With its new exhibition titled “Open Horizons,” the National Gallery – Alexander Soutsos Museum opens a dialogue on what it means to belong to more than one culture at the same time and how diaspora can serve as a source of cultural richness and renewal. The exhibition focuses on the historical phenomenon of diasporic identity among five artists of Greek descent who were active in the United States. This is the second exhibition organized by the Ministry of Culture and the National Gallery in the restored space of the old Customs House in Nafplion, following the exhibition “Sea, Life-Giving Breath” in July 2025.

The Old Customs House has historically served as a crossing point for people, goods, and ideas traveling by sea. The theme of “Open Horizons” is thus symbolically reinforced: it presents the unfolding of the constant movement of ideas, people, and cultures in a space that has stories to tell of movement, exchange, and openness to the world. The National Gallery thus continues a long-standing dialogue with the city of Nafplio around the concept of Greek identity. This exhibition, hosted in the first capital of the Greek state, broadens the perspective to include the Greek diaspora and demonstrates that Greek cultural creation has flourished beyond the state’s borders.

The exhibition features twelve works from the National Gallery’s collection, some of which are being brought out of storage for the first time to be displayed to the public. These are works by: George Z. Constant (Giorgos Konstantinopoulos), Michalis Lekakis, Theodoros Chios, Theodoros Stamos, and Athina Tacha.

The massive wave of migration from the impoverished countries of southern Europe to America began in the early 20th century and continued throughout the interwar period. The need to cope with economic hardship and the aftermath of the Civil War created a new wave of migration in the 1950s. Whether first-generation immigrants or children of immigrants, the artists featured in the exhibition were born in America or ended up there in search of an environment more welcoming and receptive to their expressive, ideological, and livelihood needs. They overcome the difficulties of integration by building networks of trust and mutual support, study at art academies, pursue professional careers, and chart their own unique path toward developing their personal style. They form artistic groups, teach at art schools, are gradually recognized by their peers, and are distinguished for the exceptional quality of their work. Through their pioneering achievements, they contribute to the shaping of American art and visual culture, marking the transition from eclectic figuration to abstraction, geometric art, monochromatic painting, the rise of abstract expressionism, contemporary biomorphic sculpture, and public art of an applied and functional nature.

In their work, we discover the exploration and transformation of primal cultural memory, a love for the thematic richness of Greek tradition and mythology, as well as a reinterpretation of European modernism.

Curator: Syrago Tsiara, Director General, National Gallery-Alexandros Soutsos Museum

Tuesday 30 June 2026

Starting at 19:30

Old Customs House Nafplion

Duration : 30 June- 4 October 2026