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The term Expressionism was coined to describe a reaction to the seemingly dominant realism and naturalism in the 1920s. This term was developed to capture the bold, personal subjectivity and dynamic composition that became hallmarks of the movement. Though the term may not fully capture the nuances of the movement, it nevertheless serves to characterise the contemplative nature of the art produced. Artists such as Kostis Georgiou creates work that demands and rewards contemplative looking at the methods, and implications of his work. One is tempted to say that breaking down the elements of his art, much like Expressionism and Modernism, would be an oversimplification. It is more accurate to say that we might isolate and magnify them.
One of Georgiou’s frequently used words is “soul”, which is sometimes paired with “heart”. This pairing can apply to all of his works, and it is a way into their bold aesthetics, suggesting not an initiation into esoteric knowledge, but rather a state of receptivity to what was present all along. Kostis Georgiou is an artist that challenges because his work conveys a primal authenticity that is rooted in the artist’s fundamentals. Georgiou may be the most challenging of these artists, precisely because his work seems to present a reconfiguration of composition or form.
This is only the case if one expects a simple picture, or an arrangement of colour, value, and imagery.
In “Sailor” we look at an accrual and manipulation of materials, whose inherent thick impasto technique and bold use of colour, the ridges and furrows of applied paint in dialogue with the distorted forms, the meticulously crafted frame, and ambient light all open the viewing experience to a range of nuance that cannot be neglected. His approach, reminiscent of Francis Bacon’s primordial intensity, prioritises in a tangible spatial context, a rich incident and is a powerful visual intensity that conveys a sense of urgency and flux.
One of Georgiou's frequently used words is “soul”, which is sometimes paired with “heart”.
Georgiou’s honesty and straightforwardness, both in his work and personality, sets him apart from artists given to complex theory or affected demonstrations. Despite this, his work is a razor-sharp critique of painting’s history, offering a powerful intervention into the tradition. His still lifes compositions push the possibilities of paint to its greatest limits, and their decisive symbolism situates the canvases at the very edge of Georgiou’s process-driven practice, isolating the most basic components of painting. The wholeness of a visually abundant painting makes a case for the primacy of experience, so that it is a fulfilled and renewable gift to the viewer.
The smaller and more distinctive piece “From Mare Nostrum series” follows through on the accumulation of experimentation that is his mode of working, with a dynamic and biomorphic representation that seems to move away from conventional depictions of matter. With thick strokes of azure, turquoise, and various greens creating an optical fluidity, in which the bold colours shift, representing a subversion of the usual spatial conventions of painting, as the cool colours of boundlessness, negate the boundaries of the canvas without erasing their presence, and exposing their essential elements. The use of vivid colours and organic shapes disrupts norms and unified structures, challenging traditional notions of what constitutes a codified painting. This raw, experiential aesthetic, which appears to leave room for renewal and growth, emphasises the importance of the viewer’s active engagement in the work.
Georgiou’s canvases, invite a consideration of the lineage and legacy of expressionistic painting. The distorted forms and visceral brushwork evoke the work of Mytaras Dimitris, yet Georgiou’s work is not merely an homage to the master painter, but rather an exploration of the expressive potential of the brushstroke. In Georgiou’s oeuvre, both painting and sculpture, exert influence over one another creating a dialectic of abstraction, expression, and materiality that defies easy categorisation. The result is a body of work that challenges conventional modes of appreciation and invites the viewer to engage with the art in new and surprising ways.
Reinventing painting and sculpture as a method rather than a style.
MORE THAN 30 WORKS ADORNED WITH METICULOUSLY CRAFTED FRAMES
The movement and organicity between painting and sculpture in Georgiou’s work creates a visual language that is both personal and universal, rooted in history yet pushing boundaries. This is what he has done with each of these works, building upon and realigning the parameters of his medium, reinventing painting and sculpture as methods rather than a style. In Georgiou’s work we witness the task of modernism in its fullest expression—the realignment of medium and meaning, the reinvention of painting as a method.
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