Τhe Sculptress / Pavlina Pavlidou
curatorial team: Andria Avgousti, Maria Efstathiou, Maria Leonidou, AnnaMaria Charalambous
graphics: Popi Pissouriou
Lefteris Economou Cultural Foundation presents the exhibition The Sculptress: Pavlina Pavlidou. The exhibition is the second of the trilogy referring to Women Artists of the 1st
2nd and 3rd generation of Cypriot Artists (born within 1910 – 1920 & 1930). The trilogy began with the exhibition Loukia Nikolaidou: narratives (2020).
The research-based exhibition The Sculptress: Pavlina Pavlidou, which initially sought to trace the artist’s sculptures, deals with the work of Pavlidou (1924-1990).
Subsequently the exhibition attempts a comprehensive presentation of her work following the sparse references to her and her practice in Cyprus, as she settled and worked abroad from an early age. Therefore, the entirety of her work remains unseen and unknown to the Cypriot audience.
The research-based exhibition presents a selection of her sculptures, drawings, audiovisual and archival material drawn from state archives in Cyprus and especially from her family’s rich archive abroad. Pavlidou worked mainly in bronze, including an array of other materials. The absence of a theme in her work beyond the human figure —which she approached with geometry and extreme sensitivity— is a notable element. The exhibition is the first curated presentation of Pavlidou’s work in Cyprus and seeks to present, even 32 years after her death, her work which is deemed important and timeless.
Brief CV
Pavlina Pavlidou (1924-1990) was born and raised in Limassol. She studied sculpture at Camberwell School of Art and Crafts in London (1956-1959) and continued her studies in Rome, where she worked for a short time and where she presented her first solo exhibition in 1960. From 1961 to 1977 she lived in Paris. In 1967 she presented her only solo exhibition in Cyprus, at Hilton in Nicosia. In 1979 she moved to Monte Carlo, Monaco, where she lived until her death. During her lifetime she was awarded several sculpture prizes in France [1983: First Prize at the Salon d’Avignon, 1983: Gold Medal at the Salon de Chambéry, 1983: Special Mention at the Salon d’Evian, 1983: Diploma “Hors concours” at the Salon d’Arles, 1983: Prize “Hors concours” at the Salon of Aix-en-Provence, 1987: Sculpture Prize at the Salon d’Art de Hodenc-l’Évêque, Beauvais]. She exhibited her work in solo and group shows, in numerous exhibitions in France and abroad, most notably at La Medusa, Rome (1960 and 1980), Nees Morfes, Athens (1960), International Galleries, Chicago (1964), Alwin Gallery, London (1966), Berthe Hess Corner Gallery, London (1984), Art et communication, Paris (1987), Galérie 5.4, Paris (1989).
