Embirikos was a lifelong friend; they travelled to the USSR together. Living and studying in Paris after WWII, Elytis got to know Picasso, Matisse, Giacometti, Breton, Éluard (his great literary influence), Michaux, Reverdy, Tzara, Camus and Chagall. His friend Theodorakis, deeply moved by his most renowned poem, set it to music. Hadjidakis, another close friend, composed settings for other work of his (as also did his close friend Mercouri’s grandfather).
Odysseas Elytis
Odysseas Elytis knew…
- René Char
- Pierre Reverdy
- Pablo Picasso
- Pierre-Jean Jouve
- Mikis Theodorakis
- Tristan Tzara
- Marc Chagall
- Henri Michaux
- Henri Matisse
- Giorgos Seferis
- Giorgos Katsimbalis
- Paul Éluard
- André Breton
- Alberto Giacometti
- Albert Camus
- Andreas Embirikos
- Manos Hadjidakis
- Melina Mercouri