The Historical Archive of the National Bank of Greece (HA/NBG) is organising a periodic exhibition dedicated to the distinguished Greek engraver Lambros Orfanos. Orfanos, an executive at the Bank of Greece, contributed to the engraving of a large number of Greek banknotes during the 1960s and 1970s. His technique and the quality of his work enabled the Greek state to proceed safely with the domestic engraving of banknotes, no longer needing to turn to foreign companies as in the past. Orfanos’s work, however, was broader in scope and also encompassed specialised printing tasks for the Greek public sector (the Social Insurance Organisation for Farmers – OGA, Hellenic Post – ELTA, among others), most of which were printed by Aspiotis-ELKA Graphic Arts Company SA, as well as personal artistic creations. The HA/NBG exhibition seeks, through micro-narratives, to present his work comprehensively and, through the material evidence of his labour, to trace the footprint of his activity in the international arena.

The exhibition is organised by the HA/NBG in collaboration with the engraver’s son, Minoas Orfanos, who has kindly made available to the HA/NBG almost the entire body of exhibits for this purpose. Some of these items have already been incorporated as his donation into the HA/NBG’s permanent collections. A small number of exhibits are on loan from other institutions, such as archival material from the Bank of Greece and the artist’s self-portrait from the collection of the Cultural Foundation of the National Bank of Greece.

Lambros Orfanos’s works are hosted within the exhibition spaces of the Diomidis Mansion, so as to function interpretively in combination with the historical documents of specific thematic units of the permanent exhibitions. The latter concern the history of the Greek banknote (1822–2002), the history of the National Bank of Greece, and aspects of the trajectory of the Aspiotis-ELKA Graphic Arts Company. As a result, a new exhibition narrative is created, in dialogue with the existing ones, which enhances the interpretative power of the exhibits and simultaneously enriches the overall experience of the HA/NBG visitor.