Poems and Letters / Ithaca by Konstantinos Kavafis

Poster ITACA, Konstantinos Kavafis

The poem Ithaca , written in 1911, symbolizes the origin, the reason and at the same time the goal of the long journey, similar to that of the legendary Ulysses, that every man makes, through life. Ulysses and Ithaca are in complete symbiosis.

According to Cavafy , the journey must be rich in experiences, it should not be rushed and the arrival should not be premature. It is better to arrive in Ithaca when you are mature, even if it is not the destination, but the journey that counts, because it is the journey that allows you to increase your knowledge and experiences. Furthermore, you should arrive already full of moral and material riches, and not expect Ithaca to offer us more or to make us rich. The island, in fact, as an apparent destination of the journey, actually provides us with the motivation and the stimulus to travel to know and learn. Ithaca has allowed you the journey to make you understand what even it itself could not have given you. Ithaca is the territory where we unravel the skein of our life experiences to treasure and rework them; it is that remote corner that facilitates concentration and allows you to relive the journey and the experience; it is not a place made for consumers, but for those who enhance existence.

Here is the full text:

When you set out for Ithaca, you must hope that the road is long, full of adventures and experiences. Do not fear the Laestrygonians and the Cyclopes or the fury of Neptune, these will not be the kind of encounters if your thoughts remain high and a firm feeling guides your spirit and your body. Certainly not the Cyclopes and the Laestrygonians, nor the angry Neptune will you stumble upon unless you carry them within you unless your soul sets them against you. You must hope that the road is long. May the summer mornings be many when in the ports - finally and with what joy - you will touch land for the first time: linger in the Phoenician emporiums and buy mother-of-pearl, coral, ebony and amber, all fine goods, even penetrating perfumes of every kind; as many inebriating perfumes as you can, go to many Egyptian cities, learn a multitude of things from the learned. You must always have Ithaca in mind - reaching it must be your constant thought. Above all, do not hurry the journey; let it last long, for years, and that as an old man you set foot on the island, you, rich with the treasures accumulated on the road without expecting riches from Ithaca. Ithaca has given you the beautiful journey, without her you would never have set out on the road: what else do you expect? And if you find her poor, Ithaca will not have disappointed you for this. By now become wise, with all your experience on your back you will have already understood what Ithaca means.

Handmade with love, mixed technique, silkscreen ink, sea blue, but a lot of sea.

A word, a song, a color. A memory, a concert, the first time you saw each other, met. Words to love, words to say, or the words you can't say. The color of that night, of her eyes, of her skin.

Signed, numbered and dated.

Formats: 50x70 and 70x100, frame excluded.

PRODUCTION TIME: 20/25 days

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Colors may be slightly different than shown.