MEET MATINA
I am passionate in supporting my clients in overcoming their challenges & create opportunities for personal growth, improved family dynamics and meaningful management of property. Parallel to my coaching practice in Europe, I am an advisor to the Panhellenic Association of Listed Buildings & Monuments and also manage my family's historic residence and the Agiorgiti Collection in Greece. I have studied with the following institutions: Ecole Boulle, Bocconi University, IFS Institute (Internal Family Systems Therapy), Cambridge University (ICE) and Christie's Education. Here is my story. I was three years old, when an unexpected coup d'état took over Greece in 1968. My parents had to escape the country. We immigrated to Canada, taking hardly any belongings with us.
Both my parents had an appreciation for Greek culture heritage and Hellenic values. My father - a high performer, was a banker, earlier Greek-resistance fighter in WWII and advocate of Stoic philosophy. My mother, bohemian-inclined, was a Swiss-trained artist, an aesthete & avid collector of heritage artefacts. My sister and I, grew up in an intensely creative & loving household but also within steadily increasing tensions - due to the strong but conflicting personalities of my parents. I went on to study away from home, in Montreal, Paris and London. By the age of twenty-four, I owned a small property enterprise, involving the renovation and re-design of traditional heritage houses, on the Greek islands. All this reflected an independent spirit. But, it also reflected my deeper need to escape the developing "Clash of the Titans" of my parents. Creativity and entrepreneurship had become my path, away from the disharmonies of the family hearth and its traumas, and into self-imposed exile. In the 90’s I moved to the künstlerdorf Worpswede, Germany. I became involved with a revival initiative, bridging contemporary architecture with antique architectural practices, including Topostherapy - the Western equivalent to Feng Shui.
This experience gave shape to an experimental renovation project in Greece, at an abandoned village settlement, overlooking the Aegean Sea. For several years, I spent extended periods of the year there, balancing a life of voluntary simplicity - off the grid, with my life in Germany. In 2003, my book HOUSE OF HARMONY - The Philosophy of Home Living, (Kedros Publishing) became a national best-seller in Greece. I then decided, it was time to loosen up my self-imposed exile. I settled back in Athens, my city of origin and nearer to where my parents then lived. In 2009, at the dawn of the Greek Economic Crisis, I experienced a major turning point in my life. I set off to navigate my boat, through the devastated economic waters of Greece, to save my own finances, the family residence and its collection. Real estate had just plunged. So there was only one way to go - to sail straight through it. At least that is how I saw it.
However my sister, who was co-inheritor, saw things very differently. From her perspective we should sell the house with all its things, to the first best offer - and be free of the matter. Her emotional need to 'close the family chapter' became evident but understandable. On the other hand, my need to foster & preserve the family hearth was equally important. After so many years of being away and now having had children, preserving it all was important to me. Finding agreement between the two sisters was a long gruelling process resulting in further family wear-and-tear. Clash of the Titans Part II. But finally, we came to an agreement. To keep the house- and our relationship. So, a great 'de-clutter odyssey' followed. I restored, archived and sorted the family heirlooms & valuable artefacts in the home. The residence was renovated and re-purposed. I curated its collection- which included Hellenic antiquities, Byzantine art, Coptic textiles, Orientalist paintings, original works by Byron and many other artefacts. We opened the house to the public. Today this collection is known as the Agiorgiti Collection. During this process, I soon came to realise that this isn't just a simple sorting out of tangible things and assets. It's a lot more complicated. I was dealing with pieces of a family story and ancestry- its past, its values, beliefs, traumas, struggles and experiences. Looking back now, it is evident that I was also restoring my own inner exiled parts. Putting together the pieces of a broken story, in a new way. The process, of sorting the gems from the stones, took several years of personal psychotherapy and the exploration of various therapeutic models, including the relief from, what is called 'legacy burdens'. I discovered that inheritance is a “continuous ongoing experience of receiving” - not just a one time event. It is more like an “inheritance flame” a dynamic, creative fluid essence, containing many intangible qualities from our family, our ancestors and our social & cultural heritage, which we receive gradually. This affects us in so many ways, consciously- but mainly unconsciously. It's all about mindset. Your inheritance is as small or as large as you want it to be. The following years were spent, tapping into that inheritance flame through cultural enterprise. I initiated the Athenian Muse, a culture-based creative agency and advisory in Athens. Many of its project ideas were inspired by my parents’ unique lifestyle. Parallel, I began more formal training in psychotherapy & life coaching. My passion for heritage, also involved me in various crowdfunding cultural preservation projects, as the 13th century Château de la Mothe-Chandeniers in the Loire, the Grand Salon at Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte near Paris and other international heritage preservation projects, where I am still an active or part owner. However, some years preceding the first pandemic wave, I experienced a re-occurring dream, which eventually threw me off course. It marked a turning point in my professional career- adding a new dimension to my understanding of culture. In the dream, the Ancient Greek goddess Hestia appeared, showing me a beautiful heirloom chest embedded with gems and my ancestors depicted upon it. The goddess told me, “You have opened your family's chest, now it is time to help others open theirs. In my opinion, we gain so much more wealth for ourselves and for posterity- if we look beyond just managing our assets or analysing our wounds. We need to see the bigger picture. I learned that ownership, no matter what its form, is a journey to the Self.
That was the beginning of the Heritage Muse and the end of my exile. Thank you for reading my story. MATINA AGIORGITI
MEDIA BIO VERSIONS Matina Agiorgiti, is the founder of HERITAGE MUSE - a niche coaching practice for private owners of cultural heritage property and collections, on their personal journey as successors, custodians, creators and decision-makers.
Leveraging on over thirty years experience in heritage management combined with personal coaching & psychotherapy methodologies, it proposes a holistic approach on the array of property-related issues, dilemmas or challenges. In Greece, Matina is advisor to the Panhellenic Association of Private Listed Buildings/Monuments and manages her family's historic residence & collection. Learn more at www.matinaagio.com Matina Agiorgiti, is the founder of HERITAGE MUSE - a niche coaching practice for private owners of cultural heritage property and collections, on their personal journey as successors, custodians, creators and decision-makers.
Leveraging on over thirty years experience in heritage management combined with personal coaching & psychotherapy methodologies, it proposes a holistic approach on the array of property-related issues, dilemmas or challenges. Her work explores explore mindset, family dynamics, legacy, purpose, practical concerns - as well as psychological and emotional factors influencing the owner. The aim is to create a more qualitative individual experience, while at the same time ensuring the meaningful management and enjoyment of property, collections, heirlooms and other cultural assets. Matina has studied with the following institutions: Ecole Boulle, Bocconi University, IFS Institute (Internal Family Systems Therapy), Cambridge University (ICE) and Christie's Education. In Greece, she is advisor to the Panhellenic Association of Private Listed Buildings/Monuments and also manages her family's historic residence & collection. For over a decade, Matina had served as director of Athenian Muse Holdings – a boutique consultancy for cultural enterprises and house museums, including signature in-house activities. She has been involved in heritage crowdfunding projects, such as the Château de la Mothe-Chandeniers in France and other preservation initiatives, where she is active or part owner. Learn more at www.matinaagio.com |
To be true to tradition,
you need to be true to its flame, not its ashes.
-Jean Jaurès (1859-1914)
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