Galery

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Simona Peneva

"My name is Maria Economou. I am forty-two years old and I was twelve when I was diagnosed with psoriasis. It was very difficult. I used to hide all the time. I was afraid to show up in short clothes, I always wore blouses with long sleeves and let my hair grow to hide my skin. I didn’t have a normal life. I withdrew into myself; it cost a lot, psychologically, to fight this disease. I got depressed. I am not sure whether the right word is discrimination, but I could feel the ignorance of others. They avoided me without knowing what my problem was. Today, I'm not afraid and I feel liberated. Thanks to such exhibitions as today's, people become familiar with this and alienation certainly reduces. My appeal to everybody is to accept everyone, regardless of skin colour or origin, because we all live under the same sky and we are children of the same God". This was said especially for the readers of GRReporter by one of the heroines of the photo exhibition "Show your skin". Celebrities from the spheres of art, sport and journalism, as well as ordinary people suffering from psoriasis, hives and other skin diseases who want to help the fall of a taboo stand in front of the lens of photographer Rolls Revie.  Namely, to end discrimination against people suffering from skin diseases.

“The disease occurred when I was twenty-two. I was in the army and the reason was the strong stress which I was subjected to. I also fell into depression and waged a psychological battle against this problem. I was ashamed and always wore clothes that covered my whole body. When I started work, my colleagues treated me in a very strange way. They were constantly asking me whether it was contagious, if they could touch me or be near me, and I had to constantly explain that there was nothing to fear and that they could not be infected. Today, thanks to some medicines, my psoriasis has decreased. I feel liberated. I want to appeal to those who suffer from skin diseases not to be afraid, but to be brave because it is the least that can happen to a person”. This is the personal story of Giannis Skopelitis.

At the opening of the exhibition there were people wishing to become familiar with skin diseases such as urticaria or hives and psoriasis. For years, these diseases have been considered to be contagious and people suffering from them have been avoided and often became victims of discrimination. This is the main purpose of the exhibition "Show your skin" - to inform as many people as possible that they should not be afraid of these diseases nor avoid people suffering from them. Urticaria or hives is a skin disease in which an unexpected and sudden rash with redness and intense itching of the skin occurs, which in most cases is caused by an allergic reaction. In most cases, urticaria lasts less than six weeks. In other cases, when it lasts longer, the reason is of autoimmune nature and the skin disease is chronic.

Women suffer from this disease two times more often than men, and the age at which this disease occurs most frequently is 20-40 years. Psoriasis is a widespread chronic recurrent dermatosis characterized by sharply limited erythematous, popular and squamous changes in the skin. Psoriasis plaque is typical for psoriasis and it can appear anywhere on the body, but mostly on specfic places such as elbows, knees, the small of the back, the gluteal fold, the skin around the navel, the hairy scalp, pinna). The plaque represents reddened and thickened skin with a rough skin surface covered with silvery-white scales. It has been known for decades that psoriasis is one of the diseases which are influenced by a very high level of psycho-emotional state of the organism.

"It seems that the public is not aware of these problems. People should know that these diseases are not contagious. Many people sufferering from such diseases sink into themselves and develop psychological problems precisely because of this lack of information", said George Tusimis, head of the Greek branch of the Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis. In order to ensure greater interest in the exhibition, many celebrities, actors, journalists and sportsmen offered to participate in the project. Among them are actor Nikos Angelis, journalist Eva Antonopoulou and world champion form the national team in women's polo Alexandra Asimaki. Every photo in the exhibition shows at least one healthy person and one suffering from skin disease touching each other. George Tusimis added, "We consider informing people as our responsibility. We decided to do something new and different, not to repeat events that have happened in the past. We wanted to touch people, make them feel. So we decided to take these pictures with celebrities".

Tens of thousands of people worldwide suffer from these diseases and face every-day discrimination; they are considered a threat, they hide, develop psychological problems and have difficulties finding a job. This could change if people become aware of these skin diseases and are not afraid to approach or touch those suffering from them. The exhibition has already been shown in the city of Volos, and by the end of October everyone can see it in Athens on 50 Akadimias street in the building of the Cultural Centre.