Ancient Cycladic Women’s Lives Highlighted in Exhibition at Athens Airport

Photo source: Athens International Airport

Following four successful exhibitions, the Museum of Cycladic Art collaborates once again with the Athens International Airport by organizing the exhibition “Women of the Cyclades through time”.

The exhibition, located in the “Art & Culture” area on the Arrivals level of the airport, opened on October 7, 2024, and will run until May 31, 2025.

The exhibition explores the history of the Cyclades, depicted through the marble female figurines crafted by local islanders during the 3rd millennium BC. These Cycladic figurines, part of the world-renowned collection of the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens, reflect a society that revered women.

Women sculptured into marble

The exhibits include smaller and larger antiquities representing the female form as a mother, goddess, offering, or ritual object of uncertain purpose. The white marble sculptures of the Early Cycladic period (3200–2000 BC) bring these figures to life, portraying women with prominent features, slightly rounded bellies, or incised lines indicating pregnancy or postpartum.

Since the early 20th century, many artists have been inspired by the art of the prehistoric Cyclades. Prominent figures such as Constantin Brancusi, Amedeo Modigliani, Alexander Archipenko, Henry Moore, Alberto Giacometti, and Barbara Hepworth explored the origins of human expression in these primordial forms.

They found the simplicity of early Cycladic figurines captivating, significantly influencing their work. The Cycladic craftsmen’s depiction of the female figure evolved into a universal archetype that resonates in modern art. The Modernist artists’ works made the art of these islands a lasting source of admiration.

The central exhibit of the exhibition is a copy of the large Cycladic figurine of the Museum of Cycladic Art, believed to represent a female deity embodying the essence of her era’s art. The exhibition also features a video that showcases the lives of Cycladic women from ancient times to the present, offering insights into a culture both distant and remarkably familiar. The video was specially produced for this exhibition.

Kykladitisses: Untold Stories of Women in the Cyclades

Photo source: Museum of Cycladic Art

“Women of the Cyclades through time” at the Athens International Airport serves as a prelude to the major archaeological exhibition titled “Kykladitisses: Untold Stories of Women in the Cyclades.”

This exhibition, organized by the Museum of Cycladic Art in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades, will be held at the Museum from December 12, 2024, to May 4, 2025.

It will feature around 180 Cycladic artworks dating from early prehistory to the 17th century, sourced from the collections of the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades and the Museum of Cycladic Art.