A minute with Sophia Hadjipapa Visual artist and Associate Professor of Fine Arts at the European University Cyprus

Where do you live?
I live in the centre of Nicosia with my family: two boys, their dad, two cats and a dog! Right now I am in China though, where I am teaching at the joint degree European University runs with Minjiang University in Fuzhou.

What did you have for breakfast?
Oats with fruit and nuts, and of course, coffee, black one.

Describe your perfect day
Waking up in the morning, spending the day in the studio creating, then spending time with family, go out in nature, walking and relishing fresh food and good wine.

Best book ever read?
It’s such a hard question. Its like asking an artist which is their favourite colour, when they are bound to love them all! But maybe I would mention Sophie’s World which came out in the 90s and I read it in my early student years and now rereading it with my two teenage sons, reliving the whole experience in a completely different way.

Best childhood memory?
Going to Bulgaria – my mum’s birthplace – every summer, soaking up another culture, and the green nature, and then our parents collecting us and road tripping through Greece to get back to Cyprus.

What is always in your fridge?
Greens!

What music are you listening to in the car at the moment?
As I mentioned, right now I am in China and have no car, but the playlists that rotate on my Spotify are ‘jazzy romance’ and ‘vibra tropical’.

What’s your spirit animal?
The Moose. I have no idea why. It just visited me in one of my meditations. No wonder since they stand for introspection and silence. Also, it is probably telling me to stay focused on my goals.

What are you most proud of?
My children’s accomplishments.

What movie scene has really stayed with you?
Irréversible, directed by Gaspar Noé and starring Monica Bellucci. I had a severe physical reaction to it, fainting in the cinema after the main character was raped. That I can never forget. And also, how the story is told backwards.

If you could pick anyone at all (alive or dead) to go out for the evening with, who would it be?
That would be Gabriel Garcia Lorca.

If you could time travel when/where would you go?
Oh, If I could, I don’t think I would do just one stop. But probably I would start with Ancient Egypt and the Mystery Schools.

What is your greatest fear?
To feel regret for things I haven’t done on my deathbed.

What would you say to your 18-year-old self?
Be fearless!

Name the one thing that would stop you dating someone
A condescending attitude.

If the world is ending in 24 hours what would you do?
Get into a state of meditation and take deep breaths!