24 Sep Restoration of the historic statue of Eleftherios Venizelos at the Embassy of Greece in Washington, D.C.
The Venizelos Foundation USA is proud to announce the completion of the restoration of the historic statue of Eleftherios Venizelos at the Embassy of Greece in Washington, D.C. The restoration was successfully completed under the meticulous care and supervision of two prominent and well-known artists, Antonia Papatzanaki and Vasili Vasili, along with the esteemed contractor George Marafatsos and with the consent of Alekos Pappas. This historic statue was created by the late Yannis Pappas, a renowned sculptor who met Eleftherios Venizelos through his father, who served as Venizelos’s minister. Pappas created numerous statues of Venizelos throughout Greece, including those in front of the Hellenic Parliament, in Thessaloniki, and in Heraklion, Crete. This statue is especially significant as it is a smaller-scale version of the statue located in “Freedom Park” (Eleftherias Park) near the American Embassy in Athens, with the only identical copy being owned by the Benaki Museum in Athens. The Ambassador of Greece to the United States, Ekaterini Nassika, expressed her appreciation, stating, “Our thanks to the Venizelos Foundation USA and its donors for the restoration of the Eleftherios Venizelos statue, a landmark of the Greek Embassy in Washington, D.C., and a tribute to the great statesman of modern Greece.”
Nickos Kastrinakis, President of the Venizelos Foundation USA, expressed gratitude to all the donors, especially the Kokolakis family. He stated, “We are so excited to see Venizelos represented again in a proper way. It is also very moving to see the community’s interest, as they pay attention to the statue and share their feelings on social media.” Lefteris Hazapis of Washington, D.C., perfectly captured the community’s sentiments. On the first day of the restoration, he posted a photo of the empty base with the question, “Where did Eleftherios go?” and two weeks later, when the restoration was completed, he shared a photo of the restored statue with the caption, “The metamorphic apotheosis of Eleftherios Venizelos”.
The Venizelos Foundation USA will announce a series of events for the fall and winter of 2024 at the summit hosted by the National Research Foundation on August 12, 2024, in Halepa, Chania.
