The Tellogleio Foundation of Fine Arts, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, is “moving” outside Thessaloniki for almost a month. Just like two years ago at this time, Tellogleio is going to Mykonos, and together with the Municipal Art Gallery of Mykonos “Maria Iglessi,” they present the temporary exhibition “Nicholas Egon: A Personal Portrait of Greece.”

The exhibition in Mykonos hosts 29 paintings and drawings by Nicholas Egon (1921–2017), spanning from 1948 to the last years of his life. These works were donated by Stamatia Komninou and Nikolaos Alexandros Komninos to the Tellogleio Foundation of Fine Arts of Aristotle University. The exhibition is curated for Tellogleio by Dr. Miguel Fernandez Belmonte, art historian, and the opening will take place on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, at the Municipal Art Gallery of Mykonos “Maria Iglessi,” located at 33M Matogianni Street, at 8:30 p.m.

Nicholas Egon was an educated, cosmopolitan, multilingual, philhellene, and well-traveled man. He first came into contact with Greece in 1949, at a time when the country was still affected by the recent events of the Occupation and the Civil War. During his stay, he portrayed women, refugees, partisans, and orphaned children. At the same time, from the early 1950s, he embarked on a successful career as a portrait painter of European high society.

Alongside portraiture, another major aspect of Egon’s art is landscape painting. During his travels and stays in Egypt, Nigeria, Morocco, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Sicily, and Greece (from 1978 onwards), he depicted landscapes and archaeological sites. His Greek landscapes stand out within this body of work, presenting a wide range in terms of selected locations, times of day, seasons, and lighting conditions. Additionally, he possessed remarkable knowledge of the region through his discussions with distinguished historians, intellectuals, and archaeologists.

“Overall, Nicholas Egon’s art is characterized by the completeness of composition and his technical virtuosity with various media (oil, pastel, watercolor, charcoal, hematite, chalk). One can also distinguish the dynamic balance of colors in his landscapes and the distinctive handling of line in his portraits, and above all, his ability to consistently convey the personality of the people and the unique vibration and music of each place,” emphasizes the exhibition curator, Dr. Miguel Fernandez Belmonte, Art Historian.

Duration: Tuesday 1 July 2025 – Sunday 27 July 2025.

Venue: Municipal Gallery of Mykonos “Maria Iglesi”, Matogianni and Kalogera Rooms

Opening Hours: 11:00-14:00 & 19:00-23:00