Dimitris Soulas ( el, Δημήτρης Σούλας) (born 1938), is a former Greek photojournalist. He worked as an independent photojournalist in Germany between 1967 and 1974.
Soulas was born in 1938 in
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
from a family originated from
Souli
Souli ( el, Σούλι) is a municipality in Epirus, northwestern Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town of Paramythia.
Name and History
The origin of the name Souli is uncertain. In the earliest historical text about Souli, written ...
. For the years 1960 to 1965, he studied economics at the
Wolfgang Goethe University of Frankfurt and Sociology at the
Institute for Social Research
The Institute for Social Research (german: Institut für Sozialforschung, IfS) is a research organization for sociology and continental philosophy, best known as the institutional home of the Frankfurt School and critical theory. Currently a part ...
.
After his studies, he began working in the marketing department of the fruit import company "Atlanta Handelsgesellschaft Harder & Co.", in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
.
In April 1967, Soulas co-founded with other Greek people living in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, the "Panhellenic Anti-junta Association" against the
1967-1974 military regime of Greece. Because of his participation in the anti-junta movement, he had his Greek passport withdrawn and was denied entry to the country. Also, the Greek Junta authorities exerted pressure to the company Soulas was working, which asked Soulas to quit the Anti-junta Association. After his denial to quit he was fired from his position in the company.
After his dismissal, he began working as a freelance photojournalist selling his photos to newspapers. Soon, he became an associate of the
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
, while newspapers of Munich assigned projects to him. During his career as a photojournalist, he worked for notable magazines of Germany, such as
Stern
The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Ori ...
, Quick, Neue Revue, and worked with
Magnum agency.
In 1974, after the
Greek Junta collapse, he returned in Greece. Estimating that photojournalism had still not matured in Greece, he decided to quit working as a professional photographer and he turned toward business and trade. In 1977 he established an import business for children's toys and subsequently worked as a marketing consultant. Now, he lives in
Garmisch and
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
and works in a film documentary.
In 2004, Soulas donated his archive to the Fotomuseum of the
Munich Stadtmuseum
The Munich Stadtmuseum (German: "Münchner Stadtmuseum") or Munich City Museum, is the city museum of Munich. It was founded in 1888 by Ernst von Destouches. It is located in the former municipal arsenal and stables, both buildings of the late ...
. In 2008, the Museum organized a retrospective exhibition on the work of Dimitris Soulas which was shown in many European cities.
[ through Internet Archive]
References
External links
Dimitris Soula's interview(
Photographos Magazine, 2006-03-21 ''(in Greek)'')
"Tür zu"Article for the persecuted, by the
Greek military junta of 1967-1974,
Pavlos Bakoyannis
Pavlos Bakoyannis ( el, Παύλος Μπακογιάννης; February 10, 1935 in Velota, Evrytania – September 26, 1989 in Athens) was a liberal Greek politician who was well known for his broadcasts against the Greek military junta of 1967� ...
and Dimitris Soulas (
Der Spiegel
''Der Spiegel'' (, lit. ''"The Mirror"'') is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of 695,100 copies, it was the largest such publication in Europe in 2011. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...
, 1968-09-23 ''(in German)'' )
Dimitris Soulas website Hellenes Abroad / Greece Photo exhibition by Dimitris Soulas Thessaloniki, 07.01.2008 Μουσείο Φωτογραφίας Θεσσαλονίκης (Δημήτρης Σούλας) ΔΗΜΗΤΡΗΣ ΣΟΥΛΑΣ Στιγμιότυπα, Φωτογραφίες 1967-1974 Benaki MuseumΓυμνή πρόκληση Eleftherotypiapacific.jour
photoscala.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soulas, Dimitris
1938 births
Living people
Greek photojournalists
Resistance to the Greek junta
Greek expatriates in Germany
People from Thessaloniki