Τhe main concept of the exhibition develops in two axes, referring to the sea baths and thermal spas, presenting the body’s relation to the water, which is found in all cultures having multiple utilitarian and symbolic dimensions. Water, a key element in the preservation of life and human hygiene, is connected with rituals, such as purifications in Greek antiquity, ritual baths, related to birth, marriage and death ceremonies, as well as to baptism in Christian times. In Homer’s Odyssey (θ 462-473) the reference to the physical enjoyment of the warm bath at Alkinoos palace is for Odysseus, when he reaches the island of the Phaeacians, the antidote to the wreck and the wrath of the sea, indicating the contrast between the controlled intimate space and to nature’s hazards.
In Modern times, already in the 18th century, sea baths had been established for their curative qualities in European countries by the upper social class. This habit was recorded in the paintings of Impressionist and Post-impressionist painters, as well as in the works of the late 19th century and early 20th century (Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso), recalling an eudemonistic mood within the Mediterranean landscape.
The liberating sense of the immersion in the liquid element renders the imagery of bathers in a privileged field for the study of the body image in art from the late 19th century, when the gaze of the modern artist began to redefine the terms of the human body’s reception, posing the duality of suppression/emancipation and re-examining the historical and social conditions that modify the dichotomous distinction above. Obviously, the western gaze was more familiar with the representation of the female body in bath and purification scenes – not at all free of the voyeuristic intentions, according to the gendered terms of the gaze, if, at least, we recall the orientalist baths. However, in the passage from the 19th to the 20th century the field of intentions and discourse about the body is widening, while the narrative and the sensual realism of the depiction is subdued, as the visual enjoyment is no longer the main issue of the representation.
Moreover, gradually from the first decades of the 20th century, the institutionalization of the summer vacations leads to a mass visit to the beach, especially in the post-war years, as well as to the familiarization and the acceptance of the public exposure of the naked body. At the same time Greek beaches become a popular tourist destination for foreign tourists and local bathers, who are looking even for just a day of pleasure near the sea.
Thermal spas are equally popular for a more localized age group. These installations, scattered in many places across Greece, often on islands and even by the sea, attract middle-aged and elderly people, forming a special community of people who co-exist for a short period of time, aiming to treat illnesses or to take preventive care for their health.
However, recent developments in the refugee issue have brought to light a different dimension in the human relationship to the sea, highlighting the danger for the people who cross it, while they are persecuted and deprived of the means that will allow them a safe passage. This historical phenomenon has been recorded by photographers and commented on by contemporary artists, often in special thematic exhibitions in the recent years, creating thus a new political dimension in the “iconography” of the sea. Zoi Godosi, Art historian – Syrago Tsiara, Art historian
