The Point Is Now What You Say – The Life and Work of the Poet Manolis Anagnostakis

The Municipality of Thessaloniki, in collaboration with the Hellenic Parliament Foundation for Parliamentarism and Democracy, is honored to present, within the framework of the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Dimitria Festival 2025, the exhibition entitled:

“The Point Is Now What You Say – The Life and Work of the Poet Manolis Anagnostakis.”

The exhibition will be hosted in the Foyer of the Thessaloniki City Hall and will highlight the multifaceted personality of the poet, showcasing his social concerns, his active political engagement, and his profound contribution to the intellectual life of both the city and the country.

For Anagnostakis, Thessaloniki was not merely a birthplace and a place of residence, but a spiritual refuge and a fertile ground for creation. Within its streets, its cafés, and its spaces of debate, his distinctive voice was shaped—a voice that intertwined personal anguish with historical memory. Thessaloniki, a city steeped in history and literary tradition, became not simply the backdrop but also a co-protagonist in his work: a living interlocutor that nourished his poetry with its sounds, its contradictions, and its struggles.

His poetry is a symbol of the postwar conscience, bridging the individual experience with the collective memory, leaving an indelible mark on the literary history of Greece.

What lends this endeavor special significance is the fact that in 2025 we commemorate the centenary of Manolis Anagnostakis’ birth. With this anniversary, Thessaloniki pays tribute not only to one of its greatest poets, but also to a thinker who raised his voice for freedom, democracy, and humanity.