Edition #14
Lisbon, 2011
“DKANDLE weaves swirling multi-colored vibrant unearthly soundscapes, blending fuzzy and reverberating Shoegaze textures, mesmerizing Dream Pop meditations, sludgy Grungey tones and moody Post-punk strains, heightened with soul-stirring lyricism and pensive emotive vocalizations”
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GREEK PAINTING DEPICTING AN ERASTES AND AN EROMENOS , 480 BC
The practice of homoerotic relationships between two men in Ancient Greece was connected to military training and the initiation of young men into the practice of citizenship. The earliest evidence of this practice comes from a fragment written by the historian Ephorus (c. 405-330 BC), where he narrates the story of an ancient ritual that took place in Crete in the seventh century BC, where older men would initiate younger men into manly activities such as hunting, participating in banquets, and presumably, in sexual relations as well.
ERASTES COURTING EROMENOS , SEC. VI BC
The greatest artistic and literary sources on the practice of "education through love" are found in archaic poetry, in the comedic plays of Aristophanes and others like Euripides, Aeschylus, and Sophocles, in Plato's dialogues, and in vase paintings. It was primarily in Plato's writings that the topic of love between men was most vigorously addressed. In his dialogues, Plato viewed this relationship as a higher spiritual goal than the physical contact and procreation between men and women.
The three famous dialogues of Plato—Lysis, Phaedrus, and Symposium—narrate imaginary and sometimes ironic conversations about erotic relationships between men. Many of these passages describe this type of relationship as paiderasteia (pederasty)—that is, the erotic and active love of an adult man for a beautiful adolescent [the word paiderasteia is derived from pais (boy) and eran (to love)]. In Lysis and Symposium, Socrates (the protagonist of the dialogues) is portrayed as the lover of an adolescent, Alcibiades. For Socrates, (homo)eros was the pursuit of noble purposes in thought and action.
KISSING CHAMPIONSHIP, C.510 BC
VASE WITH MEN AND YOUNG PEOPLE, 4TH CENTURY BC
Although the term "pederasty" is considered pejorative today, in ancient Greece, the term did not carry such a negative connotation and was used in the context of an erastes-eromenos relationship. In this relationship, it was expected that an older man (the erastes or lover, usually bearded and of high social standing) would seek out and win over a young boy (the eromenos, or the beloved) and instill in him an understanding and respect for the masculine virtues of courage and honor.
ERASTES AND THE YOUNG MUSICIAN, 460 BC
Most of the visual information we have about the customs and practices of Greek pederasty has come to us through vase paintings. These vases were produced in large quantities by local craftsmen and exported throughout the Mediterranean region. Many were sold to a middle- and upper-class clientele and typically featured hand-painted scenes of gods, myths, heroic deeds, or images of everyday life.
MAN AND EPHEBE, 460 BC
Many of these vases, dating from the 5th and 6th centuries BCE, depict older men conversing with younger men, offering them gifts, touching their genitals, or embracing them. Sometimes, short inscriptions were added, or the word "kaios" (beautiful) would appear, often preceded by the name of a favored youth.
MAN OFFERING A GIFT TO A YOUNG MAN, C. 530-430 BC
MAN AND YOUNG WOMAN INITIATING INTERCRURAL INTERCOURSE, C.500-480 BC
Upon reaching the age of eighteen, an œ would become an erastes, and it was expected that he would marry a woman, have children, and take an active role in pursuing a younger man. However, the enforcement of such rigid social norms was often transgressed. The most significant transgressions were the practices of oral and anal sex. These activities were considered beneath the dignity of Athenian male citizenship and were reserved for women, male and female prostitutes, foreigners (whom the Greeks referred to as barbarians), and slaves.
ORGY OF SATYRS, C. 500-470 BC
Such practices were associated with beastly activities commonly depicted on vases featuring satyrs or other mythological creatures. Satyrs—mythological beings that were half-man, half-goat—symbolized the conflict between civilized man and his uncontrolled, animalistic desires.
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