September 7, 2015: Weaver, Ceramacist, Zoe's Favorite Dragon Spot. Skopelos, Greece

Copyright Casondra Sobieralski, 2015.  Please contact photographer for permission to use.

This batch of photos represents my fourteenth day's exploration of the Island of Skopelos, where I did a 2.5 week artist-in-residency at the ever-enchanting Skopelos Foundation for the Arts. 

I was really there to do a video installation, so these photos were just my way of exploring and establishing a sense of place.

Remember, you can click on these thumbnails to see large versions. 

Jill, the director at SkopArts, took a couple of us to meet some special people on the island.

The woman below was 90 years old when we met her in 2015. She shined an inner glow and maintained a sharp wit. Is olive oil the secret? Low stress island living? Community? I'm taking notes!

  The 90-year-old enchantress weaves carpets from recycled fabric. People give her donations of old clothes and such, and she turns scraps into functional works of art. 

Jill also introduced us to a favorite ceramics artist on the island.  There was a spirited political conversation going on, with a local Communist party candidate leading the banter.  Mostly I shot video to capture explanations about the ceramicist's process, but here is one photo.

To end our adventure, Jill and her daughter took us to her daughter's favorite spot on the island.  Local lore says Saint George slayed a dragon here, if I recall correctly, a year later...  I think it is a fitting tale for a location where the shoreline below looks like the head of a dragon.  

But I don't like to think of dragons being slayed!  First, the patriarchal underpinnings of these tales wear away my tooth enamel as I grind my teeth; serpents and dragons were feminine symbols in the West.  So Patrick chasing the snakes out of Ireland, George slaying the dragon -- these are metaphors for god-centered religions smashing local goddess-centered ones, and then oppressing women by demonizing their sexuality, preaching their subservience to men, taking way their rights, yadda yadda yadda.  Boooooo reptile slayers!!!   Second, I am a Californian.  California is heavily influenced by Asian thought, and in Asian mythology dragons are good fortune. Third, what would Puff say?

In any case, it is a lovely spot, off the tourist radar, on the island of Skopelos. 

Got 11 minutes, 6 seconds? See the video I installed at SkopArts. Installation was life size: https://vimeo.com/139816791