Modern Greek Art from Mythimna Collection on View in Lesvos
The exhibition ‘Small Milestones of a History: Selections from the Collection of the Municipal Gallery of Mythimna’ brings a compelling survey of modern Greek art to Sigri, on the island of Lesvos. The show illuminates a significant, if lesser-known, chapter of Greece’s artistic heritage. Hosted at the Natural History Museum of the Lesvos Petrified Forest, the exhibition presents works by 43 creators, among them such notable figures as Alexis Akrithakis, Yannis Gaitis, Chronis Botsoglou, Giorgos Vakirtzis, Jannis Psychopedis, Yannis Pappas, Kyriakos Rokos, Theodoros Papagiannis, and Giorgos Derpapas.
The exhibition ‘Small Milestones of a History: Selections from the Collection of the Municipal Gallery of Mythimna’ brings a compelling body of modern Greek art to Sigri, illuminating a significant, if lesser-known, chapter of its story.
On view in the galleries of the Natural History Museum of the Lesvos Petrified Forest are works by 43 artists, including Alexis Akrithakis, Yannis Gaitis, Chronis Botsoglou, Giorgos Vakirtzis, Jannis Psychopedis, Yannis Pappas, Kyriakos Rokos, Theodoros Papagiannis, and Giorgos Derpapas.
Painting, sculpture, and printmaking map a trajectory that runs principally from the 1960s to the end of the 20th century. Figurative approaches, abstraction, and diverse expressions of Greek modernism coexist, capturing the pluralism of a period when Greek art was seeking new modes of expression and a stronger connection with international developments.
The provenance of the works is itself a compelling narrative. The Municipal Gallery of Mythimna, established in 1981, is rooted in the broader cultural activity that began in Molyvos (the town's more common name) as early as the 1960s. The Summer Academy of Arts, along with figures who lived or worked in the area—among them Michalis Tombros, Yannis Pappas, Spyros Vassiliou, Yannis Tsarouchis, and Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas—helped transform Molyvos into a distinct meeting place for artists and intellectuals.
This exhibition, therefore, is more than a simple presentation of a municipal collection. It serves as a reminder of the significance that collections built far from major urban centres can attain, especially when underpinned by continuity, history, and a genuine relationship with the artists of their time.
At a moment when much of the discourse around art is dominated by the market and its prices, ‘Small Milestones of a History’ shifts the focus to something equally vital: the preservation of artistic memory and the return of important works to the public gaze.
The exhibition will open on Friday, 28 August 2026, at 7:30 p.m. at the Natural History Museum of the Lesvos Petrified Forest in Sigri. It will remain on view through September 2026.
Related artist: ΓΑΙΤΗΣ Γιάννης
Source: lesvosnews.net