EUROPA
an artist book
Long ago Zeus abducted EUROPA, a Phoenician princess, to the island of Crete. He seduced her there under a sycamore tree which never lost its leaves again. Minos descends from this encounter, King of the legendary empire, whose towns and palaces were never bound by walls.
The culture of our continent, ultimately named after the beautiful princess, is rooted within Minoan mythology and culture.
In May 2008, together with Dimitri Hartmann and Andreas Kühne, Ekkeland Goetze traversed the island of Crete to collect SOIL in the footsteps of our genesis. Many of the oldest myths of the occident originated on this Mediterranean island, which was a melting pot of nations and bridge between South and North. SOIL was dug from sites either important to greek mythology or where the stones of the Minoan Empire offer us their mysteries.
11 terragraphics resulted from the EARTH excavated from this trip. Each sample has been hand printed by the artist himself on 280 gsm photo paper.
The excerpt from the 'Greek World History' by Diodorus has been rewritten in German by Dimitri Hartmann. The essay 'The Kidnapped' by Andreas Kühne and Christoph Sorger has been translated into New Greek, also by Dimitri Hartmann. Reiner Ruffing's text 'Europas Dream" was translated into New Greek by the Translation Service Baar/Switzerland. The 'Ocean Godness Talks' by Lukian (the dialogue of Zephyros, the westwind, and Notos, the southwind) are published here in a New Greek re-narration by an autor with the pseudonym 'Cactus'. The German translation of the Lukian text is by Christoph Martin Wieland, with a new German narration by Krisha Kops. The text 'The Excavation in Archanes' by Jannis Sakellarakis and Efi Sakellaraki was reduced and summarized by Ekkeland Goetze and then translated into New Greek by Dimitri Hartmann.
All texts are printed on 12 gsm Japanese long fibre paper.
The serigraphy 'Europa’s Innocence' was created by Helge Leiberg exclusively for this book project. It has been printed by hand in 4 colours by Ekkeland Goetze. Each is signed by Helge Leiberg.
The book are bound by the artist himself; each cover is painted with Cretian EARTH.
The book title carries Ekkeland Goetze's signature and each Terragraphic an embossed signature. The book has been produced in an edition of 19 copies numbered with Arabic numerals and 3 copies numbered with Roman numerals.
1.500 EUR