work, connect and build new opportunities.

This year, SOLACE is taking things even further, with a two-day edition, new installations, more immersive activities, DJs and international creators, all coming together at the Athens Conservatoire on December 19–20.

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I’m Greek-American and studied Communication and Visual Arts. I randomly got into working in the event-organising industry, even though that wasn’t originally my plan. As circumstances developed, people around me started asking me for help because I’m very social and good at organising. I had also been involved in some art initiatives, trying to raise money for people in need, so people began asking me to help with things like bar management, budgets and concepts.

It started very DIY. I once organised a huge event at a friend’s summer house, where we completely redesigned the space and had around 50 artists involved. I didn’t sleep for three days! It was my birthday, so the concept was that everyone who came was celebrating their birthday too.

That experience became the beginning of something I really enjoyed: connecting electronic music and nightlife with art, immersive experiences and different activities. I think there is a very strong drug culture and a lot of substance use around nightlife, and because I don’t drink or use anything, I also know a lot of people who don’t. I think, especially for women, it can be difficult to go out or feel safe.

I wanted to create spaces where art and music were central, and where people who might not feel comfortable going out could have an introduction to nightlife and experience something beyond simply drinking. Of course, people can drink if they want to (they’re young people after all!) but I wanted there to be something more to the experience.

Each time, I would find a different space, create an experience and give it a theme. I was also involved in graphic design, and I’m a photographer and videographer, as well as doing post-production and sound design. This allowed me to look at the whole project from different perspectives.

As the events became bigger and more well known, I continued working as a freelancer. I don’t have a company, but I started working with other people and eventually hired people to help me. I’ve had many collaborators, and this work taught me a lot about the business side of arts and entertainment.

I also worked with the public sector, organising events and booking big artists, and worked with various advertising companies. At some point, I moved into marketing and started working for a sustainability company in shipping.

But I realised that I’m not really a nine-to-five person. I tried it because it was well compensated, and the projects I was working on were difficult to make money from, so I thought I needed to do something else for a while. But I wasn’t happy, and eventually I decided to return to what I really wanted to do.

That was when SOLACE was born.

I have a lot of designer friends, and something I noticed in Athens was that we had many bazaars and flea markets, but not many truly curated spaces. I’ve travelled a lot for fashion, and one of my favourite places is Dover Street Market, created by the founder of Comme des Garçons. Different designers are carefully selected and presented almost like an exhibition. It doesn’t feel like you’re simply walking into a shop; the architecture and presentation are part of the experience.

I started thinking about how, in Greece, we have a lot of people working with second-hand fashion and independent design, but we didn’t really have a space where independent designers could properly sell or showcase their work.

I initially created the concept for some close friends, and it started very small. In the second year, we made it bigger. I created the exhibition space while some of my friends worked on the selling space.

Today, SOLACE is an expo for independent designers and creators. It’s not only about fashion or jewellery; it’s about people who are creating things independently and want to take them to the next level.

What we do is also more than simply bringing people into a space to sell or showcase their work. We listen to their needs and try to help them develop their brands through marketing, campaigns and brand image. We offer consultations and meet-ups and work with them leading up to the event.

It’s not like other exhibitions where you pay to participate and that’s it. We try to give both the creators and the audience a different experience. I think that is what makes SOLACE different.

The first year, we had around 500 people. The second year, we had 2,500, with only around €30 spent on advertising, through some of the social media marketing techniques I used. In the third year, we had more than 10,000 people attend the Athens Conservatoire. We really didn’t expect it; we were shocked.

This year, I hope we surpass 20,000 visitors in a day. A lot of people have also suggested adding a ticket, but I really don’t want to. I don’t believe in ticketing SOLACE. I want it to be a cultural event.

I want SOLACE to be a space where people meet, network and discover each other. For me, it’s not simply a selling event. I always tell participants that they need to give it their best: show their best work, try to find clients, meet collaborators and become known within the industry.

I had hired a graphic designer and was pitching different names to her. I was initially thinking about “solstice” and playing around with words connected to the sun. Then I ended up thinking about “SOLACE”.

There is also a religious and spiritual meaning to the word, relating to finding peace and reaching a place where you feel at peace with yourself and the universe, where you feel connected to everything.

The truth is, it was also simply a word I liked. I’m quite good at finding brand names! My other project is Rejuv Collective, so most of the names we choose have some kind of symbolism or semiotic meaning behind them.

But this one was quite random. I was pitching names, and the graphic designer basically said, “That’s the best!” And I said, “That’s the one.” Of course, I then started looking into the different interpretations of the word.

I find that there is a real intersection between all these things. We have so many artists in Greece who aren’t getting recognised enough, and I feel that there is a real need for community.

There are so many people who want to create, but they don’t necessarily have the opportunity or the funds. I feel that SOLACE can be a platform where people can create artistic projects simply because they want to, or as part of their professional work.

There is a thirst for art and creation, but there aren’t enough opportunities. So I feel that Solace is a space where we can bring different people together, established professionals with newcomers, so that they can share experiences and learn from one another.

I feel that Greece is incredibly rich culturally. We have a strong cultural atmosphere, and people do come here for the arts. If you look at the number of digital nomads and digital artists who are here now, there is clearly a creative energy.

At the same time, I think a lot of this has been commercialised, and after COVID we saw so many art spaces and community spaces close because people simply couldn’t afford to maintain them.

The same applies to club culture. These spaces are important because they give subcultures, young people and LGBTQ+ communities places where they can come together, have fun and express themselves. We’ve seen a huge decline in DIY and community spaces.

That’s why I think it is so extraordinary when you see a large event that still has these DIY touches and manages to function as a community.

I think this is part of why people are attracted to SOLACE. It brings together different ages and different people, and I wish we had more events like this. I wish more people would start creating these kinds of spaces so that we can build a bigger community.

Athens is a big city, with millions of people living here, and you can easily get lost in it, even though Greece itself is a small country. In some other European cities, I feel there can be a stronger sense of community.

At the same time, the size of Athens also allows for more subcultures to exist. It’s just difficult when everyone is working multiple jobs and dealing with everyday pressures. You want to find spaces where you can create and meet people who are like you.

There is definitely a love-hate relationship with Athens. I think we all have it. We love the weather, the food, the people. Well, sometimes we love the people and sometimes we hate the people!

But living here can also be really difficult. You go somewhere else and feel relaxed, and then you come back to Athens and immediately feel stressed. People are constantly annoyed and nervous, driving is difficult and everything can feel frustrating.

But there is also beauty and a sense of comfort in the city. For people who grew up here, Athens is our comfort zone. It’s what we know and what we love.

I’ve had opportunities to leave. I could have worked in other countries and completely moved away. But I also think part of what kept me here was that Greece’s entertainment industry was still relatively underdeveloped. I was actually more interested in working in a market where there was room to build something, rather than moving to an already saturated industry.

I don’t think there are many things like SOLACE even elsewhere in Europe, so I saw it as both a business opportunity and a cultural opportunity; a chance to create something in a niche that didn’t really exist.

I’m passionate about creating things that don’t already exist. It’s harder to do that here, but it’s also more interesting. I believe Athens has a uniqueness that works really well with an exhibition like SOLACE.

First of all, I really appreciate sustainable practices and thematic practices. I generally look for people who are investing in themselves, their brand and what they are doing, especially when it comes to small designers and young creatives.

We are open to a lot of different creators because part of what we do is help people take their work to the next level. Even if someone isn’t particularly close to my own aesthetic, I still try to understand their market and help them get there.

We look at aesthetics, practices, portfolios and CVs, but also at what someone is actually doing and whether it feels interesting or different.

I think there is a lot of safe practice when it comes to art in Greece because of the industry and the market. But we also have some exceptional artists doing very experimental and avant-garde work.

The biggest opportunity is that Greece is small. It can be hard to get into the creative circles, but once you do, there are a lot of opportunities that come back and forth.

Everyone is struggling, though, and it is very difficult to make a living. Greece is also somewhat behind when it comes to what is happening in the wider art world.

But if you take the risk of doing something innovative, you can get a really good response. This is a place where you can take risks and do something different because not everyone is doing it. If you do something new, you have a chance of standing out because you may be the only one doing it.

At the same time, the economy makes things difficult. Even artists creating expensive or high-end work sometimes have to introduce more affordable lines because people need to be able to buy and wear their work.

There is also a culture of expecting people to work for free. A lot of people here want everything for free, which makes it difficult for creatives to sustain themselves.

But there are opportunities. Programmes such as Creative Europe and various government initiatives provide funding for creative projects, and Greece does have opportunities when it comes to arts funding.

The difficult thing is that the same people often receive that funding, but if you do your research, work hard and keep trying, there are opportunities. There are also many spaces where you can show your work without necessarily having to go through an enormous process.

We do have creators from all over the world, although they are still a minority. This year, around 20 to 25 of our more than 100 participants are from abroad. 

We have people coming from Berlin, New York and London. We also have a lot of Greeks living abroad who come back specifically for SOLACE, so there is a mix.

This year, we have someone coming from Sweden, and last year we had people from Italy and Paris. People from Paris even told me that they had never seen anything quite like SOLACE there.

This year, I also travelled to the Czech Republic for a big streetwear expo, and we have people coming from that community as well.

So yes, we have people coming from all over the world, but most of our participants are still based in Greece.

I’m very excited because we’re upgrading a lot of things, especially the installations. I’m finally able to create a larger installation because we have increased the budget, which means I can do more with set design this year.

I’m also excited because it’s a two-day event. It’s the first time we’re doing such a large two-day event, which we weren’t able to do in the past.

We don’t only have art and fashion. We also have DJs and music, and this year we’re bringing people from Europe to play as well. I’m really excited about changing the format and the set-up and creating some smaller, more immersive activities.

I think this year we’re taking SOLACE to the next level in terms of what you would expect from a European expo focused on alternative art.

We’re also having slightly fewer participants, which means I can approach the space differently. This year, I also want to work more closely with each creator and designer on how they present their booth.

So I’m very excited to show that we’re taking the exhibition to the next level, with more activities and much more organisation compared with previous years.

Visitors can expect to come, take part in activities, interact with people, meet a lot of different people, listen to different music, see different kinds of art and find gifts. It’s going to be a nice outing.

Absolutely. We have visitors ranging from around 5 years old to 75, and being family-oriented is one of my goals.

There will be some explicit art, but it will be positioned more discreetly within the space than it would otherwise be. I do try to keep SOLACE family-friendly.

We’re currently working on an application that will be somewhere between Depop and Vinted, but specifically for independent designers.

We’re working towards an international app where people from around the world can sell their work through a curated platform.

So yes, I want SOLACE to become a community, an international expo and, eventually, an app where people can sell their work and network.

A little bit of everything!

You’re not going to experience anything quite like it in Greece.

We have people coming from all over the world, but what I love most is that we also bring together small independent designers that you may have never heard of, people I’ve discovered working in random basements, making incredible things, and who I’ve thought, “We need to help you build a brand.”

You’re going to find all of these people creating and showcasing their work in one space. I don’t think you can find that anywhere else in Greece.

So, if you love art, fashion, independent design and creativity, this is the place where you can find all of them together.

And it’s not just about seeing the work. People who are interested in art, fashion and music also attend, so you’re surrounded by people from the creative industries. You can meet people, network and discover interesting work that you might not come across elsewhere.

Thank you, Chrysanthi, for sitting down with us and sharing the story behind SOLACE. We can’t wait to see it all come to life!

If you love art, fashion, independent design, music and creativity, this is one to keep on your radar - see you all there!