Museum in Athens takes visitors on quest for ultimate beauty

A visitor takes pictures of a statue during a preview of the exhibition "Kallos, The Ultimate Beauty" at the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens, Greece, on Sept. 27, 2021. A new exhibition by the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens invites visitors to reflect on their personal notion of ultimate beauty by taking them on a time-travel in ancient Greece. Through 300 antiquities gathered from 52 museums, Ephorates of Antiquities and collections in Greece, Italy and the Vatican, the exhibition entitled "Kallos, The Ultimate Beauty," presents what this concept meant in everyday life and the philosophical discourse in ancient Greece, the organizers told a press conference on Monday. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

ATHENS, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- A new exhibition by the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens invites visitors to reflect on their personal notion of ultimate beauty by taking them on a time-travel in ancient Greece.

Through 300 antiquities gathered from 52 museums, Ephorates of Antiquities and collections in Greece, Italy and the Vatican, the exhibition entitled "Kallos, The Ultimate Beauty," presents what this concept meant in everyday life and the philosophical discourse in ancient Greece, the organizers told a press conference on Monday.

With most of the exhibits dating back to the 7th-1st century B.C., they reveal how ancient Greeks eventually formed the ideal of beauty and contributed to its definition through history, the museum said.

The ancient Greek word "Kallos" means beauty, but the concept in its full dimension is a combination of physical beauty with other values, such as wisdom, kindness, heroism, and fair play, Sandra Marinopoulou, president &CEO of the Museum of Cycladic Art, said.

"In addition to being beautiful in body, what is worthy is being beautiful in soul," she said.

"Through this exhibition, I think that every visitor will understand who he/she is and who they would like to be," Professor Nikolaos Stampolidis, former director of the Museum of Cycladic Art and new general director of the Acropolis Museum, said.

The desire of beauty has existed since the beginning of humanity, noted Jean-Paul Agon, chairman of international cosmetic company L'Oreal, which supports the exhibition.

"Beauty is both a constant quest and a permanent ideal. It is a universal aspiration which crosses time, countries and cultures," he said. "Especially in difficult times, people need culture. They need to feel connected to a greater cause and to a common heritage."

The exhibition, which is hosted in collaboration with the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports, will run from Sept. 29 until Jan. 16, 2022.