The Sculptor Christos Kapralos, 1936

Yannis Pappas remained faithful to the figurative depiction focused on the human being throughout his entire artistic career. Guided by nature and tradition he moulded, drew and painted the human figure, initially placing his stress on a realistic and detailed rendering and eventually seeking to express the essence of the subject, using a simplified and more abstract manner, which echoes both archaic Greek and Egyptian sculpture, as well as the contemporary trends.

During his stay in Paris he made the sculptures of Christos Kapralos (1936) and Yannis Moralis (1937), two very characteristic early works. The differences in the rendering of these works indicate the style that he will adopt in his later compositions.

Making use of a completely realistic approach, Pappas moulded Christos Kapralos in an open and relaxed composition, in which the spontaneous and well-balanced pose, the placement of the hands, and the clothes, the head slightly turned, and the expression on the face, are all combined together in order to render this unsophisticated young artist who was in the French capital and, despite his hesitations and fears, had the hope of succeeding and the temperament to accomplish it.