ATHENS, Greece ― As the world prepares for this year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, an exhibition in Greece is taking visitors on a digital journey back to the first modern Olympic Games in Athens 120 years ago.
The exhibition is a collaboration between the Benaki Museum, Costa Navarino Luxury Resorts and the Athens International Airport, and features historic photos taken by German photographer Albert Meyer during the 1896 competitions. Prominent Greek visual artist Eva Nathena, who curated the exhibition, used Meyer’s archived photos in a modern-day video art installation.
The 1896 Games were a turning point in the history of athletic events as they brought together the spirit of ancient times with modern internationalism. Meyer covered the event as the official photographer of the German athletic team. His photos show athletes, officials and spectators enjoying the games under the Greek sun.
“The first Olympic Games journal made up of Albert Meyer’s historic photographs is one of the jewels of the Benaki Museum archives and a valuable testimony” to the games’ past, the Benaki Museum director, Olivier Descotes, said in a press release.
“The documentation of the first Olympic Games in the modern era symbolizes the restoration of the Olympic athletic ideals,” Eva Nathena added. “Visitors will get a chance to come into contact with such unique material and explore the values showcased and their importance in the shaping of modern European thought.”
The exhibition will be held at the “Art & Environment” space in the Athens International Airport from May 16 to Sept. 16, and will also run at the Symbol Hall of Costa Navarino resort, in the region of Messinia, southwest Peloponnese, from April 27 to Nov. 30.
Get a sneak peek of some of the century-old photos featured in the exhibition:
This story originally appeared on HuffPost Greece and was translated into English.
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