After the Turkish invasion in 1974 and until 1978, Kanthos creates 11 of the 12 woodcuts of the series Hard Times. He says: ” The goal is to repay the debt, give sympathy to the hurted people. Trying to express pain and suffering, the lament of the people, and a message of endurance and soul resilience. A testimony of the times we live in and a protest”. His woodcuts are characterised by clear lines and the sharp, dramatic contrast if black and white. Full of expressiveness, his chisel goes towards the essential, highlighting the important symbols that help to send his message across. The technique, with sober and simple means, is consistent with the goal: emphasizing the tragic message.
In the woodcut In the thistle fields of Tillyria, (12th and last woodcut of the series Hard Times), the horizontal and oblique lines dominate, and are fully in concordance with the theme of the scene: the face of a young man killed during the bombing of Tillyria in 1964. The face, where black and deep shadows dominate, tilts to his shoulder and rests on the ground symbolically covered with thistles, while the landscape, except for the lines that create the twigs, is just sketched. The whole work tilts just like the face of the murdered young man. The drama and passion cause great deal of emotion.
Telemachos Kanthos (1910 – 1993) printmaker,
In the thistle fields of Tillyria – woodcut – 1978
12th and last woodcut of the series
Hard times (1964 – 1978)
Image: 29.5 cm x 59.5 cm
Sheet: 59 cm x 84 cm
Greek-Cypriot school
No 190 – Αcquisition 2008
