Kallivokas Dionysios

A student of Nikolaos Kantounis in Zakynthos, he afterward studied in Italy, more specifically St. Luke’s Academy in Rome and the Royal Academy of Florence. After living in Florence for twelve years, he returned to his own homeland and became involved with painting icons for churches while at the same time teaching both in Lefkada and the Ionian Academy of Corfu (1858-1864). In 1867 he took part in the World Exhibition of Paris with two portraits. He was awarded a bronze medal at the Olympia Exhibition of 1870 while at the one of 1875 he exhibited copies of works of the Renaissance and Baroque and received a silver medal.

A representative of Ionian island art, he painted both original works and copies, being mainly involved with religious scenes and portraiture. By and large, he stuck to academic models from the 18th century while in his portraits, which correspond to the expectations of his bourgeois clientele, he placed the emphasis on the nobility of character of those being depicted.