Today, I am thrilled and honored to present a sample of Sophia Karagianni's pictures. Sophia has been a very active photographer and her work includes pictures on a wide variety of subjects, mostly of Kos, including a notable series showcasing all 230 or so Orthodox Churches of the island.
In this specific post, I have chosen to focus on flowers as it is a subject she is clearly passionate about, that I have scarcely touched upon in my blog. Sophia has been living on the island of Kos since 2003 and for some years now has been photographing many of its hidden splendours. Her inquisitive nature has led her to some of the most remote areas and through her work she has highlighted many aspects of the island that are often ignored, overlooked or discarded. She has been, often without being aware of it, a constant source of inspiration for many of my own posts and for that I am truly grateful. I wholeheartedly encourage her to keep on mesmerizing us with her insights on the beauties of the island and to keep on unraveling her talent as a photographer... Last but not least, I would also like to thank her for letting me host these pictures on my blog.
For those of you who would like to check out more of Sophia's work please click on the following links:
Facebook: Photography by Sophia Karagianni
Blog: http://photographybysophiakaragianni.blogspot.gr/
Panoramio: http://www.panoramio.com/user/6522978
A few words from the artist herself:
"The only thing I can tell you is that I grew up in Athens, so I could not tell cabbage from lettuce, so to speak..
When I started exploring Kos island, one led to the other, and I tried experimenting on the macro.. I realised that photographing flowers was an endless subject, especially during spring time.. But it was not only the colours and the different varieties that amazed me, it was knowledge itself. I learned names of flowers, herbs, plants, that I didn't know existed, but also their use and old legends.
Let me give you an example-read the story of the flower of shame
What can I say? I love wild flowers and I wish I had better equipment to capture their magnificence."
Translation of the text on the flower: This is the flower of shame. They once told me a story. This flower used to be full of black spots. When the world was full of shame. Now only a small spot is left, right in the middle. When this last one is wiped out there will be no more shame in the world.
You can also watch this video for a more comprehensive presentation of today's theme:
