Pandamátor
Life Flows Dragging Houses and Crops
GROUP ART EXHIBITION
WHEN & WHERE
THE
EXHIBITION
Pandamátor: Life Flows Dragging Houses and Crops brings together 16 artists from across Cyprus, each taking over a distinct space in the former gynecological clinic of Dr. Kleitos Economou. These spaces serve as settings for a diverse array of works, including paintings, works on paper, photographs, installations, sculptures, textiles, and new media. As visitors move through the clinic, they are invited to explore how contemporary art interacts with a place shaped by time and memory. Curated and organized by Nefeli Stylianou, the exhibition transforms the clinic into a dynamic environment where past and present converge through artistic expression.
At its core, Pandamátor explores the concept of time—its passage, irreversibility, and transformative impact on people, human creations, and natural landscapes. The title is drawn from the ancient Greek phrase ‘Πανδαμάτωρ Χρόνος’ (Pandamátor Khrónos), which translates to ‘time, which tames everything, which conquers all’. Variations of this phrase exist across languages and cultures, reflecting how different societies have long recognized the universal power of time - among them, Latin ‘Tempus omnia vincit’ (Time conquers all), Italian ‘Il tempo vince su tutto’ (Time conquers everything), and German ‘Die Zeit besiegt alles’ (Time conquers everything).
The subtitle, meanwhile, draws inspiration from the poetry of Giorgos Seferis, one of the most significant Greek poets of the 20th century, whose overall work deeply contemplates the inescapable passage of time and its aftermath. Throughout his poetry- and especially in the works Mythistorima (1935), The King of Asini (1940), and Mycenae (1935)- Seferis explores the ruins of the past, the weight of memory, and the search for meaning in the face of time’s relentless erosion. His poetry moves fluidly between past and present, questioning what truly endures and how time both preserves and erases human experience.
While time is a universal force, it is also deeply personal. It shapes our lives, routines, actions and emotions, yet it is experienced uniquely by each individual. A moment can stretch endlessly or vanish in an instant. Shared events may bring people together, but the passage of time ensures that no two experiences are ever the same. Despite its fluidity, time is an unstoppable force—one that sweeps away not only individuals but entire civilizations, leaving behind traces of what once was. Amid this unstoppable flow, we search for something stable—something that endures. This is where memory takes its place, preserving fragments of the past and grounding us in the present.
Pandamátor invites viewers to reflect on time as a dual force of destruction and renewal, forgetting and remembrance, life and death. Through the works of the participating artists, the exhibition encourages contemplation on how time shapes not only the world around us but also our understanding and experience of it.
THE CLINIC
The exhibition takes place in a modernist building that itself embodies the cyclical nature of life: the former Private Gynaecological and Obstetrics Clinic of Dr. Kleitos Economou. Designed by the renowned architect Fotis Colakides and completed in 1964, the structure is characterized by clean lines, functionality, and attention to form.
For decades, the clinic served as a place of birth and care, but its role extended far beyond, as it became a microcosm of Cyprus’s evolving social and political landscape. During the coup and the Turkish invasion of 1974, the government requisitioned private clinics and hospitals across the country, including this one, to accommodate and treat the wounded. With medical infrastructure strained under emergency conditions, these facilities were rapidly repurposed, with doctors and medical staff mobilized to respond to the crisis.
Throughout its years of operation, several gynecologists worked at the clinic, contributing to its legacy as a centre for maternal and reproductive care in Limassol. Among them was Dr. Panicos Avanis, who later worked alongside Dr. Economou and continued running the clinic after his passing in 1994.
In the last two decades of its operation, the clinic was converted into a Private Nursing Home for the elderly, functioning in this capacity until its closure.
Dr. Kleitos Economou(1919-1994), born in the village of Mandria, Limassol, studied Medicine at the University of Athens and specialized in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Guy’s Hospital in London, UK. Over the course of his remarkable career, he delivered approximately 28,000 infants.