Brussels: The story of Cyprus mirrors the very essence of the European project, President Nikos Christodoulides said Thursday at the 'Cyprus Insula' exhibition in Brussels. The exhibition, 'Cyprus Insula - History, Memory, Reality' of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, is open in Brussels as part of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the European Union, with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus.
According to Cyprus News Agency, President Christodoulides, who is in Brussels for the European Council meeting, visited the exhibition, accompanied by Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, Government Spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis, Deputy Minister for European Affairs Marilena Raouna, and other officials. In his speech, he said this was a 'remarkable exhibition', 'a project that invites us to read Cyprus through the lasting lenses of Time, Place, and People'.
This travelling exhibition, adapted from the major presentation currently hosted at the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation in Nicosia and curated by Dr. Yiannis Toumazis and Demetra Ignatiou, was commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a flagship cultural milestone of Cyprus' Presidency of the Council of the European Union, reflecting over four decades of the Foundation's cultural contribution to the island.
'Cyprus Insula' provides a unique opportunity to bring the story of Cyprus to audiences around the world. President Christodoulides noted that the word Insula (island) 'reminds us that while our geography is defined by the sea, our history has never been one of isolation'. Instead, Cyprus has always been 'a vibrant crossroad', a European bridge to the Eastern Mediterranean and the wider world.
The exhibition explores the layered history, memories, and lived experiences that shape the social, cultural, and political realities of Cyprus, including the 1974 Turkish invasion, detailing the trauma, memories, and shifts in the island's societal and geographic landscape. It also highlights coexistence, identity, and belonging, 'values that connect people across cultures and generations, far beyond the Mediterranean shores of Cyprus'.
President Christodoulides emphasized that the exhibition portrays Cyprus as a place where cultures have crossed paths and flourished while acknowledging the challenges and divisions that have left an imprint on collective memory. He concluded by stating that understanding the past is essential to shaping a future of peace, without foreign occupation or division. The story of Cyprus reinforces the values that unite the European Union, reflecting the core vision of the Cyprus Presidency - to foster an "Autonomous Union, Open to the World".
In his own speech, Toumazis highlighted that Cyprus has long stood at the crossroads of civilisations, absorbing and transforming influences from the Eastern Mediterranean and beyond. He noted that the concept of insularity, understood as interconnectedness, is at the heart of the exhibition.
The title 'Cyprus Insula' invites reflection on the island as a dynamic cultural organism, shaped by movement, coexistence, migration, conflict, exchange, and continuity across centuries. Through photographs, maps, archival material, contemporary artworks, immersive technologies, and personal testimonies, the exhibition explores Cyprus as both a historical and emotional landscape.