The creations of conceptual artist Caroline Rovithi are full of colors and images that are showcasing the spirit of Greece and Hellenism in general. Her artistic project titled ‘All You Need Is Greece’, which consists of a beautiful coffee table book with the same name as the related videos created under the auspices of the Greek National Tourism Organization (EOT), goes beyond the borders of her homeland and extends all over the world, advertising Greece, its landscapes, and its people in the best possible way.

The creator herself abounds in dynamism and positive energy, through which she paints the country by capturing her experiences and sharing with everyone her passion for the blue and white colors of Hellas and the power they contain.

Caroline recently climbed the highest peak in Greece, Mt. Olympus.

She recorded this exciting ascent in a short movie directed by Aris Katsigiannis and Womb Films, sending a powerful message to the whole world about the power within us and that Greece gives it to us.

Her poem sets the tone:

On this sacred land
this blessed land
you will become one with the light
you will sense the energy
the love
the longing to listen to nature
the need to remember tradition
to be inspired by history.

Here you will feel the Hellenic Spirit
the one that beats in your heart,
the one that is absolutely free

The one that elevates you to the highest summit
and there will you achieve the incredible.

The one that gives birth to Hellas inside you.

by Caroline Rovithi

The movie premiered October 28th, 2022, that is, on the National Holiday – ‘Oxi’ Day on Rovithi’s YouTube channel and social media. The book All You Need is Greece and the film were produced under the Auspices of EOT. It is an initiative that contributes to the promotion of Greece all over the world as well as to the candidacy of Mount Olympos as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Rovithi, as the initiator and creator of the whole project, spoke the ‘Periodiko’ magazine of TNH’s Greek edition.

The National Herald: What is ‘All You Need Is Greece’?

Caroline Rovithi: It is a collection of colorful, bright, and dynamic works that showcase the beauty, spirit, and strength of our country. My aim has always been to promote Greece worldwide and to strengthen Hellenism even in difficult or turbulent times.

All my works are based on my belief, that “All we need is Greece”! For me, Greece is love, love that encompasses everything: The sun, the sea, the fun, the warmth, the history, the tradition, the hospitality – so if one needs to experience the fullness of all those with all their senses, all one has to do is to be in that place that feed their soul:  Greece.

My wish is that everyone who goes through the pages of this book, viewing my artworks and reading the text , to feel a connection, to envision themselves in there and feel the need to experience it all, to feel complete!

TNH: What needs engendered All You Need Is Greece?

CR: It all started in 2012 during a challening while witnessing the impact of the socioeconomic crisis on my country.At that time I was living abroad and everytime I visited Greece I came across sad people, with huge finacial difficulties, coping with anxiety while feeling helpless amd at a dead end. My spark was ingnited while watching a speech by global strategist Peter Economides at a Google travel conference. His talk was about the need for Greeks to create their way out of the crisis and one of the most inhibiting expressions in the greek language (δεν γίνεται) I can’t be done.

I remember specifically how he said: “We have to get rid of this ‘not’  and stick to ‘ΓINΕΤΑI – It CAN be done). This went viral on social media. It became a powerful voice for a new generation of Greeks determined to create a new Greece.

So this was my creative… ‘wake-up call’! I realized that I could create works to inspire, motivate and ‘celebrate’ my country, rather than focusing only on its struggles. So I used my art to say my own “it can be done.”

TNH: What would you want someone to feel when flipping through the book?

CR: My dream is to make Greece known in every corner of the world. That this book reaches the hands of people who have never visited our country and make them want to book a ticket and come and experience it all. My aim is that Greeks and people who love Greece flip through it and identify with it, to make them smile and to create a connection. I would also like to mention that it can serve as the most wonderful gift. Why would someone take a box of sweets to someone they are visiting rather than a book like this that can find a permanent place on the coffee table? Why wouldn’t someone gift a stranger all of Greece in a book? A book that speaks to all the people on Earth, since pictures and emotions speak loudly!

TNH: The publication was created under the auspices of the Greek National Tourism Organization and is introduced by its President, Angela Gerekou. How do you feel about that?

CR: I am really honored that the GNTO embraced my book and that a person like Ms. Angela Gerekou believes in my vision – I feel that we are looking in the same direction, to promote Greece… everywhere, far and high. I am very happy that while creating this book I met such a wonderful person, sincere and full of enthusiasm, which she passes on to me.

TNH: What did you want to encompass in the motifs, images, traditions, places one finds in the book?

CR: My intention is to create empowering conceptual artworks that focus on the iconic & traditional symbols of Greece, to present them in contemporary ways in order to inspire and motivate Greeks. I marry the old with the new, but not in the cliché sense of the phrase. I use timeless symbols to bridge ancient history with modern times, combining them with our country’s heroic past and creative present. It is a set of works that embody for me the essence of Greece.

Some of the images that stand out to me because they were created with a strong emotional charge are:

My first artwork about Greece “The crying greek flag”. It was created during the finacial crisis and its impact on the greek people. I created a massive canvas featuring the Greek Flag, bringing its iconic blue and white to new life through a motif of dripping white stripes. In this piece, the flag – like the country and her people- is shown standing strong and proud although it is hurting and crying.

The new ‘Tsarouchi Air’ [evoking Nike’s Air max sneakers]. When the crisis was at its peak, it underscored the “we can do it!” theme, emphasizing that Greeks can do it and overcome any difficulty! I used the famous ‘tsarouchi’ shoe (worn by the Evzones, the Greek Presidential Guard), an emblematic object representing Greek tradition and heritage and ‘redesigned’ it to reflect a new era in Greece, but without undermining its identity.

Another of my works: ‘Greece rising” with the butterfly symbolizing change and rebirth.

And when Turkey clashed with the Greek forces on our borders in Evros (2020), I created the visual ‘Stand with Greece’, with a fist grabbing a thunderbolt from the Greek flag, in order to support the Greeks fighting on the Evros frontier.

Also, the artwork  ‘Greece I love you more than ever’ represents what I and all People felt while watching with depspair what was happening to Greece during the terrible fires in August, 2021.

This work was also printed on T-shirts and limited edition artworks etc. and the proceeds were donated entirely to the non-profit organization humanitygreece.org in order to support with my own efforts the Greeks affected by the fires.

A few words about the creator:

Caroline Rovithi was born in Germany and studied graphic design and advertising. Since 2002 she has worked as a creative director in advertising and publishing companies (Liberis Publications, Lambrakis publications, Imako Media, Unlimited Creativity). Those experiences have had a decisive influence on her artistic expression and development. Her many years of experience in creating bespoke works and finding unique original ways to realize them using various media has contributed to the development of her ability to combine art with ideas, concepts, and images. As a child of the 1980s, her art is heavily influenced by the aesthetics of that era, as well as the styles and movements of contemporary art.

Her works have been exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad since 2002. She has also participated in public art projects such as ‘Cowparade Athens’ and ‘Hearts in Athens’ and has designed and created numerous artworks for individuals and businesses in Greece and abroad.

Follow Caroline:

website: carolinerovithi.com

instagram:  @caroline_rovithi 

youtube:  Caroline_Rovithi 

facebook: Caroline Rovithi: Artist Page 

Οrder the book here:  ALL YOU NEED IS GREECE book 

or contact: [email protected]

For artwork inquiries:  https://allyouneedisgreece.gr