With great success, and with the participation of dozens of students from schools across the country, the 2019 Student Art Competition Award Ceremony were held at the NJV Athens Plaza Hotel on Sunday, 12 January 2020.

The competition, organized for the fifth year running by the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis” Foundation, in collaboration with the Children’s Gallery of Greece, had as its subject “The People and Their Monuments”, with the aim of raising the awareness of the younger generation about the need to preserve and protect World Heritage Monuments.  More than 800 students participated in the Competition and 60 of their art works were awarded.

In her welcome address to the students, parents and teachers, the President of the Foundation and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Marianna V. Vardinoyannis thanked everyone for their participation and emphasized that the competition offered an opportunity to the children to find inspiration in the world heritage monuments of UNESCO and to send the message that these monuments are an integral part of the identity of the people and human civilization in general and that they must be protected.

After that, the members of the Jury: distinguished artist, wife of former Prime Minister Loukas Papadimos, Mrs Shanna Ingram Papademos, the distinguished art historian-art critic Dr Dora Iliopoulou Rogan, the Director of the Children’s Gallery of Greece, Mrs Ekaterini Leggou and the Director of the Art Programme of the “B & M Foundation for the Fine Arts”, Mr. Takis Mavrotas, greeted the children by congratulating them and encouraging them not to stop painting and be interested in art in general.

After that followed the Award of the Prizes to the 9 children whose works were chosen by the Jury.  In the 1st and 2nd grade of Primary school the prizes were awarded to: Aggeliki Kalogianni, Aggeliki Kampouridou and Panagiota Soldatou, in the 3rd and 4th grade of Primary school category to: Vassia Kontouli, Rodoula Selvidi, Niove Flabouri, in the 5th and 6th grade of Primary school to: Rigas Karapanos, Ilektra Kypirtidou, Eleftheria Panagiota Mania.  The awarded works were used for the Christmas card of the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis” Foundation, and the winners received as a prize a copy of a work by Shanna Ingram Papademos, with a personal dedication for each child.

Commemorative certificates were awarded to 51 more students whose works reached the final phase of the Competition. 

Taking this opportunity, Mrs Vardinoyannis announced the Student Art Competition for 2020 which will have the subject of “The Battles of Thermopylae and Salamis as the triumph of will and the cornerstone of Western Civilization”.

“At this point, I have the great joy of announcing that our Foundation is organising its 6th Competition, which starts today and will last until 12 April 2020. Its subject this year will be: “The Battles of Thermopylae and Salamis as the triumph of will and the cornerstone of Western Civilization” and be included in context of the celebrations for the 2500-year anniversary from these epic moments for our country, for Europe, and the entire world.  The competition has been approved by the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, and a circular will be sent to all the schools of our country as well as to schools of the Greek diaspora.  The main purpose of the competition is to cultivate the national awareness of the students and to encourage them to engage into an intercultural dialogue through artistic creativity. On our side once again will be the Children’s Gallery of Greece,”, Mrs Vardinoyannis noted.