Kimberly Guilfoyle and Lina Mendoni Open Greece-US Democracy Exhibition

Greece and the United States highlighted their shared democratic heritage and expanding cultural cooperation on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, as US Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Ann Guilfoyle and Culture Minister Lina Mendoni opened the exhibition “Making Democracy in Greece and America” at the Stoa of Attalos in Athens’ Ancient Agora.

The travelling exhibition, organised by the US Embassy in Greece in cooperation with the American School of Classical Studies at Athens (ASCSA), operates under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Culture. It forms part of the year-long global celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence.

During the opening, Guilfoyle and Mendoni also announced a new initiative aimed at deepening bilateral cooperation on the protection of cultural heritage.

Through a Cultural Property Implementation Grant, the US Embassy, working with the Ministry of Culture and the Greek National Committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), will implement the programme “Return to Light: A US-Greece Partnership for the Protection of Cultural Heritage.”

The programme will support an exhibition of repatriated antiquities at the Ancient Agora, a Cultural Heritage seminar designed to strengthen cooperation between law enforcement authorities in combating organised crime and the illicit trafficking of antiquities, and a public awareness campaign highlighting the US-Greece partnership to protect Greece’s cultural heritage.

The campaign will also promote the two countries’ shared commitment to safeguarding Greece’s exceptional cultural heritage.

Guilfoyle highlights shared democratic traditions

Speaking at the opening, US Ambassador Kimberly Guilfoyle said she was honoured to attend the exhibition at the Ancient Agora, which she described as a place of deep significance for Greece, the United States and people around the world who value freedom.

She said 2026 had been an exceptional year for the United States as the country celebrated 250 years of independence in Greece and around the world.

Guilfoyle noted that more than 2,000 years separate ancient Athens from the US Constitution, but said fundamental questions about how societies govern themselves, how they protect freedom and how institutions endure continue to connect the two democratic traditions.

She stressed that democracy operated in practice in ancient Greece rather than existing merely as an idea for citizens to debate.

“This makes this particular site an ideal place to tell the story of democracy in Greece and America,” Guilfoyle said.

She referred to July 4, 1776, when the founders of the United States declared the country’s independence and expressed their belief that government derives its authority from the people, freedom represents a fundamental right, and citizens possess both the power and responsibility to shape their future.

Guilfoyle also highlighted the cultural exchange between Greece and the United States. She said America did not simply reproduce Athenian democracy, but that the ideas, debates, achievements and lessons of the classical world formed an important part of the intellectual heritage that influenced the founders as they built the new republic.

Greece-US links during the 1821 Revolution

Guilfoyle also referred to the Greek Revolution of 1821, saying Greece looked across the Atlantic towards a young democracy that had succeeded in gaining its independence.

Americans, in turn, looked towards Greece, whose history and culture had inspired their own nation, and supported the Greek struggle for independence, she said.

The exhibition brings this historical exchange to life through documents, images and other material.

Mendoni highlights cultural cooperation

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni described the strategic relationship between Greece and the United States as particularly close in the field of culture.

She said the exhibition, which forms part of the celebrations marking 250 years since the US Declaration of Independence, has significance for both countries because it explores the historical and ideological dialogue between ancient Athenian democracy, the American Revolution and the Greek Revolution of 1821.

The exhibition opens symbolically with the first complete translation of the US Declaration of Independence into Modern Greek.

“Through historical texts, images and audiovisual material, the exhibition follows the development of fundamental ideas such as freedom, popular sovereignty, equality before the law, equal political rights, citizen participation in government and the administration of justice, and individual and collective responsibility towards society,” Mendoni said.

She added that the exhibition demonstrates how these ideas travelled across space and time.

Regarding cooperation between Greece and the United States to protect cultural heritage and combat the illicit trafficking of cultural property, Mendoni said the partnership continues to expand.

She said the two countries had demonstrated in recent years that they could cooperate across sectors, including culture, and achieve substantive and tangible results.

“The trust that has been built and our shared will provide a strong basis for continuing and further expanding this cooperation in the future,” she said.

ASCSA Director Bonna Wescoat also spoke about the exhibition and the school’s work in Greece, particularly its long-running archaeological work at the Ancient Agora.

Exhibition to travel across Greece

The “Making Democracy in Greece and America” exhibition was created by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, which has conducted excavations at the Ancient Agora since 1931, in cooperation with the US Embassy in Greece and under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture. The exhibition receives funding from the US Department of State.

After its presentation in Athens, the exhibition will travel to American Spaces in Thessaloniki, Veria, Xanthi, Corfu, Sparta and Piraeus, bringing its account of democratic history to students, educators, young people and local communities across Greece.

American Spaces in Greece provide venues for public engagement and learning, offering young people and local communities opportunities to learn more about the United States through educational, cultural and professional programmes and resources.

Designed both as an educational tool and an exhibition, “Making Democracy in Greece and America” combines historical storytelling, archival and visual material, and video to bring the history of democracy closer to audiences throughout Greece.

The exhibition will also provide a platform for educational programmes, lectures and activities involving local communities. These events will encourage participants to explore the development of democratic ideas and their enduring significance.

It highlights the intellectual exchange between Thomas Jefferson and Adamantios Korais, alongside connections in political thought, art and public discourse that demonstrate how democratic ideas have continued to travel between Greece and the United States.

Exhibition schedule

• American Space Thessaloniki: September 24 – October 2, 2026
• American Space Veria: October 5–16, 2026
• American Space Xanthi: October 19–30, 2026
• American Space Corfu: November 3–16, 2026
• American Space Sparta: November 19 – December 4, 2026
• American Space Piraeus: December 7–31, 2026
• Pop-Up American Space at Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium: January 11–30, 2027

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