About the competition

Community of Trees had the opportunity to work with the environmental group of Patmos Secondary School and its supervising teacher, Argiro Giamaiou.

The students entered a photography competition titled “Under the Shade of the Trees”. The theme directed the young photographers' attention to the natural landscape and the trees of Patmos. It also offered space for artistic inspiration.

Fifteen students took part. The judging panel consisted of photographers Max Benetos and Foivos Pentes, and film producer Ioannis Nikolaou. The panel selected three winners. The three prizes had equal value: a camera for first place, a tablet for second place, and high-quality digital prints for third place.

The three selected entries were:

  • First prize: Marina Theocharis — Grinding fava beans with the stone mill under the shade of the schefflera
  • Second prize: Thanasis Elissaiou — Looking out at you, sea
  • Third prize: Maria Nazou — The sun, the shade, and the dog

Participants

  • Alexandra Boutsai
  • Emmanouela Vathai
  • Evelina Stouka
  • Eleni Giannarou
  • Elpiniki Dalari
  • Evanthia Evangelou
  • Thanasis Elissaiou
  • Kyriakos Leousis
  • Maria Gampieraki
  • Maria Nazou
  • Marina Theocharis
  • Briselda Zanai
  • Ourania Tsochali
  • Sonila Tsoka
  • Stella Karali

We thank every participant.

COVID-19 restrictions prevented us from creating the photography exhibition at Patmion as planned. The original plan included meetings, a presentation of our environmental programme, screenings, and an official prize ceremony. The exhibition therefore remained online. The prizes would be awarded at a location to be announced, subject to the COVID-19 restrictions in force. We also committed to creating the exhibition and related events after the restrictions ended.

We want to reach the young people of Patmos first. We invite them to support the current environmental plan for a forest park of native trees on Koumas hill.

We are confident that the environmental group will support the next stages of the plan.

We sincerely thank Ms Giamaiou for her strong interest.

We also thank the prize sponsors:

  • Kalavrentzos — photography equipment
  • Ilias Koutoumanos — Nisos Patmos free-press magazine
  • Digital Works — digital prints

Message from the Director of Patmos Secondary School

We give our sincere thanks to the members of Community of Trees. During the difficult and unfamiliar period of the pandemic, they gave our students contact with the island's natural landscape and strengthened their environmental awareness. They also helped the students show their artistic abilities.

The members of Community of Trees and the supervising teacher, Ms Argiro Giamaiou, worked together very well.

Congratulations to everyone involved, especially our students, on the notable work that they presented.

We hope to work together again.

With respect,
The Director of Patmos Secondary School
Aikaterini Spyrtou

Message from the Secondary School Environmental Education Group

We feel great satisfaction and joy because we took part in a Community of Trees activity. Our love for the island's environment and our wish to improve our quality of life motivated us.

We thank everyone who helped create this enjoyable and valuable activity. We thank the organisation's members, the sponsors, and the judges. They gave us the opportunity to increase our knowledge, compete, and express ourselves through photography.

We hope to take part in future work for environmental protection and sustainable development.

With respect,
The students and the supervising teacher of the Environmental Group of Patmos Secondary School
Argiro Giamaiou

Comments from the judging panel

As children, we have all hidden behind a tree during a game or cooled ourselves in its shade on a summer day.

The students' photographs reminded us of these familiar and pleasant images.

The young photographers approached the theme with the spontaneous character of their age and a joyful poetic sense.

Every entry had merit. We found it difficult to select the strongest photographs from a group of equal works.

We saw perceptive observation, imagination, and an early but promising creative use of the lens.

We selected the photographs that felt most complete to us, based on our subjective view.

We thank the participating students for the freshness that their photographs gave us.