5-7-5. By Artflyer
Critic's commentary:
In 5-7-5, the artists don't merely emulate haiku—they dismantle and reassemble its essence. This isn't about form; it's about attunement. Within Lorenzatos' charged domestic space, the works whisper rather than declare, asking us to slow down, recalibrate, and listen. It's a show that rewards stillness—a rare invitation to think with the senses.
PRESS RELEASE
ARTFLYER presents "5-7-5" – A group exhibition of contemporary Greek artists inspired by the poetic form of haiku and the literary legacies of George Seferis and Zissimos Lorenzatos
ARTFLYER presents 5-7-5, a group exhibition featuring 24 contemporary Greek artists. The exhibition draws inspiration from the minimalist and contemplative form of the Japanese haiku, as well as from the literary and philosophical legacy of Nobel Laureate George Seferis and intellectual Zissimos Lorenzatos.
The title 5-7-5 refers to the haiku's traditional syllabic rhythm (three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables) and serves as a point of departure for exploring the power of transformation through subtle shifts in perception and structure. At the core of the exhibition is a letter from Seferis to Lorenzatos, in which the poet reflects on a haiku by Matsuo Bashō, referencing Bashō's advice to his disciple Kikaku: to reverse the poem's structure as an act of reverence for all living beings.
From:
Une libellule
Enlevez-lui les ailes
Un piment
(a dragonfly /remove its wings / a pepper)
To:
Un piment
Mettez-lui des ailes
Une libellule
(a pepper / give it wings / a dragonfly)
Seferis adopted this emotional and conceptual shift, from gravity to grace, from darkness to light, to transform his poem Thrush into a verse of renewal and inner clarity.
In 5-7-5 the twenty-four participating artists respond to the models of Bashō and Seferis through works - painting, sculpture, photography, and installation — each of which, like haiku, a meditation on light, transformation and the dynamics of inner or collective change.
The exhibition is hosted in the former residence of Zissimos Lorenzatos, who also experimented with the haiku form by composing a series of 24 poems, one for each letter of the Greek alphabet, later compiled in the collection Alfavitari (meaning "Alphabet Book" in Greek). Thus, within a space of profound cultural and intellectual resonance, the artworks engage in a dialogue with the poetic and philosophical thought of both thinkers, and the timeless clarity of haiku meets the fluid language of contemporary art.
Through contemplative curation we are introduced to a new alphabet - 24 visual meditations, organized into six themes inspired by the haiku of Lorenzatos: orientation, desire, ephemera, rhythm, transformation, and memory. Haiku in both form and spirit, these works evoke wonder, light, and transformation
Participating Artists (in alphabetical order):
Olga Alexopoulou, Dimitrios Antonitsis, Zetta Antsakli, Astronauts (Danae Dasyra & Joe Bradbford), Alexandra Athanassiades, Eleni Bagaki, Manolis Charos, Nikolaos de Grèce, Maria Joannou, Evi Kalogiropoulou, Marina Karella, Aristides Lappas, Eugenie Livanos, Iliodora Margellos, Maro Michalakakos, Irini Miga, Olga Migliaressi-Phoca, Malvina Panagiotidi, Rallou Panagiotou, Angelo Plessas, Dimitris Polychroniadis, Kleopatra Tsali, Antrea Tzourovits, Kostis Velonis
Curator:
Alexia Antsakli-Vardinoyanni
Duration: June 6 – July 18, 2025
Visiting hours: Tuesday – Friday, 12:00 – 20:00
Where: 15 Argyropoulou St., Kifisia, Athens – former residence of Zisimos Lorenzatos