Athienou’s food traditions inspire a new collection of silk scarves

Athienou’s traditional food-making has evolved into modern textile art, showcased in a collection of silk scarves inspired by the town’s halloumi, bread, wedding sweets, and handmade pasta. “Athienou: Flavours and Traditions,” the collection was unveiled at the Traditional Flour Mill of Athienou on October 16, merging local culinary heritage with contemporary artistry. Designed by Cypriot textile artist Michalis Pantelidis, the collection employs photography and digital collage to reimagine the textures, shapes, and colours of traditional food production. Four designs emerged from images showcasing the preparation of Athienou’s local products, transforming familiar food-making scenes into wearable art. Rather than highlighting the final products, the designs emphasise the processes involved, including hand movements, ingredient handling, and traditional techniques. “I was amazed by the craftsmanship involved, the many different steps, the techniques and the care that goes into making something we often take for granted,” Pantelidis said. The collection draws inspiration from four Athienou products: halloumi, traditional wedding loukoumi, Athienou bread, and handmade pasta shaped with sklinitzi, a local plant used in its preparation. Photographs taken during experiential workshops became the starting point for the designs. Roasted almonds, the changing texture of milk during halloumi production and the stages of bread making were among the details incorporated into the work. The resulting patterns combine these images through digital composition, moving them away from their everyday context and giving them a new form on silk. Earthy colours, golden brown tones and geometric arrangements feature in the designs, particularly in the scarf inspired by traditional Athienou bread. The choice of silk also connects the collection to a wider tradition of craftsmanship. The material is produced in Soufli, Greece, a town with a long history of silk production, linking the heritage of the two places through textile design. The exhibition extended beyond the scarves themselves. The four designs covered sections of the flour mill’s walls and floor, forming a large geometric installation that placed the artwork within the building’s traditional setting. The scarves were displayed on minimal black metal structures, allowing visitors to view them both as individual pieces and as part of the wider composition. International model Sophia Hadjipanteli attended the event, wearing a scarf inspired by Athienou bread, styled as an asymmetric, one shoulder blouse. She also wore silk accessories featuring the collection’s pasta design. Her appearance was accompanied by traditional Cypriot dancing, bringing together the textile designs and the cultural practices that inspired them. The exhibition reflects a growing interest in presenting local traditions through contemporary creative work. For Athienou, where food production remains closely tied to the town’s identity, the collection offers another way to share its heritage with younger generations and audiences beyond Cyprus. “I hope this exhibition encourages younger generations to look at our traditions with fresh eyes, to appreciate the people who keep them alive, and to realise that our cultural heritage can be a source of inspiration for contemporary creativity,” Pantelidis said.