Petraion Sculpture Park (18/07/2009)

A construction’s builder; a bricklayer; a working man like no other as it seems, who has in the recent past associated his name and signature with the construction of churches and buildings; a man whose sensitivity towards folklore, byzantine, Persian and Cypriot music gave him the stimulus to evolve into a great artist. He has mastered his art and transformed the stone into sculpt with a higher purpose to commemorate and give shape to feelings (emotions), mythology, prehistoric life and people.

Tools called rasps, hammers, chisels, drilling machinery and with only the idea in his mind as a guideline, the artist has sketched on blocks of stone and developed the work along the way, enhancing their shape into its final form to depict among others, compunctions as a double face figure, philosopher’s profiles, the family’s burden and Petraios – also the name of the park -as the tallest statue in the park.

The park is close to the sea, surrounded by golden landscapes and the view of mountains in the background having an utmost contribution to its theme. A small church has been built next to the garden of statues, supported by greens, decorative construction designs and a nearby kiosk to rest and refresh oneself under the shade of the trees.

The artist, with the help of his family, which appears to be deeply rooted into creative arts, has managed to ‘stone’ a park of inspirational attraction for its vision, imagination, creativeness and beauty. The park’s charm and gentleness is capable of soothing the senses in order to reveal a hidden romantic side of us that leaps out like a whale breaching the surface for oxygen.

For as long as I can remember, certain professions have been put aside because of their heavy lifting, unhealthy conditions, lack of expectations and educational prospects. This would therefore rank or form separate classes in social hierarchy diminishing any possibilities for developing skills in other disciplines. The park should serve, beside its obvious beauty and creativity, as a reminder of our unlimited potentials to create through anything we touch, anything we’ve learned and everything we keep dearly in our hearts. It’s not enough to be born with an artistic talent or be taught by great teachers. An artist is also created by its own resources and shaped through knowledge, sensitivities and life experiences, and my impression is that this park can certainly reflect the artist's life.

After the blessings for the park, an orchestra of five consisting of woodwind, string, and percussion instruments, performed the son's compositions of folklore music, - clearly inspired by his father’s stimulus and now his own - byzantine, Persian, Turkish and Cypriot sounds, accompanied by the voice of a herald, presented the most seductive pieces as an acknowledgement of the artist's offer to the community, art and his family; an act of love and recognition in the face of the artist as a father, a husband, a working man and an artist, in return of his wholeness as a human being.
Poetry, speeches and discussions followed and everyone joined in to congratulate the protagonists.

With a beer in one hand and our senses already blown away by the wind’s soft caress and the afternoon sun’s warmness in our faces, we sat by ‘Petraios’ statue stone board and through light discussion we fare welled the sun for the day.

To conclude, it is definitely worth a visit on a Sunday afternoon. Petraion Sculpture Park can be found in Mazotos; following the road to Kiti and on your way to Mazotos, after passing by the camel park on your left hand side of the road and driving for a few more kilometers, you will see a sign of the park on your left and a short, narrow earthen street that leads to its doorstep.