The exhibition, opening tonight at the Benaki Museum of Greek Culture, explores the long preparation of this landmark work, which was pivotal in the study of Greek traditional attire and serves as a lens for multiple stories about interwar Greek society.

Collaboration and Curation
The exhibition is a collaboration between the Benaki Museum and the Historical Archive of the National Bank of Greece. Scientific curators include Xenia Politou and Stalina Voutsina for the museum, and Pari Kalamara, Savvas Karabelas, and Chrysalena Antonopoulou for the archive. The exhibition’s museographic design is led by Pavlos Thanopoulos.

The publication was a personal project of Antonis Benakis, who oversaw the two volumes (1948, 1954) and selected the contributors: the painter Nicolas Sperling, a Russian émigré Benakis met in Egypt in the 1920s; the renowned folklorist Angeliki Chatzimichali; and the Aspioti-ELKA Printing Industry, which had over 30 years of successful operation at the time.

Historical Context and Production
Preparation for the publication began in 1930, a year before the Benaki Museum opened to the public. It reflects interwar ideological and aesthetic trends in urban Greek society, which rediscovered folk art and invested in the notion of Hellenicity.

The exhibition displays the album alongside production materials from Aspioti-ELKA, now held at the Historical Archive of the National Bank. These materials illustrate the growth of the Greek printing industry, its workforce, technological experimentation in lithography, and the early development of graphic arts.

Exhibition Highlights
Key exhibits include the two volumes of the collection, Sperling’s watercolors for the album’s illustrations, sketches used in creating the watercolors, notes, photographs, and designs by Chatzimichali, selected costumes from the Benaki Museum collection, archival and photographic material highlighting Benakis’s project, and printing artifacts such as lithographic plates, color proofs, and historical correspondence.

The exhibition runs until January 11, 2026, accompanied by a catalog co-published by the Benaki Museum and the Historical Archive of the National Bank, featuring texts by the curatorial team that explore various aspects of the album’s production.

Parallel Activities
During the exhibition, guided tours by curatorial team members will be offered:

• October 2025: Saturdays 18/10 at 12:00, Thursday 23/10 at 18:00, Thursday 30/10 at 18:00
• November 2025: Various Saturdays and Thursdays at 12:00 or 18:00
• December 2025: Thursdays and Saturdays at 12:00 or 18:00
• January 2026: Saturdays 3/1 and 10/1 at 12:00

Participation in tours costs an additional €2. Tickets can be purchased in advance.

Educational Program
A new educational program for school groups (6th grade – 12th grade) titled “An Album, Its Protagonists, and the Vision of an Era” explores the interwar milestone album, featuring traditional costumes from across Greece. Additionally, a special session will be organized for visitors with memory difficulties or early-stage dementia.

Workshops and Seminars
Two seminars will expand on the exhibition themes, held at the Historical Archive of the National Bank of Greece (G’ Septemvriou 146):

• 19 December 2025, 17:00–20:00: “Painted Costumes, 20th–early 21st century: Issues in Depiction,” in collaboration with the Hellenic Costume Society
• 8 January 2026, 17:00–20:00: “Collections, Sources, and Research on the History of Printing in Greece”