Aravadinos Panos

At a very early age he showed an inclination for painting as well as a love of the theater. He began his studies by taking night lessons in painting at the National Technical University and then continued at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Berlin, later going to Paris. In 1910 his work “The Adoration of the Mag”, won the prize in the competition of the Berlin and Munich Academies.

The Balkan wars obliged him to return to Greece where he fought as a reserve. During this period he designed all the uniforms for the Greek Army and made a series of works concerned with his war experiences.

His first contact with set design is dated to 1914 when he made the sets for the work Living Images presented by the Amateurs Society.During the following two years he designed and supervised the construction of the sets and costumes for operettas and plays. His greatest successes were the works he did for the Xifir Faler Revue. But he never stopped painting and indeed painted the portraits of some of the eminent figures of the time.

In 1918 he was hired by the Royal Theater of Berlin and the same year was appointed to the State Opera of Berlin. During his frequent trips to Paris he cultivated a friendship with Dimitris Galanis who acted as a go-between for the publication of his cartoons in French periodicals.

His first major success in Germany was scored in 1920 with the sets for the opera of Richard Strauss “Die Frau Ohne Statten”. In 1912 he won the prize of the State Patent Office for his architectural design for the state theater and concert halls. In 1926 he was awarded the title of artistic advisor to German theaters and to him was assigned the organization of his own school of design operating in the studios of the Berlin State Opera. His activities also extended to the theaters of other German towns.

In 1927 he was called to Athens to offer advice in regard to the renovation of the stage of the Municipal Theater and a while later for the renovation of the Royal Theater. In 1930 he was summoned to Paris where he died.