I was one of this organisation's co-founders and the project manager for these projects.
One of the main priorities of the O.S.C.S. was to involve, inform and activate people who support and contribute to their communities so they can benefit from belonging to a society that respects cultural integration and expression.
The organization’s main goal was to provide the basic tools, coordinate, and assist individuals in fulfilling their artistic actions through art projects and festivals.
O.S.C.S (Organisation for the Stimulation of Civil Society) is a non-profit organization, based in Corfu, Greece and began its activities in 2006.
Walk Around Art
Nine artists concurrently exhibited their works in nine different hotspots.
A project aiming to support and spread the work of different creators/artists through parallel exhibitions that ran in various spots of Corfu town. This initiative highlights the aesthetics of already known meeting points of the town, while giving visitors the chance to enjoy artistic creation in places where they hang out. Where art can turn social
www.facebook.com/Walk-Around-Art-1542565302662201/
2015 - 2017
Vida Laska Festival
Vida Laska is the first summer music and arts festival on the island of Vido, an islet of 563 acres, a mile off the town of Corfu / Greece.
The festival is non-profit, primarily based on volunteerism, created by those who live and work on the island of Corfu.
Our objective is to promote the coexistence of different art forms and local produce having as our foundation ecological awareness and the raising of social issues.
The island of Vidos has a rich socio-political history which in itself encourages us to tint the character of Vida Laska with such a stance. During its history the island has hosted a juvenile detention centre, and prisons for political detainees during the civil war.
Bridging the past with the present, the festival’s social focus for the first year of Vida Laska will be raising awareness of living conditions within prisons and detention centres.
This will be explored through different art exhibitions and installations during the festival.
www.facebook.com/pg/vidalaskafestival/photos
Passepartout
Passepartout is a series of parallel artistic happenings in various outdoor public locations of the Old City of Corfu. These events involved music, theatre, video projections, as well as photography and arts exhibitions. The initiative aims at reinstating public space into places of meeting, entertainment and artistic expression, both for locals and visitors. It also promotes a socially collective character for public spaces, rather than that of privatised and commercial spaces.
Minimal cost and the absence of commercial financial support is a vital component. The project is carried out by unofficial youth groups, with a large number of cooperating artists, and is supported by the organization O.S.C.S.
Store House Market
The Store House Market is an artistic market created in 2008 for the promotion of independent creators, designers and collectors of handmade and second hand objects. Colourful arts, imagination, innovative ideas for decoration, special clothes and accessories are exhibited in cultural venues with a full line-up of music in the background. The goal is to become a meeting point for craft, design and reuse of objects, as well as to establish a direct connection between the creators and public, within an atmosphere of celebration and creativity.
www.facebook.com/groups/104421673049734/
2012-2013
European Music Day
In 1982, on the 21st of June – the day of the summer solstice – with the initiative of Jack Lang, the French Minister of Culture at that time, Music Day or Make Music Day was celebrated for the first time with the aim of “bringing out onto the streets all musicians”.
This initiative spread around Europe and events ranged from classical to jazz, hip‐hop, rock, and dance to traditional music always free for the public. On this day everything is working in favor of Music
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnMKrXYB29g
2009
Earth Dance Festival
EarthDance Festival is an international festival – a “Global Fest for Peace and the Environment” which takes place simultaneously in 67 countries and more than 380 cities around the world. The core of Earth Dance is a web-synchronized global music performance.
A live broadcast of all synchronised festivals is shown on each site, on each user’s computer and on large projections screens in the festivals. EarthDance Festival in Corfu took place at the old fortress of Corfu town.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0-ceYPT5Es
2007
Pelekas Arts Festival
Pelekas Arts Festival (PAF) was a three-day free street art and music festival.
Just outside Pelekas, a village 12km west of Corfu City, 1000 square metres of walls were waiting for “writers” to give them life. The writers’ colour game was accompanied by the DJ’s music, giving a beat and groove to their graffiti friends. On the other side of the road, in the olive farm, the fully-equipped camp was hosting whoever wanted to stay for the three days of the free festival.
Visitors had the opportunity to observe music events and graffiti, participate in graffiti seminars and enjoy graffiti exhibitions on canvas, as well as video art. Spectacular juggling shows, street theatre and many surprises were also part of the three-day festivities.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uU-fpxNVEPk&t=17s
2006-2010