Costas Tsoclis was born in Athens in 1930.

He studied at the School of Fine Arts, Athens from 1948 till 1954 under Yiannis Moralis. Later, on a Greek state scholarship, he travelled to Rome (1957-1960) where he participated in the artistic group ‘Gruppo Sigma’ with Vlassis Caniaris, Yannis Gaitis and Nikos Kessanlis among others. In 1960 he settled down in Paris where he lived until 1984 when he permanently returned to Athens. Between 1971-1972 he lived in Berlin funded by a DAAD scholarship.

From 1973, while in Paris he started his collaboration with Alexander Iolas. He was successfully involved in both the Greek and international art scenes.

He had the opportunity to familiarise himself with all the contemporary trends of European art, which he interpreted into his unique style and artistic identity. From his early compositions, Tsoclis’ painting skills achieve a feeling of an optical illusion; this is accomplished by combining mediums, materials and objects.

In his mature period, the painting image comes alive with video projections on canvas. Installations become elaborate modular spectacles, consisting of multiple screens, sound and light effect, creating an atmosphere of dramatic narrative. His subject matter varies greatly and develops different conceptual layers that refer to contemporary experiences, social concerns, ancient myths and cultural archetypes.

Tsoclis presented his work in more than one hundred solo shows and participated in a large number of group exhibitions. Notably, the 1963 and 1965 Paris Biennale, the 1965 Sao Paolo Biennale and the 1975 Kassel Documenta. In 1986 he represented Greece at the Venice Biennale (together with Christos Caras). In 2001 the National Museum of Contemporary Art presented a large-scale retrospective of his work.

In 2011 he founded the Costas Tsoclis Museum on the Island of Tinos, where many cultural events take place every summer.

His work can be found in the National Gallery of Greece, the Municipal Gallery of Athens, the Municipal Gallery of Rhodes, the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art and many other public and private collections.