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19
Alecos FASSIANOS
Greek, born 1935

Young man
fresco on brick

signed lower left
15.5 x 11.5 cm


PROVENANCE

private collection, Athens


sold for 2,828.40 €

Alecos Fassianos was born in 1935 in Athens.

 

In 1956 he enrolled at the School of Fine Arts, Athens in the studio of Yannis Moralis from which he graduated in 1960. On a French state scholarship, he continued his studies in Paris in etching, at the Ecole des Beaux Arts under E. Clairin and G. Dayez, between 1960 and 1963.

 

Fassianos developed his characteristic style in the early 1960s. He draws his inspiration from ancient Greek myths, Fayum portraits, Byzantine icons and the Shadow Theatre. His figures are characterised by their voluptuousness and luminosity of colour, highlighting the sensuality and the immense pleasure of everyday life.

 

As noted by Marina Lambraki-Plaka, ‘Alecos Fassianos belongs to the generation of those who inherited heliocentric modernism. His youthful works were influenced by French art informel. But he quickly found his style. Ancient vase painting, vernacular art and the teachings of Tsarouchis assisted him composing a code genetically programmed to convey a message of vital well-being and optimism’.

 

Since his first solo show in Athens in 1959, more than seventy followed in Athens, Thessaloniki, Paris, Munich, Tokyo, Hamburg, Zurich, Milan, Beirut, Stockholm, London and elsewhere. He has also worked in the fields of engraving, poster design, theatre stage set and costume design, collaborating primarily with the National Theatre. He additionally published his texts, prose and poetry. 

 

The French Ministry of Culture honoured him in 1985 with the ‘Chevalier in the order of Arts & Letters ', in 2010 with the ‘Officer in the order of Arts & Letters ' and 2013 with the ‘Officer in the Honorary Legion'.

 

His work is found in many public and private collections, notably: The National Gallery of Greece, the Municipal Gallery of Athens, the Municipal Gallery of Rhodes, the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art, the Averoff Gallery, the National Bank of Greece and the Musee d’Art Moderne, Paris.