The Greek-Australian Cultural League (GACL) alongside the Panarcadian Association of Melbourne and Victoria “O Kolokotronis” organised a moving commemoration of the Asia Minor Catastrophe on Sunday, 23 October, at the Association’s impressive North Melbourne home.
Hundreds of community members attended the function in the main ballroom of the building hosted by Maria Papageorgiou-Foroudi, lawyer, author and member of the GACL editorial committee.
The event included speeches by Dimitris Tsilikis, the Consul-General’s representative, as well as an address by the President of the Greek Australian Cultural League, Cathy Alexopoulos.
Ms Alexopoulos, in her address thanked those who responded to the GACL’s call-out with portraits of their ancestors that formed the opening of the proceedings.
She went on to note that “our ancestors from Asia Minor were not only progressive in commerce, literature, the arts and culture; their cosmopolitan life involved music as the epicentre of their entertainment”.
Traditional music of Smyrna which was performed live by Stavrina Dimitropoulou, Achilleas Yangoulis, Dean Georgalas on top of moving audio-visual presentations which highlighted survivor testimonies, mini-documentaries, as well as moving photographs of the era.
During a one-minute silence kept in honour of the fallen and displaced, the audience gazed upon a silent presentation of a collection of photos of the Greeks born in Asia Minor.
With the assistance of the public who donated valued items, a secondary exhibition of artefacts was set up on the day, dating back to the 1920s.
The collection included needlework, art, icons and costumes of the period as a tangible reminder of the period. In the foyer of the ballroom, artwork from the GACL’s children’s art program were displayed, showcasing the talented work of young upcoming artists from the community.
At the end of the presentations the attendees enjoyed mezethes and traditional desserts from the wider Asia Minor region.
Finally, GACL’s 68th edition of its long-running periodical, Antipodes, was launched by lawyer and writer, Dean Kalymniou. Antipodes is the longest continually published bilingual periodical in Australia, and represents the dedication of GACL’s team of volunteers, led by Cathy Alexopoulos. This year’s edition was dedicated to the Asia Minor Disaster, and includes an eclectic selection of factual articles, poetry and prose by local writers, as well as beautiful artwork.
An annual subscription to the Greek Australian Cultural League ensures that the publication can continue. All members will receive a copy of the publication gratis. The periodical is available for sale, please contact- infogaclm@gmail.com
