Our Favorite Works by Nikos Gyftakis

Artist born in Athens, Greece in 1981, Nikos Gyftakis stands out for his ability to mix elements. With a fusion of styles, eras, materials, themes, this musician and visual artist makes time and space overlap.  He takes our hands and invites us for an infinite dance.  In order to take you to his discovery, Artsper offers a selection of the best works signed by Nikos Gyftakis! 

1. Self Portrait V, and the harmonious contradictions of Nikos Gyftakis

Like many of his works, the self-portrait is a place for Nikos Gyftakis to give voice to curves, moreso than defined lines. For the artist, the portrait, like the soul, is not static. On the contrary, it transforms and moves according to time and the environment. In Self Portrait V, the distortion is double: first, by use of his technique of a thousand curves. Then, with the movement of the hands, coming to knead his face as a child would play with modeling clay. It’s work which juggles virtuosity with chaos and harmony.

2. Midsommar, the surrealist journey of Nikos Gyftakis

In his work Midsommar, Nikos Gyftakis pays a dual homage, with a background of sweet melancholy. Alluding to Edouard Manet and the English new wave group Bow Wow Wow, he resurrects a joyous moment.  As if it had never really been extinguished, Gyftakis offers us here a surrealist journey, mixing eras, themes and materials. The 1980s rub shoulders with the 19th century, puritanical thought dialogues with the sulphurous spirit, while painting and embroidery compete for the spotlight. A delicious loss of reference, in which we like to melt for long minutes.

3. RealityCheck, or the plurality of a moment

Presented at the Biennale of Western Balkans festival in 2018, RealityCheck plunges us into a parallel universe. In search of identity, in pursuit of a reality, the character seems lost in an absurd and disjointed world. Colorful embroideries, black and white photography, a golden frame and even fluorescent pink neon answer each other. This work shows, once again, the incredible mastery of Nikos Gyftakis when it comes to mixing mediums. RealityCheck is the story of a moment, marked by all the previous ones.

4. Dimitra, the liquid love of Nikos Gyftakis

In his series Liquid Friends, the artist’s loved ones are shot in colorful portraits. Its eternal curves take the shape of facial features, but also express a river of expressions, emotions, melodious thoughts. Turning his friends into water, Nikos Gyftakis lets their particularities flow from the tip of his brush. For the spirit never stops, just as our identity is constantly evolving, undulating, organic. It is through this incessant flow that Gyftakis likes to create his portraits. An ode to our individual complexity, as well as to our capacity for resilience.

5. WoMan? rethinks cultural conventions through images

Through this clever detour, Nikos Gyftakis questions cultural conventions. Once again, the eras overlap and the questions multiply, challenging the spectators. Does this assemblage surprise you? Does it intrigue you? But why, exactly? The work – and its catchy character – is a pretext to talk about something else. Gyftakis proposes here to stop for a few moments and to question certain established values. An opportunity to use art to challenge outdated cultural stereotypes!

Nikos Gyftakis, an individual and collective liquor

For Nikos Gyftakis, reality is made of curves in perpetual movement. His painting is endowed with an infinite musicality, with an almost liquor-like fluidity. He juggles themes with mediums, to immerse us melodiously into his art. Passionate about questions of identity, he questions social conventions as well as individual particularities. What is your favorite work of this extraordinary artist?