Xenofontis quae extant
By: Despina Meimaroglou ; poem by Beau Beausoleil
Contributors: Beausoleil, Beau, 1941- poet; Al-Mutanabbi Street Coalition; Apolyto Creative Spot; Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here Artists' Books Collection (Columbia University. Rare Book and Manuscript Library)
Publisher: Apolyto Creative Spot
Published: 2013
Place of publication: Athens, Greece
Language: eng
Subjects: Violence; Pictorial works; Booksellers and bookselling; Bombings; Iraq War, 2003-2011; Protest movements; Books and reading in art; Intellectual life; Social conditions; Censorship; Terrorism in art; In art; War and civilization; Vehicle bombs; Visual literature; Specimens; Politics in art; Artists' books; Al-Mutanabbi Street Coalition
Other titles: Xenophōntos Ta Sōzomena; Xenophontis quae extant
Description: This collection supports and promotes awareness to the important mission and framework of the Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here Coalition's focus on the lasting power of the written word and the arts in support of the free expression of ideas, the preservation of shared cultural spaces, and the importance of responding to attacks, both overt and subtle, on artists, writers, and academics working under oppressive regimes or in zones of conflict, despite the destruction of that literary/cultural content.

"My work as an artist has always been based on overpowering socio-political issues, which lead and determine the destinies of the world's weaker nations. My international upbringing (Egypt and Greece) provided me with a devotion and understanding of history; thus my will to exist in an intellectual continuum and emotional exchange with the Other. The war in Iraq broke out in April 2003, during my artist-in-residency at Columbia College, Chicago. The unrest and propaganda of this unreasonable war compelled me to begin a collection of news-clips, derived from American newspapers. Today, ten years later, the complete destruction of the Iraqi nation and its remaining population is still taking place. I am thankful to Beau Beausoleil for giving me the opportunity to have a voice through the fascinating project, 'Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here.' I continue to collect information from various multi-language publications and news-clips, and I seek a way to pay personal tribute to the Iraqis, who continue to lose their lives in this unjust war"--Synopsis from the Indypendent website (viewed July 6, 2015).

Despina Meimaroglou is an artist who specializes in painting, printmaking, typography, and graphic design. She mainly lives and works in Athens, Greece, and her works are included in numerous public and private collections both in Greece, and abroad.
Notes: Title and imprint from colophon. Facsimile on first page of text reads: Xenophōntos Ta Sōzomena = Xenophontis quae extant ...

Printed digitally on Epson SP11880 and SwissQ Oryx; Tecco Buttenpapier BP210 210g/m² in an edition of 5.

Rare Book (Al-Mutanabbi) copy: Numbered 1 of 5 and signed by the artist.

On March 5th, 2007, a car bomb exploded on al-Mutanabbi Street in Baghdad. Al-Mutanabbi Street is located in a mixed Shia-Sunni area. More than 30 people were killed and more than 100 wounded. Al-Mutanabbi Street, the historic center of Baghdad bookselling, holds bookstores and outdoor bookstalls, cafes, stationery shops, and even tea and tobacco shops. It has been the longstanding heart and soul of the Baghdad literary and intellectual community for centuries. In response to the attack, a San Francisco poet and bookseller, Beau Beausoleil, rallied a community of international artists and writers to produce a collection of letterpress-printed broadsides (poster-like works on paper), artists' books (unique works of art in book form), and an anthology of writing, all focused on expressing solidarity with Iraqi booksellers, writers and readers. The coalition of contributing artists calls itself Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here Coalition.

Gift; Beau Beausoleil; 2019-2020.

Despina Meimaroglou is an artist who specializes in painting, printmaking, typography, and graphic design. She mainly lives and works in Athens, Greece, and her works are included in numerous public and private collections both in Greece, and abroad.