By G.K. Karatzas
Painter Nikos Moschos has the honor of seeing a largely retrospective exhibition hosted at the Basilica of Saint Mark, in the center of Heraklion, Crete, where he was born and raised.
At 40 years old, Nikos Moschos is one of the most prominent and recognizable painters of his generation, thanks to his distinctive style—participating in exhibitions in Greece and abroad, and attracting the interest of both private collectors and institutions, even in today’s challenging art market. Born in Heraklion, Crete, and now living and working in Athens, Moschos is not a painter of the “glittering shop window,” but of the “inner human world,” with a devoted and loyal circle of interlocutors.
He is currently in the final stages of preparing for an exhibition honoring his work and his overall presence in the visual arts. Entitled “Marginally Human”, the show has a retrospective character, featuring works from 2012 to the present—drawn mainly from private collections, alongside some new pieces. Organized by the Region of Crete and the Municipality of Heraklion, the exhibition will open to the public on Friday, July 12, 2019, at the Municipal Art Gallery of Heraklion / Basilica of Saint Mark, and will run until August 29.
A catalogue will accompany the exhibition, with texts by art historian Christoforos Marinos and James Wright, Emeritus Professor of Classical Archaeology.
Regarding this exhibition, art historian Christoforos Marinos comments:
“Painting is, beyond a way of life, an ethical activity, and Moschos’ works reveal our relationship with the world. If we were to compile a vocabulary reflecting the aesthetics and the feeling his works exude, the most representative words would be: ‘amalgam,’ ‘alloy,’ ‘maelstrom,’ ‘mishmash,’ ‘crucible.’ Moschos’ painting—always at a ‘boiling point’—addresses philosophical questions: about violence, humanism, coexistence. The clash of forms in his paintings is directly related to the concept of posthumanism, meaning it translates into a philosophical confrontation over the future of humanity.”
Biographical note: Nikos Moschos was born in 1979 in Heraklion, Crete. He studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts (1997–2003). He lives and works in Athens.
He has held six solo exhibitions: in 2016 at SWAB Art Fair (Barcelona) with ENA Contemporary Gallery; in 2014 at SWAB Art Fair (Barcelona) with ALMA Gallery; in 2013 at Art Athina with Gallery Penindaplinena (Athens); in 2012 at Xippas Gallery (Athens); in 2010 at Galerie Theorema (Brussels); and in 2007 at Ekfrasi – Gianna Grammatopoulou Gallery (Athens).
He has participated in numerous group exhibitions in Greece and abroad, including at the Benaki Museum, Athens (2004, 2007, 2009); the State Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki (2007); Art Athina (2005–2015); as well as in Italy (Bologna 2003, Venice 2008, Rome 2009, Palermo / Museo Diocesano 2019, Genoa / Museo di Sant’Agostino 2019); in Beijing (2008); Istanbul (2010); Brussels (2010, 2011); Vienna (2014); New York (2015); Berlin (2015); and Szczecin / Castle of the Pomeranian Dukes (2019), among others.
He has created numerous works for book covers, CDs, and magazines. His works are found in the Benaki Museum (Athens), Sammlung-Schirm (Berlin), PTE Fine Arts (New York), the Bernard Cheong Collection (Singapore), the A. Krausser Collection (Dubai), and in other private collections in Greece and abroad.