Amongst our latest collection of luxury Tees lies a very special trio in which we have appropriately titled "The Sketch Series”. Including "Santorini Skies", "Horio Hoops", & "Metrio In Myrina", each one of these portraits holds their own individual story that we are very proud to share with you, our PAREA.
Throughout the month of August 2021, my PAREA and I traveled around Greece in search of inspiration for our approaching Autumn // Winter collection. Now, anyone who's ever been to this part of the world understands that it’s harder to miss inspiration in Greece than it is to find it. The sights, the sounds, the air, the food, the people… it's a never ending river of influence. All you have to do is fully open yourself up to the country, and She will do the rest.
While reviewing the endless amounts of photographs we returned home with, three specific shots stood above the rest. The first of which was taken on Greece's most picturesque island, Santorini. On an early afternoon walk through the northern city of Oia, I snapped this photo (shown below).
Truth be told, it was very bright outside that day and I remember aimlessly taking this photo with my eyes closed as a result of pointing the camera nearly straight up towards the sun. For that reason, I didn't know what this final shot looked like until we uploaded the photos onto a computer weeks later. Upon returning back home, I couldn't stop admiring this photo more and more each day. The colors, the sharpness, the shadows, the symmetry. Nothing needed to be added or subtracted. It's perfection is undeniable and remains a constant fan favorite whenever showing family and friends pictures from our trip.
We knew we wanted to use it for our upcoming collection, but how? How do we maintain it's beauty while making sure it looks just as good on a garment? The simple answer lives within the photograph itself; lines. The directions and sharpness in the lines of this church deserve to be highlighted and showcased, as they relay a valuble reminder to us.
In the Orthodox Christian church, it is taught that the sign of the Holy Cross conveys a lesson within its simple shape. Consisting of two overlapping perpendicular lines, one vertical and one horizontal, the cross is a symbol of relationships. The vertical line is said to represent our relationship with Jesus Christ, while it's horizontal counterpart reflects our relationship with our Earthly neighbors. The verticals and the horizontals lines in this church's construction so clearly symbolizes these principles and we hope our customers are reminded of them when wearing this gorgeous design.
The second illustration in this collection is my personal favorite. Coming from the Greek word for village, "Horio", the original photograph for "Horio Hoops" was taken on the the south western island of Kefalonia. This part of Greece holds a special place in my heart as my Grandparents emigrated to America from this stunning Ionian island in the late 1920's. To have a piece from this region in our latest collection holds a large amount of sentimental value to me.
As the story goes, I was driving back to town from the world famous Myrtos Beach as my girlfriend slept in the passenger seat when I came to a very abrupt and jolting stop. Nestled in the mountains of a little village, there it was. A near pristine basketball court sitting behind a local church. As if surrounded by a heavenly aura, I pulled the car over (leaving my sleeping girlfriend unattended) and stood in the center of this court for a couple minutes before taking this photo (which is now my phone wallpaper).
The Greeks have always possessed a deep love for the game of basketball that continues to grow with each generation. From hometown heroes of the 2000's like Vasillis Spanoulis, to today's NBA phenomenon Giannis Antentokoumpo, aka "The Greek Freak", the Greek's love for basketball is embedded in their culture, and in their tiniest of villages.
Being born in the early 90's, I’m sure I speak for a lot of people when I say my first hero was Chicago Bulls superstar Michael "Air" Jordan. To my friends and I, superheros were lame and basketball players were Gods. I never cared to have Superman or Captain America at my backyard birthday parties, I wanted Allen Iverson and Vince Carter to make an appearance making balloon animals instead.
Every basketball fan knows the famous Shaquille O'Neal quote, "Underdog, put that on a T-Shirt!" from the TNT Emmy award winning show, Inside The NBA. Those very words were ringing in my head for hours after I took the photo, so stamping it on a T-Shirt for you all is our subtle wink to basketball fans around the world, while also paying homage to those in the villages who share our love for the game.
The juxtaposition in this image is what we love most about it. It tells a story of a place that remains true to it's internal roots while open to the external influences of the world, a Greece that few people get to see. I am excited to have found that perfectly manifested in a place so special to me, and to include it in this collection.
The third and final design in our Sketch Series comes from Greece's best kept secret; Lemnos. This north eastern island is enriched in history and provided us with endless sources of inspiration for this season's portfolio. Just as my family hails from the mountains of Kefalonia, PAREA co-founder Stavroula Zimaras's familial roots lie in the gorgeous village of Repanidi, Lemnos.
After hiking the castle above the buzzing capital city of Myrina, we sat down at a cafe to relax and rest our legs before hitting some local stores. As the barista made our iced freddo cappuccinos, I snapped a photo of the scene behind the counter (shown below). This photograph, to me, represent the three most important elements of the Greek culture; faith, family, and coffee. The ceramic mugs and fresh beans surrounded by numerous icons, while a portrait of the owner's father watches over it all. This tells us everything we need to know about about this beautiful island, and the country it is apart of.
In Greece, coffee is served one of three ways; glyko (sweet), metrio (a little sweet), or sketos (non sweet). Being that we both took our drinks metrio at that corner cafe that day in Myrina, the title for this design was a no-brainer (although, “Lemnos Latte” was also discussed).
All three of these designs and ideas presented themselves to us in unique ways. While we instantly knew the "Horio Hoops" photograph would in some way be featured in this season's drop, the other two illustrations both struck us at different times upon reviewing the photographs from our travels, and we are very happy they did. It means a lot to both Stavroula and myself to not only showcase our shared home country, but to also have a little piece of our personal histories stitched into this latest collection of products.
As with everything PAREA delivers, these products are much more than just designs on a piece of cloth. These three products convey so many fundamental traditions and characteristics of the Greek culture, and the principles in which our brand stands upon. We hope that as you wear these garments, you are reminded of the stories and the meanings that live inside each one of them.
Please wear this collection In Good Company.
- Tommy Kyrus; Founder.
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