The exhibition 'Fred Boissonnas and Thessaloniki, 1913+1919', is based on the printed photographs from the original negatives that the Swiss photographer Boissonnas took in 1913 and 1919 during his two journeys to the city. His photographs constitute not only historic documents but real works of art. The exhibits cover four distinct rooms in the building: The first room forms the introduction to the subject. It presents the photographer through photographs of his life, articles, and various publications of his work. His relationship with Thessaloniki is stressed over the historical background of the city during the period 1913 to 1919.

In the second room his photographs of 1913 are displayed, while in the third those of 1919 -two critical years in the history of the city (1913 was the first year of the city's liberation by the Greek forces and its subsequent incorporation into the Greek state, while 1919 was the year of efforts to rebuilt Thessaloniki after the great fire - the drafting of the new city plan).

The fourth room presents photography as a medium -a larger-than-life model of a camera creates the 'inverted image', while next to it are shown various types of cameras together with dark-room equipment of the period.

The photographs exhibited are complemented by other museum pieces, newspaper cuttings, and slides which are projected on the walls of the museum's main staircase. The selection of these slides was based on the subject matter of Boissonnas' photographs depicting the monuments and the streets of Thessaloniki.

exhibition brochure