Nikos Kessanlis
Face - Transformations of the human body 1953 - 1997
The Rethymnon Centre of Contemporary Art - "L. Kanakakis"Municipal Gallery (now the Contemporary Art Museum of Crete) hosted the exhibition "Nikos Kessanlis, FACES – The transformations of the Human Body 1953-1997" from May 22 to August 30, 1998.
Curated by Yiorgos Tzirtzilakis, the exhibition was an original production of the Centre and was sponsored by Zacharias Portalakis. Lloyd's of London - G. Karavias & Associates Ltd. supported the Centre's annual programme by insuring the works on display.
The exhibition provided an overview of portraits, self-portraits, and representations of the human form in Nikos Kessanlis' work.
From the artist's early works to the "Identity Phantasmagoria" series of the early 1960s and his return to painting in the 1980s, the exhibition spanned forty years of an extraordinary artistic journey. It showcased a range of aesthetic approaches, emotions, and many beloved faces. Through his work, Nikos Kessanlis aimed to engage with his own life and the people he cherished. In this context, the exhibition redefined the concept of representation and the various ways of depicting the human form as a reflection of our relationship with ourselves, others, and the world.
From Friday, May 22, 1998, the day the exhibition opened, and for approximately four months, the "world" of Nikos Kessanlis unfolded within the Municipal Gallery—a world that was innovative, adventurous, and reflective of the dynamic era that shaped him.
Nikos Kessanlis, born in 1930 in Thessaloniki, began his journey within the "tradition of the new" in 1957 in Rome. Widely regarded as one of the most significant Greek artists of the 20th century, his work holds a significance that transcends Greece's national cultural boundaries.
Kessanlis' career was distinguished by his mastery of an international artistic language, deeply connected to the time and culture in which he lived. His work reflects the spirit of the European post-war avant-garde, consistently resisting the constraints of conformist figurative painting.
Kessanlis began his career during a period of renewed interest in Dadaism and the poetics of informel art across Europe. He became a co-exponent of mec art (mechanical art), delving into the structure and elusiveness of representation as well as the photomechanical nature of images. In an era marked by the intensifying frenzy of communication, Kessanlis redefined the discourse around the crisis of images, questioning the relativity of our concepts of "beauty," art, and their role in society.
Nikos Kessanlis received numerous awards and distinctions throughout his career. He served as a Professor and Dean at the Athens School of Fine Arts, participated in major group and thematic exhibitions in museums, galleries, and art institutions both in Greece and internationally, and represented Greece at the Venice Biennale in 1988. In October 1997, as part of the European Capital of Culture program in Thessaloniki, the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art organized a highly successful, selectively retrospective exhibition of Kessanlis’ work. Spanning five decades (1955-1997), the exhibition highlighted his restless creative journey through paintings, constructions presented in chronological sections, connecting passages, and a selection of rare archival documents.
The exhibition was accompanied by a bilingual, four-color printed catalogue.
It remained open to the public until Sunday, August 30, 1998, and included guided tours for children and adults, as well as educational programs and lectures.
Nikos Kessanlis passed away in 2004.
