After his early studies in painting and the miniature, under Lysandros Prasinos in Constantinople (Istanbul), he studied at the School of Decorative Arts and private academies in Paris (1922-1928). He also studied stage design at the Theater School of Charles Dullin and under Ladislas Medgyes. As a stage designer, both abroad and, after his return to Greece in 1940, on the Greek stage, he worked with the important names in the field such as Cocteau, Barrault, Saint Denis, Koun, Veakis, and Kotopouli. Among the distinctions he received in France were 1st prize at the Carmine Exhibition in Paris and the decoration of the Legion of Honor (1953). In 1957 he founded the first school of decorative art in Greece together with Panayiotis Tetsis, Frantzis Frantziskakis and his wife Eleni Vakalo. In 1967 he took part in the Alexandria Biennale, while presenting his works in solo shows and many group and Panhellenies exhibitions. He was a founding member of the Spirit-Level group.
His painting, where a melodic line, tasteful color and a flair for decoration play the leading role, is distinguished by a personal surrealism and is charcaterized by an imaginative, dream-like atmosphere with a strong poetic cast.
He studied painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts (1939-1946) under Konstantinos Parthenis and Umvertos Argyros, while he learned the techniques for making giant posters from Stephanos Almaliotis (1938-1940). During the period 1952-1953 he studied painting, engraving and the graphic arts at the School of Fine Arts as well as private academies in Paris.
From 1945 to 1963 he was the artistic director of Skouras Films, at the same time making giant posters for the most important cinemas in Athens. He also worked for Finos Films and L.T.C. in Paris and, starting in 1963, served as director of the advertising company Gnomi A.E. At the same time, he was involved with wall and shop-window posters and decorated houses, commercial pavilions and shops with inscriptions and wall paintings. During the period 1956-1974, his interests extended to the graphic arts, in the context of which he edited publications and designed covers for books, albums and magazines, while he also was important to the promotion of commercial photography in Greece. He was, moreover, interested in art on a theoretical level, publishing studies and the books, “25 αφίσες του Γ. Bακιρτζή” (25 Posters by G. Vakirtzis) (Athens, 1963), “Γιγαντοαφίσες του κινηματογράφου του Γ. Βακιρτζή” (Giant Posters for the Cinema by G. Vakirtzis) (Athens, 1968) and “Η λαϊκή επιγραφή στην Ελλάδα” (The Folk Inscription in Greece) (Athens, 1973/1974).
He started to take part in group, Panhellenies and international exhibitions in 1949, holding solo shows from 1980 on, while in 1989 his work was presented in a retrospective exhibition at the National Gallery.
An anthropocentric artist, Vakirtzis used elements from the art of the giant poster, folk painting and expressionism, which he combined with a background of large, classical compositions from the past, in order to set down his preoccupations in his own personal style directly related to the historical and political experiences of Greek society.
Koula Marangopoulou studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts under P. Μathiopoulos; she also attended courses for one year at the school of painting run by P. Vyzantios and A. Stylou-Diamantopoulou. Yet, the most formative period for her personal style was when she worked with Giorgos Bouzianis (in the 1940s). This experience left an indelible mark on her abstract painting – works in an expressionist vein, including genre scenes and landscapes, still life paintings and portraits.
An important icon painter who worked in Chandax (Iraklion, Crete) in the second half of the 15th century. There is also evidence that by 1470 he was teaching painting. He died between 1504-1512. As with other contemporary Cretan painters he painted icons using various styles and rendering a variety of iconographic subjects in his Byzantine and Italian-Cretan works. The latter, addressed to the painter’s Catholic clientele, show his knowledge of late Gothic art.
After taking his first painting lessons from Theodoros Lekos, he studied at the School of Fine Arts under Yannis Moralis while at the same time taking further lessons from Eleni Zongolopoulou. In 1956 he went to Paris where he studied lithography at the School of Fine Arts, painting under Andre Lhote and mosaic and fresco under Gino Severini. He stayed in the French capital till 1975 with trips to New York, Iran and the Far East and then returned to Greece where he lives and works.
He started to exhibit in 1956, presenting his first solo show in Athens. This was followed by other solo exhibits, several in cooperation with Alexandros Iolas and appearances in group exhibitions in Greece and abroad. In 1984 a retrospective of his work was presented at the Pieridis Gallery.
In his painting, which consists of obvious unities of works, color is the dominant element and contributes to the creation of compositions with large surfaces, while the use of pleated plastic breaks up the traditional flatness, thus lending a relief-like, wavy texture. Following the same thought process, he uses color in sculptural compositions, intervening in the forms of well-known classical works and provoking a different interpretation of them, as well as in the installations and sculptural environments he creates which combine the basic elements of his painting and sculpture.
He studied architecture at the National Technical University (1924-1929). During his studies and after the recommendation of Dimitris Pikionis, he taught drawing for three years at the Biotechnic School of Athens. During the period 1930-1960 he served as Lecturer to the seat of Descriptive and Projective Geometry and Perspective Sketching at the National Technical University, while in 1960 he was elected Professor of Freehand Drawing at the Architectural School of the National Technical University, remaining in that position till his death. He also taught at the Officers School of the Military Services, the Evelpidon (Military Cadet) School and worked as an architect for the Ministry of Health (1937-1939), while in 1945 at the directive of the School of Architecture he became Professor of Architectural Design. He took no formal painting lessons.
He was repeatedly distinguished in Panhellenic competitions, winning first prize, organized solo shows and took part in group exhibitions in Greece and abroad, among which were the Salon de l’Art Libre in 1959 in Paris, where he won the Diplome d’Honneur and the Sao Paolo Biennale of 1961. After his death his work was presented in solo and group exhibitions, as well as retrospectives at the Municipal Gallery of Thessaloniki in 1990 and the Municipal Gallery of Athens in 1991. He was also interested in art on a theoretical level, and published articles in newspapers and magazines that examined its social role as well as the nature of the coexistence of painting and architecture.
Starting with figurative painting, which included portraits, still lifes, nudes and seascapes, and echoed the doctrines of fauvism and expressionism, in the Fifties he moved on to abstraction, in the context of which he experimented with certain materials, lending a structural texture in this way to his painting surfaces; in so doing he introduced symbolism into his works and created compositions which were constructivist in character.
Aglaia Papa studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts under Nikolaos Lytras, Konstantinos Parthenis and Thomas Thomopoulos. While still on Corfu, she had studied under Markos Zavitsianos and K. Parthenis. After graduating from the Athens School of Fine Arts, she went on to study in Trieste and Milan, as well as Vienna, where she studied history of art. Teaching the arts in professional schools interested her from early on. When she returned to Greece, she became a teacher of painting and interior design at the Amalieion Orphanage Vocational School. She was member of art groups “Techni” and “Stathmi”, as well as of the Chamber of Fine Arts in Greece (EETE) and the Greek Women Artists Association.
She became very active as an artist and was favourably received by her contemporary critics. She had several personal exhibitions and participated in group shows in Greece and other countries (including the Venice Biennale in 1934 and 1936, and the Alexandria Biennale in 1957).
Her favourite subjects are landscapes and portraiture, in which she adopted the solid, geometrically referenced synthetic canon she was taught by Parthenis. By the 1960s, her work had become abstract.
In 1980, The National Gallery – Alexandros Soutzos Museum organised a retrospective exhibition of her works.
He studied painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts (1928-1933) under Umvertos Argyros and then turned his attention to Byzantine art, making a trip to Mt. Athos during the time he was studying. Later he completed his artistic education travelling to various European countries.
Settling in Thessaloniki in 1937, he taught drawing at Anatolia College until 1970, while from 1954 to 1958 he worked with Dimitris Kentakas doing the religious painting for the church of Ayios Nikolaos on the Acropolis of Serres.
Having begun to exhibit in 1933, he presented his work in solo, Panhellenies and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad, such as the Alexandria Biennales of 1958 and 1971 and the Salon de l’Art Libre in 1968 (silver medal) and 1969. In 1980 his work was presented in a retrospective exhibition at the National Gallery.
His painting originally included landscapes, mansions and churches, which he depicted realistically, travelling to various parts of Greece. Later he introduced deserted beaches into his repertoire, the central element of which is a piece of wood, a rock or a bone which then acquires a symbolic value, while during the final stage of his work, in a romantic attempt to revitalize the past, he depicted the facades of shops in working class neighborhoods of Thessaloniki.
He studied painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts (1973 – 1978). He has presented his work in solo exhibitions (“Nees Morfes” 1978, 1983, 1990, 1992, 1996, French Institute of Thessaloniki 1990, “Epikentro” Patra 1993, “Diaspro Art Center” Nicosia 1993, “Ekfrasi” Thessaloniki 1998) and has participated in group and international exhibitions in Greece and abroad.
From the deforming expressionism of his first works he passes on to a painting extremely spare in color, based on the juxtaposition of dark and light surfaces, where figurative elements are restricted to a minimum.
Alexandros Alexandrakis studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts (1931-1937) under Spyridon Vikatos and Umvertos Argyros; a few years later, during the German occupation of Greece, he studied engraving under Yannis Kefalinos. While still a student at ASFA, he contributed to Ethnos newspaper as cartoonist. His experiences in the War and as a soldier at the front led him to a series of drawings that he later reworked in oil. The result of this activity is his book “This is how we fought 1940-1941”, which received the Athens Academy Award.
Alexandrakis’s subject matter also includes portraiture, nude and landscape paintings, allegorical and genre scenes. Academic training, sometimes combined with en pleine air experimentation, can be traced in his stylistic approach.
In 1980, The National Gallery – Alexandros Soutzos Museum organized a retrospective exhibition of his work.