‘Thanatos: Death Personified’ photographic exhibition coming to Sydney

·

Photographers Effy Alexakis and Yanni Dramitinos join with painter George Michelakakis to individually provide their personal introspective, interpretive visual offerings on the theme of death in an exhibition at The Shop Gallery located at 112 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe in Sydney.

Titled Thanatos: Death Personified, the exhibition will run from October 26 through to November 1 from 12 noon to 6pm daily.

Opening drinks will be on Saturday, October 28, 4-6pm, followed by a special ‘in conversation’ event on Sunday, October 29, featuring Professor Vrasidas Karalis with writer George Alexander discussing their recent experiences of death. Author and lawyer Effie Carr will mediate the session, which will run between 4-6pm.

Within the exhibition, the works of all three artists capture the known to mediate upon the unknown and arguably the unknowable. Some aspects may shock visitors, some may entice deep engagement, faith, and re-evaluation, others may enforce disillusionment or an intimate foreboding of what may await. What it is to be alive, knowing Thanatos (death) awaits us all? What is it to have been alive, but no more.

Death-mask-Grave-Circle-A-Grave-IV-Mycenae-Peloponnese-Greece-16th-century-BCE.-Photo-Effy-Alexakis-scaled.
Effy Alexakis. 1. Death mask, Grave Circle A, Grave IV, Mycenae, Peloponnese, Greece, 16th century BCE.

Alexakis’ work embraces a juxtapositioning of ancient Greek, Greek Orthodox and ancient Egyptian ritual, ceremony and human emotions, empathy and individual spirituality.

Exhumation-Sykea-Laconia-Greece-1985-Photo-Effy-Alexakis.
Effy Alexakis. 2. Exhumation, Sykea, Laconia, Greece, 1985.

Dramitinos dwells upon the physical and personally spiritual through his wonderings amongst the generations of gravestones in Sydney’s Waverley Cemetery, where the celebrated and uncelebrated in life lie indistinguishable from below, but recognisably different from above through their monuments of memory; this photographer utilises the silences between the tombstones, their forms and inscriptions to decipher attitudes to lives lived and death memorialised.

Yannis Dramitinos. Perfect Tease 1.
Yanni Dramitinos. Perfect Peace 1.
Yannis-Dramitinos-Perfect-Tease.
Yanni Dramitinos. Perfect Peace 2.
Yannis Dramitinos. Perfect Tease 3.
Yanni Dramitinos. Perfect Peace 3.

Michelakakis evokes the socio-political effects of institutionalised religion upon individuals and society and the face and understanding of death if one considers the ‘death’ (absence/non-existence) of a personified God.

George-Michelakakis-photo-Effy-Alexakis-holding-one-of-his-works-titled-Ephemeral-scaled.
George Michelakakis holding one of his works titled ‘Ephemeral’. Photo: Effy Alexakis.

Life is not possible without death. Human kind is mortal. But is it a cycle of birth death and rebirth? Or does death annihilate life, totally – does it lead to nothingness? Plato and Aristotle theorised about the immortality of the soul, and religious traditions consider that life does exist beyond death. But since the Enlightenment, rationalism has cast God and religion into the abyss of the irrational. Yet, the mystery of a ‘life’ beyond clinical death remains.

The exhibition wrestles with difficult concepts, questions and emotions. Those visiting will certainly be left with much to consider.

Thanatos: Death Personified, the exhibition will run from October 26 through to November 1 from 12 noon to 6pm daily.

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

Sydney Olympic at a crossroads: Damon Hanlin on Belmore, finances and the future

As construction threatens its home, Sydney Olympic enters a new era - chasing stability, respect and results on the national stage.

Cypriot community gathers in Sydney to mark 65 years of the Republic of Cyprus

The Cyprus Community of NSW hosted a special commemoration on Sunday, marking 65 years since the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus.

Sydney’s Lemnian community marks 113 years since the liberation of Lemnos

The Lemnian Association of Sydney and New South Wales “Maroula” marked the 113th anniversary of the liberation of Lemnos.

Pan-Macedonian Association marks 42 years of Dimitria Festival in Sydney

With full formality, the Macedonian celebrations “Dimitria” began on Sunday, October 5, 2025. This year marks the 42nd consecutive year.

Australian Embassy in Athens hosts book launch on Australia’s first Greek female settler

The Australian Embassy in Athens hosted the launch of Η Πρώτη Έποικος (The First Settler) on Wednesday, 1 October 2025.

You May Also Like

Kyrgios and Kokkinakis withdraw from Australian Open doubles

Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis, the reigning Australian Open men's doubles champions, have retired from their first-round match.

Marina Satti unveils Greece’s song entry for Eurovision 2024

Marina Satti, has released her official music video for her song “Zari” ahead of the Eurovision 2024 competition.

Peter Papas slams Mosman Council’s plan to cut speed limit on busy road

Peter Papas has slammed Mosman Council’s proposal to cut down the speed limit along the Balmoral beachfront.