Presidential palace considers more public art tours after first visit

Nicosia, Cyprus. More public art tours of the presidential palace are being considered following the success of the first visit, the palace said on Sunday. The inaugural tour took place the previous day as part of events marking Cyprus’ Independence Day on October 1.

Opening important buildings to the public

Visitors were guided through the exhibition “Cyprus, the World, the Place, the Word, the Material” by its curators, Costas Mantzalos and Constantinos Kounnis.

The tour was part of an initiative by first lady Philippa Karsera to open important buildings to the public. It follows fairs held at the presidential retreat in Troodos.

Speaking after visitors had left, Karsera expressed satisfaction with the tour and said increased interest had prompted consideration of further visits, possibly on International Museum Day.

She said the initiative aims to give citizens access to places of high symbolic significance, allowing them to become familiar with those sites and feel proud of the country’s history and cultural heritage.

A series of tours for children in the sixth grade of primary school will begin in the coming days.

Art collections and archaeological heritage

Klea Papaellina of the deputy ministry of culture described the presidential palace as “a living museum of great artists”, adding that the right partnerships could help share that knowledge with the world.

The exhibition features works by important first-generation Cypriot artists, including Adamantios Diamantis, Paul Georgiou, Telemachos Kanthos and Michael Kassialos, alongside works by other distinguished contemporary Cypriot artists.

The artworks come from the Presidential Palace Collection, the State Collection, the Leventis Gallery and the artists’ family collections.

The exhibition also includes rare ancient objects from the department of antiquities, including Cypriot figurines and sculptures dating from the fourth millennium BC to the first century BC. These objects reflect the island’s long and multidimensional archaeological heritage.