Greece itself is like one big art gallery of beauty and expression. How could an artist not draw from the essence of the vistas and energy of Greece? From Athens to Kolonaki, Ionian islands to Aegean islands, the art galleries simply WOWED us.

From the first day of arrival walking through Plaka in Athens, we admired artwork of olive trees and chatted with the gallery rep. Turns out he was a friend of a friend of a relative of ours back home in the states. We sent a selfie of us to our friend and chuckled about this small world connection. The olive tree art excited me for my eventual visit to the olive groves near my father’s village.

The next gallery stop was a few days later in the Kolonaki district of Athens. Mixed media was the feature this time and it was thought-provoking as expected. How edifying it is to venture into the local art galleries in addition to simply enjoying cuisine, shopping, and historic sightseeing. Beaching and boating is supreme in Greece but there is another dimension, after all. Elevate your senses and get into the Big Greece Energy of the art world

Also in Kolonaki was an intriguing gallery of tree art. This one took some extra thoughtfulness on our part. Meditation you might say. Appreciating the medium and interviewing the artist with humble curiosity was educational for us. Visualizing the art derived from tree materials in chic Greek homes was part of the gallery experience.

Corfu exposed us to coffeehouse art galleries. You can sit and sip among the owner’s personal art collection houses within a two-story coffeehouse. Around the corner, you could peer into an artist’s workshop and around another corner, another coffeehouse mural grabbed my attention. This was enhanced by the quartet of costumed musicians serenading nearby. At night, in Corfu town, a gallery of mixed media thrilled us with not only clockwork-style art but also so many other textures and perspectives. IMG_5420

Off to Milos! Perched high up in Plaka town of Milos, we re-visited a favorite black and white photographer’s gallery. How delightful that he is often present in the gallery to chat. Intense imagery in these black and white photos are so documentarian of street scenes. Goals! Nearby in the same village is a gallery of statuettes, mixed media, pottery, etc. One particular piece of mixed media artwork had a holographic effect to it. Dazzling!

Back in Athens, we went to the National Gallery of Athens. What. A. Place.! This gallery takes you through the history of Greece, the wars, the religion, the culture…and then, fabulously …the contemporary art and abstracts. This was heaven for me and a nice way to complete our time in Greece as departure was looming.

Like most metropolises, the galleries can be found along the shopping and dining districts so it’s convenient to pop in to them. Add them to your list of sightseeing and excursions because it will give you an added understanding to the culture and lifestyle.

©Gina Michalopulos Kingsley