The Onassis Foundation launches a campaign for Onassis Podcasts
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How complete a picture can you form about someone from a single phrase? To formulate an opinion, to be inspired, to let a story carry you away, a single phrase is never enough. You need to know more. Take a dive into Onassis Podcasts to discover stories about people who think with consummate curiosity.
The Onassis Foundation is introducing the Onassis Podcasts series with a playful campaign that purposefully leads you astray in intriguing ways, and sometimes even seems to make no sense, presenting apparent disconnects between certain phrases and the realities of their speakers. Belief systems are blown wide open by their statements, with the campaign hosting provocative ideas about the present day, and remarks that are subversive.
Onassis Podcasts invite us to immerse ourselves in the wonderful worlds of creative minds that never rest, to discover areas of knowledge we weren’t even aware existed, and to question preconceived notions and ideas, wherever we are in the world.
Artists, philosophers, academics, activists, and other fascinating people – drawn from every sphere of life, the arts and sciences, and our times – are placed front and center in discussions that are worth a listen.
Discover their stories. Be transported by them. And inspired. But first, have a better listen.
Out of Los Angeles, the master of live interviews and Founding Executive Director of Onassis LA, Paul Holdengräber, speaks with more than 200 writers, artists, philosophers, and scientists in his Quarantine Tapes. Everyone from punk culture idol Henry Rollins to the writer of The Handmaid’s Tale – and more – Margaret Atwood, from writer and activist Naomi Klein to the philosopher Slavoj Žižek, from actor and director Tim Robbins to the activist Erin Brockovich, from actor and director Isabella Rossellini to the great artist and director William Kentridge, and from the avant-garde electronic music duo ADULT to the renowned architect Bernard Khoury – the very cream of the intelligentsia, and of the arts, speaking in depth.
Out of Onassis New York, the philosopher Simon Critchley analyzes Heidegger’s Being and Time for all those who simply don’t have the time to sit down and read the 437 densely-written pages of the book. His enjoyable series, titled Apply-Degger, is a long-form deep dive into the most important philosophical book of the last 100 years that seeks to show how Heidegger’s thinking might be applied to one’s life in ways that are illuminating, elevating, and beneficial.
Also out of New York comes the Onassis Foundation podcast Live from Mount Olympus, which has found a fanatic audience around the world and has been nominated for a Webby Award – the “Oscars” of the global Internet. An adventure in eight episodes, for tweens but also for audiences of all ages, bringing the ancient Greek myth of Perseus to audio life in English. Combining contemporary theater talents with the power of ancient Greek myth, Live from Mount Olympus has caused a sensation in the US over recent months. The influential magazine Wired listed it as one of its best podcasts for children, calling it an “instant hit”. The New York Times said “it’s everything tweens catch between the morning bell and sixth period”. A collaboration between the Onassis Foundation and the US PRX TRAX tween podcast network, produced with the American theater ensemble TEAM.
Out of Athens comes the Onassis Encounters series, which hosts – in a different, digital format – unexpected encounters that have taken place on Onassis Stegi’s stages as part of its Talks & Thoughts series. Talks with leading figures from around the world, whose work has left an indelible mark on literature, film, the arts, science, and sport. A number of talks have already been released: with the Greek NBA players Giannis and Thanasis Antetokounmpo, MIT professor Konstantinos Daskalakis, the militant feminist female activist artists Guerrilla Girls, legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog, the best-selling crime fiction writers Jo Nesbo and George Pelecanos, and the political activist Rainer Höss, who has condemned the ideology and actions of his grandfather, who commanded Auschwitz.
Onassis Stegi created the online discussion series Society Uncensored during the pandemic to form part of its Talks & Thoughts program. Since July 2020, people have been brought together to talk, openly and directly, about crucial and timely social and political issues of our times and place. They are the protagonists of this discussion series: representatives of highly active organizations, members of the academic community and arts scene, individuals drawn from the fields of activism, civil society, journalism, research, legal representation, and governance, people of various nationalities, and from Athens’ many different communities. And they are the ones who lead these discussions, highlighting important aspects of life in our society as part of an open online platform for mediation and constructive dialog. The Society Uncensored series was created to allow a multitude of voices to be heard, with a view to providing a platform for different – and at times marginalized or controversial – viewpoints, and to promote reflection and awareness when it comes to major social issues. The following talks are available now: “Nine Afro-Greeks Discuss: What Does ‘I Can’t Breathe’ Mean in Greece?”, “Eight Women Discuss: The Patriarchy, Sexism, and Gender-based Violence in Greek Society”, “Eight Young People Discuss: Cultural Identity and the Concept of ‘Belonging’”, and “#Psofos: Hate Speech on Social Media”.
Cultural heritage, counterculture, avian flu, multiculturalism, clubbing before and after Covid-19, gaming culture, the racialized construction of gender, the digital world, 2020’s unusual Christmas, neoliberalism, Tarantino, the proliferation of Zoom in our daily routines, Game of Thrones, post-war design – there’s room for it all inside The Archipelago, a new series of podcasts presented by Onassis Stegi and Movement Radio, the international online radio station based in Athens that has been broadcasting non-stop since early November, curated by DETACH (Voltnoi & Quetempo). The Archipelago is an hour-long talk show hosting theorists, artists, and writers reflecting on matters of contemporary culture, produced and presented by Yannis-Orestis Papadimitriou. The series traces ideas emerging from the abyss of human activity, ideas that are diverse and divergent before stabilizing into new modes of thought. It is an archive of differing viewpoints, merging to form a visionary construct of the future, featuring major figures from the worlds of letters and the arts: everyone from Christopher King to Matt Colquhoun, from Mike Davis to Owen Hatherley, from Leigh Alexander to Jay Glass Dubs, from Orit Halpern to Legacy Russell, and from Florian Sievers and Sean O’Toole to Geert Lovink.
Last but not least, we’re talking about sex education in schools in a series of podcasts – presented in collaboration with pod.gr – that deal with everything teens find hard to talk about: What’s the first time like? Is there good and bad porn? How difficult or easy is it to come out in today’s world? Does the morning-after pill work? Twelve episodes for teens on everything they don’t want to talk to their parents about, and everything school doesn’t want to talk to them about. Two 20-year-olds – Eleanna Papadokostaki and Yorgos Aravossis – speak openly in Sex Education about all the things that worry teens when it comes to sex, drawing on findings and data from the latest research with the help of scientific experts, talking with their friends, and engaging with the public. A useful series for teens, parents, and educators alike.
From Athens to New York, and on from there to Los Angeles, the Onassis Foundation is talking to everyone who wants – and is ready – to listen.
