Dimitris Mytaras, Nereids

The painting Nereids by Dimitris Mytaras is a composition divided into 3 separate sections. Each section depicts the statue of a Nereid on its plinth. Mytaras attempted to create a painted rendition of the sculptures.

The background that frames the featured sculptures is neutral, without any additional elements. This is the artist’s way to highlight even further the presence and importance of the statues. The airy, floating impression they give out skilfully captures their symbolic nature.

The painting is dominated by stark designs and clear, bold colours. These features speak to the artist’s expressionist influences.

His life in a nutshell

Dimitris Mytaras (1934-2017) was born in Chalkis. He studied Painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts, under Spyros Papaloukas and Yiannis Moralis.

From 1961 to 1964 he continued his studies in Paris, where he attended Scenography classes at the École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs and Interior Design classes at the Institut National des Métiers d’Art.

In 2008 he was appointed regular member of the Academy of Athens and was awarded the Commander of the Order of the Phoenix badge. In the same year, the Municipality of Chalkis honoured him with the Gold Medal of the city.

Artistic influences

At the end of the 1960s, Mytaras, affected by the fall of democracy in Greece, turned towards critical realism, using photographic material and creating pieces with limited colour palettes.

His painting was then influenced by abstraction and evolved into a combination of expressionism and naturalism.

Favourite themes and artistic style

In the largest part of Dimitris Mytaras’ oeuvre, the themes are centred around people, often in the form of portraits.

The Greek deities were a subject he was particularly fond of, and this is why many of his paintings are representations of Ancient Greek works of art. He often placed them into a more contemporary environment.

The outline is not a simple structural element of the composition, but a main means of expression. Abstraction, linear freedom and colour intensities coexist with shrewd observation.

The emphasis on artistic qualities highlights Mytaras’ deeper relationship with the traditional values of painting.

An important teacher

Over the years 1964 to 1972, Dimitris Mytaras taught Interior Design at the Technological Educational Institute of Athens.

In 1977 he was appointed professor of Painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts, where he taught until 2001.

Nereids in Ancient Greek mythology

In Greek mythology, the Nereids were sea nymphs, daughters of Nereus and the Oceanid Doris.

As grand-daughters of the Ocean, they had the power to give human form to states and attributes of the sea. They could stir up or calm the waters whenever they so desired, and this is why they were worshipped as goddesses of the calm seas.

Proud of their immortality and renowned for their beauty, the Nereids would allow no mortal to match their charm.

The painting Nereids by Dimitris Mytaras hangs on the ground floor of the Alpha Bank building on 45 Panepistimiou Street, Athens.

You can visit it by appointment. Contact us to book your visit.