Traditional shipbuilders in Greece are bound to become extinct. Many of them have given up. Some are still struggling to preserve and transfer their precious legacy, a responsibility weighing heavy on their shoulders. One of them is Dimitris Morakis, on the island of Chios, with origins from the “sandy beaches of Homer” (Asia Minor). For over forty years, since the age of twelve, he has been fully occupied in traditional shipbuilding. His many years of experience combined with the gift of creativityhave established him as one of the best of his kind in Greece. Respectfully grounded on tradition but at the same time trying new constructive ideas, Dimitris Morakis works hard with consistency, devotion and boldness, using experience and inspiration to make “angels” that sail the Aegean sea. He believes that traditional shipbuilding is the art of the harmonious transformation of the raw material (wood) into a piece of human work, a process involving all the characteristics of the culturally developed human mind, that is, a brilliant combination of art and craft. Deeply rooted in the grounds of an authentic hellenic culture, the true evidence of a thousand-year-old skill, a prospect full of secrets and future challenges, Traditional Shipbuilding must be preserved and taught to young people. And that is because the ancient talk between the Tree and the Sea, through Man, ought not to cease.
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