Before the
Kingfisher Days are Over

Installation “Olives”

Statement

Unfortunately so relevant, this artwork is a reference to the fires, which are responsible for the climate change that occurs daily from the man’s reckless use and abuse all over the planet; on the other hand, these fires maintain a vicious circle, bringing desolation, death, destruction, pain…

Each of the 6 OLIVES is “stuck” in a piece of land, struggling to survive…

Placed in plexiglass boxes, emphasizing their value and need for serious protection…

In their internal environment on a well-worn fabric… their fruits and leaves are embroidered…

The other 6 OLIVES are the same after the fire… that even their small piece of land is burned…

Maria Stamati
Visual artist

Group exhibition “Before the Kingfisher Days are Over”

Conceptual Framework

The most important stake of our time, the urgent action we must take to save the human species and as many life forms as we can from the self-destructive rage of our technological “civilization”, is inscribed in pop culture as a call to benevolent rescue of our personal planet at risk. “Save the planet,” they say.

The planet does not need us. Undoubtedly, we are interested in our rescue. And this depends mainly on the survival of the ecosystem in a “friendly” way to our species. The same for our quality of life. Both parameters are meaningless on a lifeless planet. We are therefore responsible for the natural environment, and every life form that exists in it. And we must fight to protect it. If we succeed, we protect our present and improve our future.

Lately, we are increasingly facing natural disasters, gigantic losses in lives and structures, but, above all, deterioration of our living conditions.

Unprecedented epidemics (not just the new coronavirus, remember, for example, in the last 40 years AIDS, SARS, “bird flu”, “swine flu”, “mad cows”, Zika, Ebola), environmental diseases and allergies, overheating, extreme weather events – the result of the climate’s response to brutal human intervention, the greenhouse effect, air pollution, water pollution, wastes that the ecosystem is no longer able to decompose, deforestation, biodiversity depletion is not an issue for us, until our life is directly threatened or destroyed. The natural environment has become unrecognizable. The last decade, the climatically distinct seasons tend to disappear. The only thing that still remains stable for us (for the time being) are the Halcyon’s Days.

The appearance of halcyon’s days refers to the period from mid-December to mid-February, a period which contains the mythological connection with the hatching period of kingfishers in January. From a meteorological point of view, there is an equalization of pressures between Northern Europe and the region of Greece and Southeastern Europe, which results in an anti-cyclonic situation with apnea and summer in the heart of Winter. Recent research has shown that halcyon’s days were a constant meteorological phenomenon during the 5th and 4th centuries BC, between 15 January and 15 February. Although years without “halcyon’s days” have been observed, the phenomenon persists in the stubbornness of climate change, and is today one of the few climatic “constants” of the Southeastern Mediterranean.

It is good to recognize the problem in its true dimensions before rushing to solve it. It is good to rush to solve the problem before it cancels out our lives. It is good to review our living conditions before we cause irreversible damage to our environment. It is important to look at the “monster” in the eye, before (also) the Halcyon’s Days are over.

Paris Capralos
Curator