From June 10 to June 16, 2023 the Exhibition Greece: Images of an Enchanted Land can be seen in the Atrium with photos by Robert McCabe, organized by the Embassy of Greece in The Hague.

Robert McCabe first visited Greece in 1954 while an undergraduate at Princeton University. He returned in 1955 and 1957 via freighter from the U.S., traveling extensively in the Aegean and documenting a way of life that today has all but vanished. This stunning collection of iconic photographs covers three areas: History, People and the Seas. 

Photographer Robert McCabe
Robert McCabe was born in Chicago in 1934 and grew up in Rye, New York, USA. His father worked for a picture newspaper in New York City, and as a result of his father’s gift of a Kodak Baby Brownie in 1939, McCabe started taking photographs when he was five. His earliest quest was for newsworthy photographs and he gathered images of hurricanes and drownings. His interests shifted to people, still life, and landscapes during three years in western Massachusetts where little of dramatic interest occurred.

His first photographs of Europe were the result of a trip in 1954 to France, Italy, and Greece.  He returned to Greece in 1955 and 1957 and photographed the Cyclades for National Geographic.

His black and white photos were first exhibited in 1954 and 1955 at Firestone Library at Princeton University, and in a traveling exhibition which ensued. During this period he also appeared on television with Ambassador George Melas giving a photographic tour of Greece. In 1967 a selection of photographs was exhibited at the Olympic Gallery (now Olympic Tower) in New York City under the auspices of Spyros Skouras. The publication of his first book, Metamorphosis, was in 1979. Since then he has published more than 15 books and catalogs.

Mr. McCabe has exhibited his work in London, Paris, Brussels, in many locations in Greece including several in Athens, as well as in Patmos, Santorini, Thessaloniki, Monodendri, Corfu and Poros. He has also exhibited in the United States in New York City, Boston, and Jackson Hole, WY. 

His published books cover subjects and locations in Greece, France, Italy, New York City, New England, Havana, China, and Antarctica.

Currently Mr. McCabe is working on several projects including books:  “Portraits of the Greeks 1954-2017”; “The Greeks and Their Seas”. His newest book, Santorini: Portrait of a Vanished Era, co-written with Margarita Pournara, was published in early 2020 by Abbeville Press (New York) and Patakis Publishers (Athens).

For more information about Robert McCabe,go to  www.mccabephotos.com.

For more information about the Embassy of Greece, go to www.mfa.gr/missionsabroad/en/netherlands.html.

Frederiek Lommen, Dutch journalist, writer and conaisseur of Greece, will give a short introduction on McCabe and his work during the opening on Monday June 12 at 18:00 hours. Frederiek has written several books and numerous articles on the people and culture of Greece.