Paintings and drawings in Greece is a special experience. It is a popular destination for culture, travel and escape enthusiasts. His varied landscapes of the Peloponnese, the Cycladic Islands and the mountains of Athens offer an incredible diversity of painting subjectPainting pictures and paintings in Greece is a special experience. It is a popular destination for lovers of culture, travel and escape. Its varied landscapes of the Peloponnese, the Cycladic Islands or the mountains of Athens offer an incredible diversity of painting subjects. Cities like Delphi, Delos or Corinth have a complementary attraction to Mainland Greece. When traveling, it is common to see Ferries going from one island to another.
The ocher earth of its hills combines with the olive green of eucalyptus or olive trees. This gives a striking contrast of colors with those of the Aegean Sea which oscillates between turquoise blue and ultramarine.
Contrasting greek landscapes
History is not left out either: it is common to see everywhere in the landscapes, vestiges of Greek Antiquity. Temples, Doric, Ionic or Corinthian columns, statues from Ancient Greece with slender silhouettes which sculpt a backdrop conducive to going back to ancient times.
The Cyclades archipelago is made up of many Greek islands, such as Paros, Naxos, Ios, Syros … Some are confidential but others have a strong tourist reputation. They are emblematic by their personality like Santorini, Rhodes or Mykonos. Basilicas, churches, houses, farms or any type of infrastructure, there are many paintings from Greece that deserve the attention of painters.
The hills of white houses are a splendor: immaculate buildings, clinging to each other in endless entanglements amidst which gallop cacti and palm trees. The promise of the invitation to travel is there indeed. It is in the shade of these trees and these beautiful homes that we come to seek freshness and softness.
Islands with different personalities
Athens are much deIf the small villages are relaxing, the larger cities like Ermoupoli, Ios, Hora and naturally Athens are much denser. The narrow streets winding between the houses evoke an endless maze. An urban labyrinth in which it is good to get lost. Greek panoramas are thus agglomerates of a homogeneous architecture which offer abstract compositions of square volumes of houses.
Fortunately, the sea is never far to cool off and take a step back from these stifling urban heat. What a joy then to put the easel on the beaches to paint the best that the island has to offer. This is evidenced by the many relaxing landscapes rocked by the flow of the waves.
Even in the heart of cities it is possible to cool off. You don’t have to go far to draw pretty houses at the foot of which the turquoise sea licks the thousand-year-old stone foundations of these dwellings.
The archaeological sites in which are the ruins of Greek mythology, and the statues of Apollo, Isis, the ancient temples of Dionysus and of course the Acropolis or the Parthenon, remind us that the Aegean Sea is the cradle of civilization .
If Greece is an artistic and eminently tourist destination, a local population inhabit these islands year round. These scenes of everyday life make it possible to draw these Greek cities while retaining a little authenticity. Without the postcard look of Greece, but to capture the authentic Cycladic, Ionian or Crete sweetness of life.
Exhibition at the Strogili Art Gallery
The Strogili Art Gallery presents my watercolors made throughout my trip to Greece. I will be lucky enough to be able to exhibit my paintings and paintings in this art gallery in Fira, the main town of Santorini.
Strogili Art Gallery
Erithrou Stavrou, Thira 847 00, Greece
Phone. : +30 2286 022247
Website: https://strogiliart.gr
Paintings and drawings in Greece on location
In most cases, I paint directly on the spot in order to get a better feel for the atmosphere to be captured. On canvas, watercolor paper, with or without an easel, I bring India ink, drawing clips, brushes and gouache.
The beach and seaside of Mykonos captured from the seaside promenade.
Indian ink sketches set in color with watercolors from the heights of the city.
Santorini and Cyclades islands
Volcanic, Santorini is undoubtedly the city that impressed me the most with its breathtaking panorama. A Greek landscape bordered by cliffs that can be admired for hours on end from the many café terraces, ideal for lazing around. The ouzo with delicious souvlaki or a Greek salad will only be more refreshing. A little Mediterranean air thus blows during a welcome stopover during a vacation in Greece.
But it is the nightlife that reigns in these timeless places that you can fully appreciate your trip to Greece. On a cruise or off the beaten track, island life is rich and intense. The old towns come out of their torpor and come alive to the sound, not of sirtakis, but of DJs who take over the place.
Indian ink drawing of the main town on the island of Ios. Its silhouette is reminiscent of the eastern cities, with its picturesque monasteries, which rise up not far from the beautiful fine sandy beaches.
Clinging to the hill, the yet minimalist houses accumulate in a complex architecture in which the palm trees struggle to find their way.
The sensation is the same on the paradisiacal islands of Kos, Agios, Paros, Naxos, Lesbos and Corfu.
Painting equipment
This is typically the ideal set that includes a little more equipment than just the watercolor box. Several tubes of gouache with colors determined in advance depending on the destination. A palette, a bucket for water, a cloth for the brushes are transported carefully in their case. This painting material allows painting in any situation.
To make paintings and paintings in Greece I favored cobalt blue, turquoise, sienna, scorched earth and a lot of ocher color.
Regarding the vegetation of emerald green broken with golden yellow or ultramarine blue. This allows you to find the foliage of palm trees, eucalyptus, olive trees and multiple cacti.
During my travels, very often paintings and watercolors begin with an ink drawing. I never draw with a pencil. I always sketch my composition in Indian ink. Before doing this painting of Mykonos, I started with these Doric columns in the foreground before building my perspective.
The city itself can only be seen from the background.
One of my best moments is certainly this one: a watercolor of Little Venice of Mykonos – Mycenae, done in the shade of a cafe, with my feet in the water. The Ionian Sea was so close that I painted this watercolor with the crystal clear waters of the Aegean Sea. Beautiful excursions, from Ithaca to Meteora via Evia and Delos, allow you to shine and enjoy a stay in Greece from Piraeus, the port of the Greek capital.
Travel to Greece is so dense that you have to divide up geographic areas and make choices. The best is to check your tour in Greece: depending on whether you are tempted by the archaeological sites of Heraklion or Thessaly, whether you want to escape mass tourism, perhaps the pebble beaches or the islands mountainous areas better preserved than the most beautiful beaches? Byzantine charm or Mount Olympia are listed as World Heritage by Unesco. It’s not for nothing. The Peninsula has many charms and monuments to discover.