Papatheodorou-Valyraki became the second woman and the fifth European ever to claim the Sport Artist of the Year distinction of the United States Sports Academy. It was bestowed upon her late last year, when her series of paintings, depicting athletes captured in moments of triumph, were selected over the submissions of 53 finalists.
Her imposing paintings (ranging in size from 1.5x1m to 3x2m), including The Skier, High Jump and The Triumph, are exuberant displays of colour and motion that capture the Olympic spirit. Fittingly, Papatheodorou-Valyraki participated in the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Arts Festival with two exhibitions, one at the Hellenic Cultural Centre and one at the Sport and Spirit Gallery where 22 of her works were displayed.
Papatheodorou-Valyraki has come a long way since learning the craft under Professor Yiannis Moralis at the Athens School of Fine Arts and has a number of one-woman shows under her belt. Her works hang in the National Gallery in Athens, the Olympic Museum of Lausanne, Switzerland, the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington DC, the UNESCO collection in Paris, the Olympic Museum of Barcelona and in many private collections in Greece and abroad.
You are only the second woman to be named Sport Artist of the Year. Does this signify something about women and sport?
For me, this isn't about the relationship between women and sport but rather my own personal interest in the movement of the human body. I was always fascinated by the body and began focusing on drawing nudes. It was in 1985 that I began to draw the moving body and so, naturally, I focused on athletes. I first exhibited my athletes in 1987 and later did some work with cars, where movement was again the primary theme. Every artist records his or her internal circumstances; and for me it is very much an internal and personal need to study and draw the movement of the human body.
What are your plans for 2004?
The most exciting thing will be that ELTA Hellenic Post will issue a collection of stamps featuring my work for 2003 and 2004. I am particularly happy with this, because it is a great way to promote my work to an international audience. Though nothing has been organised as yet, I do expect to participate in the Athens Cultural Olympiad. Actually, my exhibition for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing has already been organised.
What is your prediction about the staging of the 2004 Athens Olympics ?
I think Athens can really put on the best games ever. Greece will come through at the last minute we all know that! But if we can just manage to link sports with culture - remember, this was always Melina Mercouri's dream - then they will be truly super. Still, I fear that the cultural side of things will not be perfect for a number of reasons, including lack of organization and even a lack of new ideas.
What about claims regarding terrorism?
I don't believe that there is a real threat. If the Olympic Truce initiative is successful and if countries can agree on peace, just like in ancient times when all wars ceased during the Olympics, then this will certainly be one of the biggest achievements ever.
Are there any similarities between athletes and artists?
Athletes and artists both try to overcome, to free themselves of, their own limits.
What are the Olympic ideals that inspire you as an artist?
Freedom, love, being a good sport and internal peace. These are all ideals, which athletes, as well as artists, must instil within themselves in order to achieve success.
