The Bibliotheca Alexandrina hosted The Cavafia 2017: The 14th International Literary Symposium, 14 – 15 October 2017. The event is under the auspices of the Greek Embassy in Cairo, and organized by the Hellenic Foundation for Culture, in cooperation with the Alexandria and Mediterranean Research Center (Alex Med), the Ministries of Culture of Greece and Egypt, Cairo Opera House, the Greek Department of “Friends of Bibliotheca Alexandrina” and the Greek Cultural Center in Cairo.
The event was attended by the Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs in Greece, Vice Minister of Education in Greece, Vice President of the Greek Parliament, the Greek Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa, the Governor of Alexandria, vice commander of the Northern Military Region, the Greek and Romanian ambassadors, consuls of Greece, Lebanon and Sudan.
Distinguished speakers of high prestige from Universities in Egypt, Germany, Cyprus, Greece, USA and England such as (Oxford Univ., Ioannina Univ., Vienna Univ., Cyprus Univ., Al-Azhar Univ., Columbia Univ., Panteion and Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), as well as eminent writers and authors, participated in the Symposium. The speeches revolved around the current and international character of Cavafy's poetry and personality, highlighting new aspects of his work. This year's event was dedicated to Kostis Moskof, he established the Cavafy symposium as a Greek–Egyptian institution of global reach. In the tribute, the speakers will refer to the character and multidimensional work of Kostis Moskof.
On the sidelines of the Symposium, Mr. Georgios Katrougalos, Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs and Dr. Mohamed Sultan, the Governor of Alexandria inaugurated the painting exhibition “The Power Drama in the Historical Poems of Cavafy” by Architect and Art Designer Anna Filini, organized by the BA Art Exhibitions and Collections Department.
At the closing of the event, there was a concert of Stefanos Korkolis, one of the most popular Greek composer, who presented a program dedicated to Cavafy and designed specifically for the Symposium, co-organized by the Arts Center and Alex Med.
There was also be a book presentation “The Poetry of C.P. Cavafy” translated into ten languages, organized by the Greek Chamber “Friends of Bibliotheca Alexandrina”. Worth mentioning that Ms. Anastasia Cristodoulopoulou, the vice president of the Greek Parliament has dedicated a signed copy of the book to the Egyptian Parliament.